Minority Report

Minority Report (2002) is Exhibit A of how screenwriters love the premises of Philip K. Dick’s source materials and then adapt his core thought experiments into genres that get people in theatres. Mike and Dan discuss the ways in which Minority Report examines a thorny idea laden with ethical complexities while also offering Spielberg at his popcorn-selling best. We get serious questions about the ways in which solutions to enduring problems are bound by trade-offs and human fallibility—but we also get jetpacks. It’s part A Clockwork Orange and part Mission: Impossible. So put your eyes back in that baggie—it’s an audio podcast, after all—and give it a listen! If you’re interested in the short story and the ways it differs from the film (besides the protagonist being a very un-Tom-Cruise balding and overweight guy), check out The Minority Report and Other Classic Stories. You may also be interested in the book mentioned in Part 1 of the episode: Thomas Sowell’s A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles. Follow us on X or Letterboxd. Incredible bumper music by John Deley.