What if you were forced to battle an alien race, and whenever they killed you, you woke up again about to live out the same combat? That’s what happens to Tom Cruise’s character in “Edge of Tomorrow.” This movie is a sci-fi thriller directed by Doug Liman, who famously directed “The Bourne Identity” and “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” and based on “All You Need Is Kill,” a novel by Hiroshi Sakurazaka. The epic action of the film unfolds in a near future in which an alien race has hit the Earth in an unrelenting assault, unbeatable by any military unit in the world.
Countless men and women will fight and will be lost to the “Mimics,” and as much as the United Defense Force tries, it’s going to take a lot more to end the alien invasion. Not even Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt) will be able to save the world with her impressive set of skills that earned her the title of “Angel of Verdun,” referencing a previous battle she had helped win. This is when Major William Cage (Cruise) comes in handy. Originally, Cage was a PR person, and after the demise of his advertising career thanks to the global conflict, he joins the U.S. army but becomes a slick public relations officer.
He’s never had an injury bigger than a papercut and can’t stand the sight of blood. All of this is going to change as soon as he realizes he has some sort of “gift” that allows him to reset the day every time he gets killed. So, does this whole thing sounds as good as it is? Actually, yes. It was refreshing to see Tom Cruise’s character grow throughout the whole film. He started out as a cocky PR person, but was humbled down when he was basically forced into battle. And having Bill Paxton there as Master Sgt. Farell pretty much planting Cage on the ground was just the perfect balance.
Eventually, as Cage got accustomed to the drill, his PR persona came out a little bit, but it was mostly to warn his squad that they weren’t really going to survive the aliens unless they figured out a new tactic. In one of the first combats, he meets Rita, who tells him to look for her when she wakes up. When they get together in the present, she fills him in in what he has to do and how he’s going to be key in winning the war. She trains him, and each training gets harder and harder, as Rita toughens Cage up until he’s ready for the battlefield. The two of them develop an interesting relationship to watch on screen.
For Cage, each encounter just tells him more and more about Rita, but for her, it’s the first time she meets him. It was very captivating to see how that relationship developed and the different layers of Cage, and how he eventually learned how to emotionally disarm Rita. However, their relationship never drives them away from the real cause they are together: freeing the world of the “Mimics.” Although many people might think this movie can get a little repetitive, each time Cage wakes up to relive the same day, there’s something that changes, there’s a new approach at winning the war, or he just becomes less of a schmuck.
The movie keeps surprising you, finding the correct timing for a humorous relief, adding quirky lines or just silly actions that actually go with the theme of the film, and also manages to keep you on the edge of your seat, until the explosive end that you won’t see coming. It’s a movie that will definitely amaze you, that will draw you in and will make you feel as part of the war against the aliens. Don't miss "Edge of Tomorrow" in theaters June 6.
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