Cruise To The Edge Of Greatness

An alien invasion is no match for the dynamic duo of Emily Blunt and Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow

ON CONTINUITY

ARTH VADER (AV): Derived from the wildly popular Manga graphic novel “All you need is kill” heralding from Japan, Edge of Tomorrow shares a gritty and intriguing story of a soldier rushed to the front-line of an intergalactic war between humanity and a horrifying alien invader who seem to know every move even before we make it. I firmly believe “All You Need is Kill” is likely a poor translation of the Japanese mother IP (Intellectual Property), the story is compelling, pitting the Major William Cage (Cruise) against a ticking clock that resets every time he is killed. Pontificator, this movie has infinite storytelling potential and I am not sure this one wasn’t one of my favorites of the year. What did you think? 

THE PONTIFICATOR (TP): Based on the novel “All You Need is Kill” by Hiroshi Sakurazaka, this film is a loose adaption of the book, keeping the general premise, but changing many details. Although there are changes, the film is still very entertaining even though very different from the novel Vader.

CASTING, DIRECTING  & ACTING

AV: Cruise and Blunt are phenomenal to be sure, but one of my favorite characters in this film is Maj. Sergeant Farell played by Bill Paxton. Playing one of the most predictably atypical archetypes of the over-the-top American drill Sgt. who will bust heads, bust balls and bust a move on any enlisted man who steps out of line. Directed by Doug “Bourne Identity” Liman, this movie has a distinctive look and photographic essence that is unique to this film. Liman’s choice not to start each new ‘day’’ systematically makes for a surprisingly fresh visual approach that kept me guessing if this day is new for us or new for the character. And need I say, Brandon “Braveheart” Gleeson plays the stalwart General Brigham and is a totally solid character that adds nothing but depth and character color.

TP: Tom Cruise is still a box office draw and is able to deliver in the capacity of “action hero” with his own brand of wit and those coveted “Cruise” moments. Emily Blunt is great at playing a hardcore role and really sells her character, even better than Cruise. It was also fun to see Bill Paxton, adding to his trend of recent exposure. The film moved at a quick pace, never staying too long in one place and stayed interesting even as it revisited the same situations.

SPECIAL EFFECTS

AV: Edge of Tomorrow is a visual spectacular, worthy of 3D and certainly worth a look. If you like big-budget films, lots of action and some grounded and clever writing, then this film has them all. The onscreen presence of the mimics (the aliens) is terrifying and awe-inspiring. The combat suits are classically cool and action sequences where the human counterattack is the main plot point, are visually spectacular and add to the nail-biting intensity. What’s more, the visual effects are a tool to the storytelling and not the primary focal point. Thoughts, Ponty? 

TP: A science-fiction film with great actors and an excellent story that doesn’t deliver equally great special effects is a travesty to sci-fi fans everywhere Vader. Fortunately this movie wasn’t one of those films. The special effects were solid and delivered interesting aliens peppered between all the mayhem and explosions. There were a lot of opportunities to go wrong here, but everything stayed on track, right down to the costuming and robotic harnesses.

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK

AV: Here’s what I loved, Pontificator. I loved watching an American big budget movie go way out on a limb to tell a very unexpected and quite frankly, very non-american story. I loved watching the untold depths of rich content in the international graphic novel arena deliver surprisingly good content to American audiences. I also loved that this movie does NOT show a traditional Hollywood ‘Happy Ending’ unless you chose to interpret it that way. What I hated was; poor marketing, a misunderstood film premise and a bad choice of movie title. Honestly, this movie could be anything; Star Wars: Episode VIII Edge of Tomorrow. Star Trek III: Edge of Tomorrow, Ian Fleming’s James Bond in Edge of Tomorrow. See? The title isn’t a title, it’s nondescript. I am convinced audiences didn’t know what the heck an “Edge of Tomorrow” was. 

