Edge of Tomorrow
3/4
Starring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton, Brendan Gleeson, Noah Taylor
Rated PG-13 for Intense Sequences of Sci-Fi Action and Violence, Language and Brief Suggestive Material
"Edge of Tomorrow" requires that the viewer pay attention to what is going on in the film. It's not as dense as say "Inception," but those who spend their time texting during the movie (shame on you!) will get lost. It is, after all, a time travel story, albeit an unorthodox one.
Earth has been invaded by aliens known as mimics. They're like the sentinels from "The Matrix" trilogy, only much faster and more aggressive. They're also almost impossible to stop, and have overtaken most of Europe. There is one ray of hope, and her name is Rita Vrataski (Blunt), a woman who led the humans to victory in Verdun.
A general by the name of Brigham (Gleeson) intends to send an army reporter to sell an invasion into France, one that will cost many lives. That man is Bill Cage (Cruise), who isn't keen to risk his life for such a task. When he refuses, Brigham has him arrested, knocked out, and sent to the front lines as an infantryman. Cage is branded a coward and sent to an almost certain death in a mechanical outfit that he doesn't know how to use. When he kills one of the mimics, its blood gets all over him and he suddenly finds himself waking up a day earlier. Once he gets past his confusion and uses it to his advantage, he runs into Rita, who knows all about this new condition. She has a plan to use to put an end to the war for good.
The set-up may sound complicated, but director Doug Liman presents it in a straightforward fashion that will make it impossible to get lost if you're paying attention. He follows the most essential rule for a movie that plays with time: the "kiss" rule (keep it simple, stupid). He doesn't allow the story to get bogged down in paradoxes and mumbo-jumbo. Liman also establishes a set of rules about what can and cannot happen and sticks to them, which is another must for this sort of story.
Liman also doesn't overuse the time-travel device, although he sometimes goes back farther than necessary (we see Cage waking up a few too many times). This is a minor quibble, however. Just about every scene reveals a new part of the story, and once things are going in a straightforward manner, he allows them to unfold as such. The time-travel stuff takes a back seat during the second half of the movie.
The performances are very good, which helps a lot. It's also nice that the actors are given interesting things to say and do, and characters to play. This isn't "Pacific Rim," and for that I was thankful. Tom Cruise has always been a good actor, but never before has he played such a gutless character. In the beginning, Cage is a spineless coward who has no idea what he is doing, but once he gets more practice, he grows into the action movie hero. We're with him because we see where he came from. Emily Blunt gets to do an action movie role, which hasn't been offered to her before. She seems like an odd choice, but as the tough-as-nails Rita, she fits right in without a flat moment to be found. Blunt gives the character a sense of vulnerability that makes her worth caring about. Cruise and Blunt also have a good romantic chemistry together, which is seasoning on the cake. Bill Paxton (where has he been? Oh yeah, HBO's "Big Love") and Brendan Gleeson provide support, although neither of them has much to do. That's okay. This movie is about Cage and Rita.
This isn't a perfect summer movie, but at least it has people worth caring about and doesn't rely completely on its special effects (which are impressive, by the way).
Starring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton, Brendan Gleeson, Noah Taylor
Rated PG-13 for Intense Sequences of Sci-Fi Action and Violence, Language and Brief Suggestive Material
"Edge of Tomorrow" requires that the viewer pay attention to what is going on in the film. It's not as dense as say "Inception," but those who spend their time texting during the movie (shame on you!) will get lost. It is, after all, a time travel story, albeit an unorthodox one.
Earth has been invaded by aliens known as mimics. They're like the sentinels from "The Matrix" trilogy, only much faster and more aggressive. They're also almost impossible to stop, and have overtaken most of Europe. There is one ray of hope, and her name is Rita Vrataski (Blunt), a woman who led the humans to victory in Verdun.
A general by the name of Brigham (Gleeson) intends to send an army reporter to sell an invasion into France, one that will cost many lives. That man is Bill Cage (Cruise), who isn't keen to risk his life for such a task. When he refuses, Brigham has him arrested, knocked out, and sent to the front lines as an infantryman. Cage is branded a coward and sent to an almost certain death in a mechanical outfit that he doesn't know how to use. When he kills one of the mimics, its blood gets all over him and he suddenly finds himself waking up a day earlier. Once he gets past his confusion and uses it to his advantage, he runs into Rita, who knows all about this new condition. She has a plan to use to put an end to the war for good.
The set-up may sound complicated, but director Doug Liman presents it in a straightforward fashion that will make it impossible to get lost if you're paying attention. He follows the most essential rule for a movie that plays with time: the "kiss" rule (keep it simple, stupid). He doesn't allow the story to get bogged down in paradoxes and mumbo-jumbo. Liman also establishes a set of rules about what can and cannot happen and sticks to them, which is another must for this sort of story.
Liman also doesn't overuse the time-travel device, although he sometimes goes back farther than necessary (we see Cage waking up a few too many times). This is a minor quibble, however. Just about every scene reveals a new part of the story, and once things are going in a straightforward manner, he allows them to unfold as such. The time-travel stuff takes a back seat during the second half of the movie.
The performances are very good, which helps a lot. It's also nice that the actors are given interesting things to say and do, and characters to play. This isn't "Pacific Rim," and for that I was thankful. Tom Cruise has always been a good actor, but never before has he played such a gutless character. In the beginning, Cage is a spineless coward who has no idea what he is doing, but once he gets more practice, he grows into the action movie hero. We're with him because we see where he came from. Emily Blunt gets to do an action movie role, which hasn't been offered to her before. She seems like an odd choice, but as the tough-as-nails Rita, she fits right in without a flat moment to be found. Blunt gives the character a sense of vulnerability that makes her worth caring about. Cruise and Blunt also have a good romantic chemistry together, which is seasoning on the cake. Bill Paxton (where has he been? Oh yeah, HBO's "Big Love") and Brendan Gleeson provide support, although neither of them has much to do. That's okay. This movie is about Cage and Rita.
This isn't a perfect summer movie, but at least it has people worth caring about and doesn't rely completely on its special effects (which are impressive, by the way).
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