Free Will and Determinism in The Adjustment Bureau

In the notable film The Adjustment Bureau, director and writer George Nolfi creates a suspenseful tale that perfectly illustrates the tension between determinism and free will. The majority of the film focuses on bad-boy politician David Norris, who is in the middle of a Senate race when the film opens. However, as David concedes the Senate race after an embarrassing prank is revealed in the news, he meets the love of his life in a men’s restroom, and then accidentally discovers The Adjustment Bureau, who are hell-bent on keeping David on the course of his pre-determined plan (which does not happen to include Elise).

The Adjustment Bureau is a team of men that “adjust” one’s actions if they are making choices that do not fall in line with their overall plan. In the beginning of the movie, we are told that humankind previously had complete free will, but after the Dark Ages and World War II, it was taken away to prevent total human destruction of the world. Although we are only told that there is a chairman who enforces all the plans, it is unclear who exactly is responsible for the creation of each individual’s plan. It is not explicitly stated, but I believe that the chairman is meant to symbolize GOD. Due to the presence of an omniscient GOD, the Adjustment Bureau could fall between a Theological Determinism and Newtonian Determinism structure, but I feel that it leans more towards Newtonian Determinism. In the Classical Categories reading, Newtonian Determinism is described to work in this way: “every decision you make is set up by previous situations and influences so that when you make a choice it is not freely made by you, but is a product of a previous action,” (Classical Categories Reading). This concept was demonstrated in the film when the members of the bureau explained to David that he is presented several options by the Adjustment Bureau, and he is then given the free will to choose between the options before him. Once he makes a choice, his plan is slightly altered, and new options are created to ensure that his subsequent actions are still in line with the overall plan. The amount of free will that humans possess in this model are actually miniscule, because any major deviation from the intended plan causes the Adjustment Bureau to alter your brain in a way to change your decision making.

In the closing credits of the film, Harry says “Most people live life on the path we set for them, too afraid to explore any other. But once in a while people like you come along who knock down all the obstacles we put in your way. People who realize free will is a gift that you'll never know how to use until you fight for it. I think that's the chairman's real plan. That maybe one day, we won't write the plan, you will.” In this statement, I believe it is the writer saying that the chairman does in fact represent GOD, and that GOD’s ultimate plan for his children is not to set them on a path of total determinism, but to allow them to trust in themselves enough to set the course for their own lives.