TP: Right off the bat I was reminded that I’d seen all this before, although not quite in the same way. I’m talking about “Groundhog Day” and “Source Code.” The idea of living a day over and over again isn’t a new one so I was intrigued on how they were going to make this an interesting film. It was an easy recipe though, throw in some aliens bent on destroying humanity, Tom Cruise, and a lot of death and explosions… and voila!  The various paths the story takes from reliving one day are certainly more diverse than of the films I mentioned previously, which say a lot since the goal of the film never changed. Also the number of times the day was repeated was brilliantly handled as it was so many more times than any of the other films, without ever having us on the hook of actually having to go through the entire experience in detail. In short—this film was brilliantly handled.

ON SEQUELS

AV: There is no sequel to this story. Though a caveat to this could be to continue to port over original graphic novels and foreign fiction from around the world. Though given the mediocre reception this film received, that may be a tall order. 

TP: I have heard that the novel will be getting a sequel, but seeing that it is so different than the film, part two might not make it to the big screen… especially when they wrapped the ending up so neatly.

RATE IT!

ARTH VADER rates Edge Of Tomorrow: Going out on a limb here but intelligent action movies tend NOT to fair well in American cinema. This is one such case. If you like your sci-fi with action, comic relief, a strong female and male lead, tons of effects and ‘splosions, then you need look no further than Edge of Tomorrow. That’s why I am giving this movie seven (7) solid busted blocks. And when I wake up tomorrow, I plan to give it the same, all over again.

THE PONTIFICATOR rates Edge of Tomorrow: Although skeptical at first, I was quickly converted to the side of “fan.” This film takes an old and already done idea (reliving a day) and breathes new life into it with its unique approach and brilliant formula for success. This film easily and repeatedly destroys eight (8) busted blocks. 

Edge Of Tomorrow: 7.5 / 10 Busted Blocks

Rhymes with Super!

Offering a disturbing glimpse into a dismal future, the volatile, action-loaded Looper is not only a thrill but is quite possibly the sleeper Sci-Fi hit of 2012!

ON CONTINUITY

Joe meets Joe over a cup of Joe

ARTH VADER (AV): I'll admit it. This one caught me by surprise. I didn't see this one even coming on the horizon. It slipped through the crack on me. Looper is an original Science fiction screenplay, written and directed by Director Rian Johnson. 

The movie is set in 2044. In this future, the US suffers a severe economic collapse, causing massive social decomposition as disorder organized crime soars. Additionally, a number of people–mutants–develop telekinetic powers, like having the ability to levitate small objects. In 2074, time travel is invented but is immediately outlawed.

Thus crime lords employ time travel to send their targets into the past where they're killed by "loopers" (assassins). When a looper's contract is up, they send his future self back to be killed by his younger self, referred to as "closing the loop". 

This, Pontificator, is a magnificent original idea that will greatly impact the sci-fi genre for a long time to come.

THE PONTIFICATOR (TP): Looper was it’s own story, that when expanded in afterthought, spawns it’s own continuity. That said, trying to unravel time travel films can give you a headache, but this story was surprisingly easy to follow and understand... and didn’t give me a hard “time” to unravel.

CASTING, DIRECTING AND ACTING

Joe vs. Joe. Who's your money on?

AV: The first rate cast delivered solid, engrossing character performances across the space/time continuum in Looper. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is fast becoming a favorite of mine and is a great, pensive 'killer with a heart of gold' persona as the film's lead as young Joe. Action mega-man, Bruce Willis plays the coy and ever-so worldly 'Old Joe'. I also loved Emily Blunt as the single Mom with a dark secret and Jeff Daniels in the wise old gangster role as 'Abe'. 

The stunning cast was complimented by the directorial talents of Johnson who kept a very up-close and personal treatment comfortably agile in this deeply solvent character-driven story. Ponty?

TP: This film was well cast. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Young Joe) seems to be the perfect choice to portray a young Bruce Willis (Old Joe). He has the look, he has the mannerisms...and brings the exact amount of attitude to make the role believable. Bruce Willis looked familiar in his role (12 Monkeys) and confident in his mission (Last Man Standing) to the point that it was easy to identify with the nature of his humanity. The biggest surprise for me was Pierce Gagnon in his precociously innocent, and sometimes sinister portrayal of Cid (The Rainmaker)...the future antagonist of the film. The pace of the film was inconsistent and didn’t transition well in some parts, while being absolutely seamless in others. I’m not sure if this was by design, given the nature of the film.

