No matter how crazy or deeply buried in the closet some think he might be, Tom Cruise still knows how to give us a good time at the movies
By all means, Edge of Tomorrow shouldn’t work.
From the moment images from the set emerged with Tom Cruise attached to some bulky exoskeleton-like device, coupled with the idea that the film’s plot almost exactly mirrored the classic 1993 comedy Groundhog Day, it seemed like we could be in for one more disappoint from Xenu’s favorite son.
I couldn’t be more wrong.
Based on the Japanese light novel All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka, Edge of Tomorrow is a very surprising and extremely entertaining take on the premise made famous by Groundhog Day, where a man relives one single day over and over until he get it right, what ever that right entails.
Cruise plays Major William Cage, a a dashing PR man for the military who spends the opening scenes of the film “selling” the war against alien force known as Mimics. Cruise uses an effusive charm not seen in a very long time, and it feels both engaging and slightly satirical at the same time. It was here that audiences realize this isn’t going to be a normal run-of-the-mill actioner.
Cage is given an offer by General Brigham (Brendan Gleeson), the man in charge of war efforts, to be sent to the front with a camera crew to better sell the war efforts by giving the public a first hand look at the upcoming decisive battle against the mimics. Since Cage’s actual background is in advertising with no actual combat experience, he attempts to weasel his way out by blackmailing the General using the exact same tactics used to make the war “look good”.
Brigham responds by knocking him out and dumping him at the Heathrow base, setting him up as a deserter and a con man. Here we meet (for the first of many instances), Sergeant Farrell Bartolome (a very game Bill Paxton) who forces Cage to join J-Squad, an infantry unit of misfits, and is sent off to take part in the invasion. Upon arriving at the beach front the soldiers are instantly ambushed; it’s here in the heat of battle we also meet Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt), the face of the war efforts and known as the “Full Metal Bitch”. The introduction is brief as almost as soon they meet, she is killed, leaving a very scared, very untrained Cage to face off against unusually large mimic, later identified as an Alpha, where he ends up soaked in its acid blood and he dies.
For the first time.
Waking back up at the same intake station he was dropped off at earlier, Cage lives out the same day of training and deployment the following morning. Each time he dies, he loops back to the moment he arrives on the base, and despite his (often hilarious) efforts to warn and save people, they dismiss his claims and the assault keeps playing out tragically. In one loop, manages to briefly save Vrataski, and when she realizes that he knows what is going to happen, she tells him to find her the next time he wakes up.
From here, Edge of Tomorrow takes viewers through Cage’s evolution. What began as a look at a very savvy, yet ultimately cowardly man interested in saving his own hide, turns into the creation of a war machine not necessarily of skill, but rather habit. Cruise makes this evolution more than interesting by doing the one thing he’s done for years, be himself. This time, however, by not taking himself as seriously as he has in previous films, he welcomes audiences along for the ride, and it keeps the film from ever becoming repetitive, even though repetition is the central plot line.
What also helps significantly here is solid chemistry between Cruise and Emily Blunt. At no point does she portray the Damsel in Distress (how could anyone with a nickname like “Full Metal Bitch”?) while also not overplaying the tough as nails aspect either. With each loop, Cruise and Blunt grow closer, but it brings a sense of authenticity, playfulness and a sense of longing, (which is due in large part to Blunt’s understated performance) because there comes a point where the constant looping seems to get the better of his character.
Edge of Tomorrow absolutely succeeds where it shouldn’t, with sharp direction from Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity) and a witty, yet very focused script by Christopher McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects) audiences will be surprised how funny this film is without venturing over into farcical territory. More importantly, this movie reminds us that Tom Cruise, despite his mysterious and sometimes weird life off-camera, is still our most vital and exciting action heroes out there. We may not agree with every role in every film, but there is no actor in Hollywood today who puts more on the table than Cruise. The man is incapable of phoning in a role, and as moviegoers, he deserves a debt of gratitude.
Edge of Tomorrow is one film you’ll have no problem experiencing again and again. (See what I did there?)