“Prozium – The great nepenthe. Opiate of our masses. Glue of our great society. Salve and salvation, it has delivered us from pathos, from sorrow, the deepest chasms of melancholy and hate. With it, we anesthetize grief, annihilate jealousy, obliterate rage. Those sister impulses towards joy, love, and elation are anesthetized in stride, we accept as fair sacrifice. For we embrace Prozium in its unifying fullness and all that it has done to make us great” – Quote from “The Father”, in the movie “Equilibrium”
I’ve never started my articles with a movie quote, but I think this one above is relevant for you to understand the theme and general feel of “Equilibium”. This film can be easily considered the “New 1984”, or “Matrix Meets 1984”. Why do I say this? Well, because the movie talks about an authoritarian rule, a dystopia where the people are controlled not only by fear of punishment, but also through the aid of a miracle cure, Prozium. A cure for what, you might ask? Well, as we find out in the opening credits, the outbreak of The Third World War has determined leaders to find the source of human conflict… and that is basic human emotions: anything from suicidal madness, let’s say, to sheer mind blowing happiness. Every single manifestation is considered to be a source of conflict and, thus, illegal. YES, human emotions, the ones that should differentiate us from machines, have been outlawed and any such displays shall be punishable by death in the fire pit. But that’s not all.
Image source: http://wallpapersus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/christian-bale-equilibrium-600×337.png
The Grammatons, highly trained in a combination of martial arts and gun use (Gun Kata), dressed in long black clothes (like the ones Neo wore in “Matrix”), have the responsibility to annihilate the rebellion, destroy the offenders and the forbidden objects that were undoubtedly hidden. This is all fine and dandy, but what happens if you forget or refuse to take your medicine? The answer is simple: you start to feel, like a normal human being. But this also means that you shall be captured and executed, not particularly in that order. What is the outcome for this? Can an authoritarian-ruled city-state survive like this forever? Can no one save the citizens from themselves?
The movie itself is not bad. It’s rated at 7.6 on IMDb, better that the original “1984″ at 7.2, something that I don’t agree with at all. I would give “Equilibrium” a 7. “The movie presents a very dark future, in a place where being human is basically against the law. But the idea that you can control emotions in such a way is ridiculous. I mean, every decision that we make implies a small or large percentage of positive or negative emotions. You can’t eliminate them 100%, because you wouldn’t be able to make anymore decisions. At least, that’s how I see it. Besides that, the movie is believable, well done, nicely presented. And also, Christian Bale performs beyond expectations. It’s clear that the bad-boy authority-figure roles are the best for him. So, see it, don’t see it… I’m not sure what to recommend. Perhaps you could give it a try, at least for the action, Matrix-like fight scenes and Christian Bale.
***OPENING IMAGE SOURCE <<HERE>>
I’m sad to say I had never heard of this movie before reading your blog. It sounds really interesting… It reminds me of this great short story by David Tallerman called “Jenny’s Sick” about the world after all illnesses are cured, but some people take pills to feel sick again — similar to this movie about wanting to feel emotions after they’re “cured.” I will definitely check out this film soon!
Glad you like it! I think it’s kind of hard to believe that an injection could restrain all human emotions… That would be the downside of Equilibrium… besides that, the movie is not bad at all. I haven’t heard of David Tallerman, but after your description, I’m sure to give his works a try! Thanks for stopping by!
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is there a coincidence that you’rewatching Bale, just before the end of Batman :-p? i was fascinated of “Equilibrium” when i first saw it. i’m a huge fan of SF movie, which leads our imagination to a dystopian world from the future. is a perfect balance beween drama and the power of a message. you choosed the greatest quote from the movie
Matrix Meets 1984- agree!
I wasn’t thinking of Batman, when I wrote about this movie with Christian Bale in it… I just write about good movies with good actors and Christian Bale happens to be a hell of a good actor
, in my opinion. Glad you liked “Equilibrium”. I did too! Also thanks for agreeing with my description and the quote. I’ve heard “The Matrix Meets 1984″ so many times that I had to include it… Thanks for the comment and good luck with everything!