There’s something about the Sci-Fi genre that is different from most genre’s and that’s how inventive the stories can be. There are no limits to where you can go and what you can explore on the big screen. It can be a cyberscape, an interstellar world, or even some inter-dimensional realm. Either way, you can expect something that will challenge your perception of space. The other part of the genre that doesn’t get as much of a look in, mainly due to the nature of the concept, is time itself. Back to the Future, Avengers: Endgame and Star Trek are all examples that dabble with the concept of time but one film that feels more fun and creative with time is Edge of Tomorrow. (The film is also referred to as “Live. Die. Repeat.” But I will refer to it by its original title.)
Groundhog Day meets Independence Day, that’s the basic logline behind Edge of Tomorrow. That should mean it’s a fairly predictable film, which sadly it is in certain aspects, but the way the characters are written, the death’s play out and how the story is paced all feel rather fresh and different. That is thanks, in no small part, to Tom Cruise. He’s the unstoppable force that meets the immovable object, with the object being the alien species shown in the film. Tom Cruise clearly relishes being the “Action Movie Star” but he rarely has as much fun as he does while playing a character than he does with Major William Cage.
It should be noted that Edge of Tomorrow is not an entirely original concept. The story is based of a Japanese Novel titled All You Need is Kill, which follows a lot of similar story beats to the final film. Filmmaker Doug Liman however makes the film his own, adding his style to the mix and he has made the film feel more broad with its action and storytelling by basing it mainly on the beaches of France, with a cast of actors and actresses based in England. The film works well with the locations used, and the rugged landscapes and world-weariness help to give the film that Sci-Fi sheen to it. One of the more impressive aspects of the film though is in the visual effects department.
The aliens in the film are called Mimics, and they have an Alpha in charge of a hive of them. The special effects that bring the Mimics to life make them feel animalistic and realistic too. The fact they work as a unit and protect their Alpha also makes them feel more like animals than aliens. The relatability to these creatures help us understand them more and equally fear them more too. The threat they pose, their dominance of the human species, also helps set the scale of their attack more fiercely and tensely too. The end result of the film though feels too clean, and the Mimics soon feel like they were a bit too easy to defeat, and thus destroying a balance between the humans and the aliens.
On the human side of things, however, it’s interesting and refreshing to find Emily Blunt play a strong action-based character instead of a love interest, making her a match for Tom Cruise. With them pushing each other, physically and mentally, both off-camera and on camera. Their chemistry in the action sequences is there on the screen. You feel involved in the action and you can follow their character arcs with ease, even if the ending is a tad bit predictable as mentioned before. It does pay off though and it makes you want to see how their relationship progresses post-alien invasion.
★★★☆☆
3/5
The story doesn’t feel too muddled and the visual effects and character development of Emily Blunt’s Rita and Tom Cruise’s Major William Cage are highlights in a film that knows where it is going, but at least the ride to the ending is fun enough to easily make you forget that you know how it will all end. Tom Cruise and Doug Liman have created something that will stand out in both of their cinematic legacies, and it will be interesting if we get another look into this universe that they have created.
Thanks for reading today’s blog!
Alex Murray, the Head of Eyesight Productions
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