by Matt Damon, after his recent comedic turn in Informant! (2009) (and his “true story” war film, Green Zone (2010), heading towards theaters this spring) joins the sci-fi genre in the latest Philip K. Dick adaptation, The Adjustment Bureau.
Philip K. Dick’s short stories have gotten some good treatment in the past (“Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” became Blade Runner; “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale” became Total Recall and Minority Report (2002) was based on his short story of the same name – among many others), so chances are good this adaptation of his short story “Adjustment Team” will turn out well.
Matt Damon, who has already revived the action hero spy in his Bourne films, should be able to do a good job adapting this role to the public as well. He always seems to be at his best when adapting novel characters to the big screen, so this should be another solid performance from him.
Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada), on the other hand, isn’t as much of a comfort in her role in the film. Since she’s only shown up in less popular films since (Dan in Real Life and The Great Buck Howard). most won’t recognize her as a leading actress, so won’t be so willing to bet on her.
With Matt Damon in a title role and the idea of another Philip K. Dick adaptation two solid positives for The Adjustment Bureau, however, Emily Blunt’s lack of mainstream exposure since Devil shouldn’t hurt the film’s chances of hitting big. Of course, Emily’s upcoming turn in Wolfman (2010) may make her crowd appeal rise or fall, depending on that film’s success – either making this a moot point, or re-emphasizing her status as the weak point of The Adjustment Bureau
The only question, really, is if the odd concept of sci-fi and romance will play well with the summer crowds, or if this latest adaptation should have waited for a fall release, rather than choosing to duke it out with the big films of summer. Guess we’ll find out if Philip’s box office success will continue when The Adjustment Bureau hits theaters on July 30th.
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