In this Mensa-smart fantasy epic, the year is 2054, but it might be 2002, with the government rounding up citizens before they can commit a crime. Instead of an Arab-American, the suspect here is Tom Cruise, who also happens to be the town's top mind-cop. Spielberg, jazzed by the plot-and-picture opportunities in opening up and updating Philip K. Dick's 1955 story, creates a gorgeous-grotty amalgam of the retro future. He also is faithful to the vision of a great SF writer, while entertaining the millions of ordinary moviegoers who don't know Dick.
The Piano Man conquers Broadway, Eminem goes Hollywood, plus the rest of TIME's picks for the best of the year