Movies: Edge of Tomorrow

Score:  **** out of ***** (A-)

Long Story Short:  Tom Cruise's latest vehicle sees him as the action star of a sci-fi action film once more - and practice seems to make perfect.  Thanks largely to a genius script and brilliant directing, Edge of Tomorrow ably navigates a time loop story with comprehension, action, and quite a bit of humor.  Cruise is always fun to watch, but he's also met his match here in the ass-kicking Emily Blunt.  Go see it - you won't regret it.


After a string of movie reviews, I finally had an "off" weekend last week with no trips to the theater.  However, I'm making up for it with a rare review coming on the same weekend that the film was released!  Next weekend will likely bring A Million Ways to Die in the West, and I'm not sure after that.  Opinions on Tom Cruise are highly varied, especially after 2005's "Couchgate" and his apparent loss of marbles.  I for one don't care about his personal life, and enjoy watching his films.  He has made a number of very watchable - no classics, but no bombs - action movies in recent years, so with a very intriguing premise, his newest film seemed like a good choice.  Edge of Tomorrow was directed by Doug Liman (Bourne Identity, Mr. and Mrs. Smith) and stars Cruise and Emily Blunt.

To the screenwriters' credit, the plot is both important to the film and manageable to summarize without spoiling.  If you've seen previews, you likely know much of this.  Major Cage is a military PR guy whose face has become familiar to the world as he tries to keep up the spirits of the population - the world (present, perhaps near future) has been invaded by aliens.  However, when he is asked to personally get footage of a major battle, he gets cold feet and finds himself thrown into the thick of the war.  Terrified but helpless, he is soon off to battle and, presumably, his death.

And die he does.  But then something strange happen - he finds himself right back on the military base.  Everything seems to be just the way it was the day before.  Major Cage must find out what's happened to him - and how to save the world, while he's at it.

Edge of Tomorrow has just a few major characters, but they're good ones.  Tom Cruise is, naturally, the main character.  As I already mentioned, I highly enjoy watching him as an actor - he is one of the last remaining, "classic" A-listers and his effort and enthusiasm are always clear.  Tom eventually assumes the mantle of action hero, no surprise - but leading up to that he provides some nice variation from the usual, displaying his underrated comedic sense and even the vulnerability of a "normal" person.  Emily Blunt, with far less screen time despite the next largest role, is every bit as good (or better).  As celebrated war hero Rita, she is the newest action heroine and does her predecessors justice.  She has a few displays/lines of bombast/don't-mess-with-me, but mostly she ably lets her demeanor and physical presence do the talking.  A larger role would have been welcome, but at least she isn't reduced to Cruise's love interest.  There are but a few other notable roles including Bill Paxton (Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, etc.) as a hilarious drill sergeant, and a fun bunch of grunts who go into battle with Cruise (and again, and again...).

Like Oblivion, Cruise's last film, Edge of Tomorrow is a sci-fi action film with a kinda-unique premise and twists to spice things up.  This film faced the challenges of all time loop films (e.g. Groundhog's Day) in choosing what to repeat, what to change, and how to pace it all.  Fortunately, this is one of the film's strengths.  When first introducing "the day", more (potentially boring) detail is required, so Liman and the writers inject it with quite a bit of humor and mystery.  As the loops multiply, they get shorter and shorter (sometimes just a few seconds) as more and more of the story and characterization takes over.  Really brilliant writing and pacing makes for a unique and wildly entertaining time overall.  A comparison I've heard is that of a video game - that may not sound palatable, but it's accurate in the most amusing and fun way possible.  Of course, there's also plenty of action to be found.  The film generally does it well - at its best, showing the brutality, horror, and unpredictability of war.  The aliens themselves are not particularly inspired, but the focus is so much more on everything else that it hardly matters.  And finally, yes, there is a little semi-romance between Cruise and Blunt - but it's minimal, and actually serves to soften the film just a bit in the right way.

***

Edge of Tomorrow is a resounding success, both for Tom Cruise as a star and for the sci-fi action genre.  It is far, far better than Oblivion (which was a decent but forgettable film), and comparable to last year's World War Z - both led by big stars that surprised me with their level of quality, despite being the type of film that is all too often simply a great trailer.  What impressed me most, again, was the way that the time loops were handled.  Keeping the pace at a solid clip while not leaving the audience in the dust; producing chuckles a-plenty while not losing a serious tone; and keeping up the suspension of disbelief (or at least distracting you from it) - bravo!  Now, admittedly, the character development is not Oscar worthy; Cruise and Blunt expectedly become the world's saviors, and little else.  And the climax is a little disappointing in comparison with the (vast majority) rest of the film.  Still, this is a hugely entertaining film.  Do yourself a favor, and treat yourself and some friends to a visit to the theater and see it.