Foreign Language Centre

Andrew Karasik upper-intermediate/ advanced level

Written and directed by Kurt Wimmer In a Future Where

Produced by Jan De Bont, Lucas Foster Freedom Is Outlawed

Outlaws Will Become Heroes

L i s t o f c h a r a c t e r s:

P r e s t o n (Christian Bale) – a top ranking government agent responsible for destroying

those who resist the state regime and the only person

capable of overthrowing it.

P a r t r i d g e (Sean Bean) – Preston’s partner who supports Resistance, fighting for

freedom and thus challenging the whole governmental

system.

D u p o n t (Agnus MacFadyen) – an arrogant fanatical tyrant who manipulates human lives

to quench his thirst for power. Being the actual head of

the state he prefers to remain safely anonymous.

B r a n d t (Taye Diggs) – Preston’s new partner who takes the rank as a career-

making advancement and tries to sully Preston’s good

name to win Dupont’s favour.

R o b b i e (William Fisher) – Preston’s son who pretends to follow his father’s career

secretly opposing the tyrannical regime of the state.

M a r y (Emily Watson) – a resistance fighter who challenges Preston crashing his

stereotypes and helps him to find a new meaning of life.

J u r g e n (Mathew Harbour) – head of the Resistance who devotes all his life to free his

country from the tyranny.

Dear friends & colleagues,

I’m both very happy & proud to bring this film research to your attention. The choice of the material is by no means coincidental. There’re lots of famous films everyone knows & talks about – Bonds, historical films such as Titanic, Braveheart, Spartacus, drama films like Shindlers List, City of Andels, Shallow Grave, there’re brilliant & hilarious comedies, breathtaking action films, ingenious sci-fi films like Matrix trilogy, Vanilla Sky or Total Recall & of course there’re intellectual riddles like Tarkovskiy’s films, Cube or Revolver.

But I haven’t chosen any of these. Equilibrium is not a well-known film, moreover, very few people heard of it, but nevertheless I can assure you that it is no doubt one of the greatest films in cinematography. Why? Because this film deals with one of the most vital problems of modern times – the problem of totalitarianism, which plagued most of the globe in the XX century known as communism and fascism, and is still ruining people’s lives these days. One of the tragedies is that many people don’t view this as disaster at all but still consider it the best state of events. Such people still have slavery mentality. There’re still statues of Lenin for people to worship everywhere in Russia, there’re Lenin streets & squares almost in every towns & cities despite of the fact that that was one of the most brutal tyrant in the history of the world… A few years ago I was stopped in the streets of London by a lady asking me to join communist movement there, arguing that it is the best system in the world...

Equilibrium just deals with a very similar situation. It’s a sci-fi fiction film, but contrary to the most of films of same genre Equilibrium is very realistic. The action takes place in the world where freedom is outlawed, where everyone worships the head of the state, & where people are devoid of the greatest gift of mankind – free will, which is also known as freedom of choice. And similar to communism or fascism people are given very sweet-sounding reasons for that regime… with one purpose – to disguise the actual purpose of that, to bring everyone under control, to manipulate citizens in order to have absolute tyrannical power. Fear rules the country, no one is sure his or her closest relative won’t report them to the state control organisation and that they won’t be executed tomorrow. And of course everyone is telling each other that they are very happy… Because if they won’t… But still there’s an opposition – & as it is well know “it’s impossible to overthrow the system without being a part of it.”

I’m not telling you whether there’ll be a happy end here or a bitter one. You’ve got to live through Equilibrium on your own. This is the second edition of the book, I’ve split the film into 32 logical sequences, diversified the studying material & split the vocabulary into two categories: the active vocabulary words which are to be learned, practised & used in your speech, & optional word necessary to understand the film. I’ve captured all the scenes in the episodes, so that after you go through the book from start to finish I guarantee you that you’ll understand it better than native speakers as there’s no film material missed. Please don’t run forward & look through the new material which you haven’t taken so far as it will damage the studying process, your understanding of the film & you won’t enjoy it the way you can.

I hope to both teach you genuine English, as this film was not adopted or abridged, & I also expect you not only to enjoy the film (which you no doubt will) but to reconsider this problem & at least not be so light-hearted about it as very sadly most of our citizens are…

Best wishes always,

19/I/2006

Andrey Vladimirovich Karasik

Basic obligatory active vocabulary words necessary to understand the episodes;
riddle – загадка; capacity – способность; to infiltrate – проникать; to hit – (about an idea or the truth) осенять; undetected – необнаруженный; midst– середина; provocateur – провокатор; political puppet – политическая марионетка; to pursue – продолжать; paternal– отцовский, отеческий; saviour – избавитель, спаситель;	to mind – беречь, оберегать; millennium –тысячелетие; conquest –завоевание;

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