The Adjustment Bureau Not Accurate of Christianity



The Adjustment Bureau Movie Poster


Be Forewarned: This post talks about the movie, The Adjustment Bureau. If you haven't seen this movie, and don't want any details spoiled for you, turn back now.

My wife and I were actually going to the circus. It was sold out by chance, so we wound up at the movie theater. What I didn't know was that my wife actually was wanting us to see a different movie. But fate had us go to the movie that didn't allow chance, the movie titled: The Adjustment Bureau.

I went into this movie with an open mind. I wasn't sure if the adjustment bureau was comprised of angels, but I had a feeling that it was.  So after seeing the movie, I would have to say that the entities in the movie were vague about themselves.  They didn't call themselves Angels, and the Chairman was not referred to as God at any point. Since there are many religious people in America, we can only assume that the movie writers want us to think that the bureau is composed of angels under the direct command of God.

The main character is David Norris (played by Matt Damon), a young politician that bumps into the woman of his dreams out of chance on two separate occasions. He then seeks her out for the rest of the movie, despite being told that this is not in his plan.

Also keep in mind here, that I did not read Philip K. Dick's original story, The Adjustment Team, from which this movie is based. Since I don't know the source material, I am giving my opinion of this movie based as its own entity.

From a Christian standpoint, the theology in this movie is not correct. That is obvious from the start.  One member of the bureau, named Thompson (played by John Slattery), curses numerous times out of frustration, including one time using G D. Angels would clearly not sin, and they definitely would not use God's name in vain. Another inconsistency with Christianity comes in the finality of the movie. The main characters overcome all obstacles to be together. This is great, except that it comes at the expense of the Chairman changing his mind to re-write "The Plan" of their lives. The implications: This character, whom we presume to be God, basically concedes to the free will of man to change His mind. Wrong! The God of Christianity does not change his mind like this.

The adjuster Harry Mitchell (played by Anthony Mackie), says in the final scene that the Chairman is everywhere, you might have seen him, it might be a her, or an idea, etc. This statement that the Chairman is not defined, and making the Chairman unknown is a very troubling statement. It says to me that the writers want to make sure to not offend anyone, and that God is unknowable - which is not true in Christianity. Our society is consciously attempting to be Politically Correct (PC), and by doing so, the truth gets watered down.

The main issue dealt with in this movie, is the conflicting idea of (Predetermined) Fate vs. Free Will. The character, Thompson (played by Terence Stamp), is the powerhouse "adjuster" that has been in the business for a long time - delves into the history of Fate vs. Free Will on society. His character tells David Norris that they tried allowing people to make their own choices, and it didn't work out for them. He then named off World War I and II and then said that is when they (the bureau) took control of things for mankind's own good. Then there was a period of "controlled fate" and then man was given another period of Free Will, and now (present-day in the movie) it is back to the bureau making adjustments to keep everything according to plan. This conflicts with Christianity, because man has always been given the choice (allowed by Free Will), and man always will have the choice.

The God who created us will continue to give us our own Free Will to make our own decisions, and will not change His mind like the Chairman in the movie, The Adjustment Bureau.

This movie really gets you thinking about things in life, and can even inspire you to take advantage of the fact that we live in a country that is free, but it came at a price. Will you fight for these freedoms that are being challenged every day and will you stand up for what is right morally? In that way, you can and should use your Free Will to fight for truth, justice, and the American way.


More Content! Be sure to also check out my article on the Yahoo! Contributor Network, titled: Glory in God's Word.