OPENS AUGUST 6, CERT 12A, 115 MINS
Based on an Isaac Asimov story, this is state-of-the-art sci-fi, slick and silvery. Directed by Alex Proyas, it’s intelligent, if not dauntingly so. Enjoyment’s boosted by the fact Will Smith makes the kind of him-against-the-world hero you can’t help rooting for. He’s muted the wisecracks, but man he looks cool in mid-air on a motorbike with two futuristic guns blazing.
It’s 2035, and robots are everywhere: helpful, industrious, courteous. But did a rogue machine bump off a scientist? Chicago cop Spooner (Smith) thinks so. Of course, nobody believes him, and you could run a book on how long it takes before his boss asks for his badge. With help from a psychologist (Bridget Moynahan), Will chases the errant, but there’s a full-on rise of the machines brewing, and our man’s motivation is fuelled by secrets of his own…
The robots, cityscapes, bangs and crashes make Minority Report seem as up-to-the-minute as Fritz Lang. Chrome sweet chrome.