Based on a short story by Sci-Fi writer Philip K. Dick, Minority Report has been met with mixed reviews. Perhaps this is due to the hodge-podge of both good and bad elements that curiously make up the whole.

The plot has a good premise, albeit taken from someone else's story. The idea of a not-too-distant future where law-enforcement predicts your crimes before you commit them is both intriguing and frightening. The imaginative, futuristic sets and good special effects are Speilberg trademarks, but unfortunately, so are hand-fed plot revelations and sugar-coated and predictable endings.

A pre-crime unit established in 2054 Washington D.C. utilizes nightmarish premonitions from three 'Pre-Cogs' to predict murders. If one 'Pre-Cog' sees something the other two do not, then a 'Minority Report' is produced (hence, the title).

Wooden balls with the victim and perpetrator's names are sent through an elaborate looking bubble gum dispenser, and Cruise then glues together the visions' scattered pieces on a giant screen like a symphony composer on speed. After the crime is predicted, Jet-pack riding super-cops are dispatched to the scene to make an arrest, hopefully before tragedy strikes. "The system is perfect." But this Ashcroft-ian utopia comes crumbling down when someone sets up our diminutive star, accusing him of the future murder of a man he's never even met. At this point, the movie boils down to a meandering, one-hour chase scene where the moviegoer is asked to suspend belief on several occasions.

The audience will often find themselves scratching their heads and wondering why characters, when presented with an obstacle, would react in such a counter-productive and asinine manner. Better to pretend it didn't happen, as unresolved frustration never helped anyone. The obvious plot holes and often silly events could be overlooked if perhaps the cast had rioted and performed a different ending than the one that was scripted. But that would be ridiculous.

If you walk out on this movie before plot point III, perhaps you will come away with some satisfaction. But if you would like to witness the comedy, as I did, of one single person clapping at the credits while the rest of the audience laughs at him, by all means stay to the end.

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