Matt Damon and Emily Blunt star in "The Adjustment Bureau." Courtesy of Univeral Pictures.

THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU (Rated PG-13)

To my mind, there’s not much point in making a movie so totally incomprehensible that the viewer is left to ponder the supposedly obvious brilliance of a masterpiece that is not easily understood by the casual observer.

That’s the way I felt about “Inception,” and I never intend to see it a second time just for the satisfaction of trying to figure out the puzzle. I’d rather do something more productive, like rearrange my sock drawer or alphabetize grocery coupons clipped from the Sunday paper.

Now along comes the adaptation of a story by Philip K. Dick, the noted sci-fi author, in “The Adjustment Bureau,” which raises its own set of questions about what makes sense.

All things considered, I find it easier to relate to the work of Philip K. Dick, whose stories have been adapted into the films “Blade Runner” and “Total Recall.”

In today’s upside-down world, the fantasy elements and visions of paranoia don’t seem totally out of whack.

“The Adjustment Bureau” plays very well into the mind-bending scenario of unseen forces controlling our destiny against every impulse of asserting one’s free will.

To be sure, there’s plenty of weirdness in this so-called fantasy science-fiction thriller-cum-love story, but the central core of the story rests on the plausible relationship between two very different people.

Matt Damon’s David Norris is a young, ambitious New York congressman with a colorful working-class background. He’s the leading candidate in a race for the U.S. Senate until a tabloid story about his racy past derails his campaign.

A chance meeting in the men’s bathroom at a fancy hotel on election night is a pivotal moment for David.

His encounter with free-spirited ballet dancer Elise (Emily Blunt) gives him the courage to be daring and bold in his concession speech, one that sets him apart from the usual political tripe and actually serves to make him a viable future contender.

But was this encounter really that random? We realize that it was not when David happens upon the mysterious men in business suits and fedoras who suddenly must assert themselves into his life.

Oddly enough, these men look like Madison Avenue executives from the early 1960s, which explains how John Slattery, from “Mad Men,” is so well-suited for the role of an Adjuster named Richardson, who is assisted by his colleague Harry (Anthony Mackie).

On election night, they found it convenient for the benefit of David’s life plan to bring him together with Elise. Now, to keep David on a path to his political destiny of apparent greatness, they must keep the two apart.

The problem, of course, is that David is so totally smitten by Elise that he pursues her with vigor.

The refugees from “Mad Men” conspire to keep them separated forever, but one little slip up in scheduling allows them to meet once again on an MTA bus.

David is absolutely certain that he and Elise are meant for each other and he strongly resists the efforts of the men in hats to interfere.

The suspense thriller elements kick in when David and Elise are forced on the run, and even more so when David learns that the shadowy men are not so infallible.

Furthermore, he acquires some supernatural power of his own when wearing an Adjustment Bureau-issued fedora. It allows for some clever opportunities for him and Elise to alter the physical landscape by going in and out of various portals, thus staying one step ahead of the Bureau.

One thing that is puzzling is that the omnipotent Chairman (Terence Stamp) of the Adjustment Bureau has delegated a whole continent of his agents, besides Harry and Richardson, to disabuse David of the notion that the true love of his life is Elise. They will try deceit, subterfuge and even physical restraint as weapons in their mission.

What makes “The Adjustment Bureau” so intriguing is that there really is great chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt as the opposites who are greatly attracted to each other.

This hard-to-categorize film works very well as a romantic love story, but of course it is much more than that.

Some may argue that “The Adjustment Bureau” is a light, or softer, version of films like “The Matrix” or “Inception.”

That could be true, but for my money, “The Adjustment Bureau” is much more satisfying and entertaining than other fantasy films only remotely in the same thematic orbit.

The difference could well be ascribed to the touch of humor and real emotion lacking elsewhere as well as the fact that the other films didn’t star Damon and Blunt, the near perfect couple.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.