SPECIAL EFFECTS:

Feelin' lucky, Punk?
Joe makes a decision that could cost him everything

AV: The real beat of this movie is that no significant effects shots (of which there were a healthy share) were ever necessary to tell Joe's (Gordon-Levitt) story. I am a firm believer that some of Science Fiction's best stories are told from a character-driven perspective and this one delivers in spades. The best effects are simple ones, in camera effects, such as time shifting into the shot–to be shot–is simple and really effective. That said the hero of the SFX in this story is the near-seamless  treatment of old joe and young Joe. The facial prosthetics for Gordon-Levitt to match the rugged, ragged and ravaged Willis' jawline was great. Why do you ask? Because you NEVER notice until a double-take. Ponty?

TP: Agreed Vader, this film probably didn’t have a huge special effects budget, but they certainly did more with less as nothing was done just for filler. Instead, the effects advanced the story and brought weight to the consequences of the decisions being made by the characters.  I call it the “bad things” scenario. What happens when you escape being murdered by your past self and take off for parts unknown, without regard for the possible capture of your past self? Bad things. What happens when you upset the most powerful telekinetic on the planet whose power is about several thousand times that of everyone else? Bad things. Superbly used...and superbly done. 

TAKING A DEEPER LOOK:

"What's all this discussion about Big Bird, now?"
A complex young boy with a chilling secret.

AV: The audience is treated to the entire span of Joe's life, the potential, the love of his life and redemption through loss as the character slips from memory and existence for a vulgar life as he experiences loss on levels unimagined as he must go back into time and redeem himself by "closing his loop." This redemption and this twisted, advanced take on the 'code of honor amongst the wicked' is a hearty and brave prospective that I have not experienced in a sci-fi film in quite some time. Pontificator, I dare say, the characterizations and the sense of loss with time travel as a story-telling vehicle, is unmatched in almost anything I have seen to date.

TP: Well Vader, there are more holes in the plot of this film than are in Swiss cheese but none of them came to mind while sitting in the theater... just upon reflection. Because of this, the chatter about this movie may exceed that of Prometheus. Many elements were never explained, and probably should have been, at least in passing. I’m not going to rip through all the holes, but instead share what touched me the most. Old Joe is eliminating possible future versions of Cid, in hopes of altering his recent past. This means he has to seek out, and murder children. This very subject is disturbing and the way the movie deals with it is profound. No child violence is shown...but the allusion to it is powerful enough to move me emotionally. How bad is the world of tomorrow that risking killing innocent children today is the answer? The heartbreak of Old Joe is masterfully conveyed as he realizes immediately, because of an unchanged timeline, that the children he’s killed where really innocent. Even with all this...and the fact that Joe, throughout his life, has been a vile criminal, can still illicit empathy is a testament to the character writing and acting interpretation.

ON SEQUELS:

"I said decaff–!" Joe goes off... on himself?

AV: This is a story that, as much as I hate to admit it, could have a life outside this movie. I think it would be a grave mistake to try and reprise this story as the prospect of time travel is a sketchy one at best. As for a sequel to this movie in particular, as i see it, Ponty, that loop is closed.

TP: I don’t see anywhere in this that they can, or should make a sequel. Some movies are best left as they are, and this is certainly one of those films Vader.

RATE IT!

ARTH VADER rates Looper: Well, if it's not evident by now, I really loved this movie. The casting, the story, the plot twists, while simple, were well written and the movie entertains when given half a chance. There are some hokey, almost cheesy moments but the smart and drama-rich world of Looper had me stand and applaud, literally, in the theater. I would venture to say that this will be my 2012 sleeper hit of the year. Few movies this year will deliver the story this one does. Which is why, I will venture to say Looper is worth a solid nine (9) busted blocks out of ten. I better horde, my gold bars, though. Pontificator?

THE PONTIFICATOR Rates Looper: Great action, interesting premiss, despite the gaping plot holes, and profound critical thinking after the fact make this film a refreshing endeavor and worthy of the time spent watching it. Thirty years from now, I’ll come back in time and give it seven (7) busted blocks.

 LOOPER: 8 Busted Blocks