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Having experienced the very exciting trailer online, I went in expecting greatness. Besides, just a few months earlier I was fortunate to catch another discarded Miramax gem, Below. Perhaps my expectations were set far too high, or maybe it was just snowing too hard that night? Because, boy, was I disappointed! Sure, the cursory things about Equilibrium are fantastic, like The Matrix-esque costume design, the future world ripped off from 1984, and the fact that the main characters are called "Grammaton Clerics." And I didn't want much more than a simple action-packed, futuristic morality play. But what the other thirteen viewers and I got was so much less than even that.

The year is, oh, I don't remember, but who really cares besides those marketing folks? It is sometime in the future, after man has all but destroyed himself. A great world leader has duped humankind into believing that emotions, and anything inciting emotions (i.e. paintings, books, etc.) are the root of all evil and must be Fahrenheit 451'd. To enforce the figure-less dictator's teachings, a new breed of super cops are developed, the aforementioned "Grammaton Clerics." Oh, that and "Prozium," a drug every person must inject into his or her neck daily to dull sensory perception. Given almost unlimited power, the black-clad clerics (who also happen to be fearless martial artists a la The Matrix) can take out the bad guys with the greatest of ease, and do so many times, usually after ten minutes of the Gestapo-like machine gunning of everything in sight. The dramatic conflict arises as the top Cleric misses a dose and starts to feel... emotions. Interesting paradox ensues, but more often than not, it all leads up to a big action scene.

Equilibrium is a muddled action-allegory that doesn't know what it wants to be and tries too hard when it does. The writing is the biggest detriment, as writer and director Kurt Wimmer blatantly borrows from every sci-fi movie ever made and takes the superficial road already much traveled. Here, he unremittingly pummels us with vignette after vignette, exposing the audience to how awful it is to be without emotion, yet without ever truly delving into any greater theme beyond the obvious. I can understand that feeling emotions are good and a dictatorship is bad, but then I already knew these things going in. Without even the slightest anticipation that I would be surprised, slogging through all the poor exposition about why in this futuristic world we've lost touch with our "feelings" is tiresome, and I quickly lost interest. Equilibrium's heavy-handedness, coupled with the over-the-top action and ridiculous Forrest Gump ending, effectively cancels itself out.

Perhaps with lowered expectations and knowing that the climax may be worth waiting for, you may like Equilibrium. Yes, there are lots of guns and bullets. Yes, even with a low budget the production values are often spectacular. Yes, there are plot twists here and there that are fun. But as a whole? I can see why Miramax pulled the plug on this one. Even a cast of wonderfully talented (and very underutilized) actors, including Christian Bale, Taye Diggs, and Emily Watson, can't save it. But perhaps the person who should be worried the most is Wimmer, whose next project is apparently headed in the same "seen-it-all-before" direction... I fear a terrible Michael Bay cloning may have taken place.

I wanted to enjoy Equilibrium, I really did - who isn't excited by the prospect of new and exciting sci-fi? - and I am very glad that there are people who did dig it. And I'd love to see more of this type of para-independent filmmaking. But for now, I'll have to settle and get my thought provoking allegories out of movies that don't really want to be popcorn munchin' action extravaganzas.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

Miramax presents Equilibrium in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1, and it is anamorphically encoded. This is a wonderful-looking film, and the transfer first rate. The color palette is nearly colorless, and fleshtones are almost a mute point as everyone in the future seems to wear sunblock 105. But contrast is superb with near-perfect blacks, and seeing as how they make up nearly 90 percent of the wardrobe, they hold stable throughout with only the very rare murkiness sneaking in. Another noteworthy aspect is the fantastic amount of shadow detail in this very dark movie. Every crease of the leather outfits is easily detectable. Edge enhancement is kept to a very reasonable level, and I only noticed infrequent shimmering in some of the more busy scenes. Small caveats aside, this transfer nearly makes the film worth watching.

Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

If groovy video wasn't enough, Miramax has included a stellar Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, recorded at 448 kbps. Surround use is present in every scene, whether reproducing atmospheric city noises or blasting out ricochet after ricochet. The rear channels continue to get a fierce work out with pans from the front of the soundstage to the rear and all around. Dialogue is firmly placed in the center channel. The true star of the sonic show is the LFE. The score is laden with deep tunes and the effects loaded with deep tones. This mix is a lot of fun!

The only other options are English captions encoded as subtitles, and true Closed Captions for the hearing impaired.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

I often wonder what it would take to make a good audio commentary for a bad movie. Welp, here we get not only one but two! The first is with writer and director Kurt Wimmer. He seems a tad bit on the ostentatious side, but keeps his chatting very interesting throughout almost the entire flick. Lots of great filmmaking techniques are shared, and how he kept the budget in check despite such an ambitious concept. The second commentary is with Wimmer again and producer Lucas Foster. Foster pipes up with the infrequent question or statement for Wimmer, but it is the director again who shines. Hard as it may be to believe, he almost never replicates anything in his first commentary. Two for the price of one! Excellent.

Next is a promo featurette kinda deal entitled Finding Equilibrium. This 4-odd minute silly short is comprised of one half film clips and the other half moronic actors and filmmakers blabbing. Judging by their comments, none have read anything older than the last swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated. Entirely skippable.

Last but not least is the obligatory Sneak Peek section, with four theatrical trailers in full screen and Dolby 5.1: Dracula II: Ascension, Invincible, Below and Kill Bill (in non-anamorphic widescreen).

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

No ROM extras have been included.

Parting Thoughts