Edge of Tomorrow - Judgment Day

Friday  June 6, 2014,  Warner Bros. is releasing  " Edge of Tomorrow."   A Science-Fiction story about a future invasion of Earth by creatures called Mimics.  They have a vast technological advantage over humans, and they can control time.  

The film stars Tom Cruise as William Cage ("Oblivion," "Minority Report"), and Emily Blunt ("The Adjustment Bureau," "Looper") as Rita Vrataski, 

Based on Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s light novel "All You Need is Kill," tells the story of two people who find themselves not only in the middle of a war, but also have some sort of power to reset their lives after their deaths. Instant Karma, each time correcting battle mistakes and living longer. Or, as in a First Person Shooter video game, after you did a horrible and violent death, you get to re-spawn.

In the trailer above, William Cage (Cruise) and 
Rita Vrataski (Blunt) work out the issues of reliving the battles and their deaths.  Rita has somehow lost the power to reset, but Cage hasn't.  In order to keep the powers to reincarnate, one must reset the day by dying.

Another theme that I hope this film explores is what does life mean if once you die you can return to life and try again.  Does this make life meaningless?  Having one physical life, surely makes it more valuable. Marvel took a shot 


The added element of not being able to significantly change the future must be frustrating. Each time Tom Cruise dies, he gains more experience, and apparently he dies quite a lot. By just watching the trailers, I can see many different Science Fiction films as the influences for the technology, and how the story may play out.  In Tom Cruise's last Sci-Fi offering, "Oblivion," director Joseph Kosinski ("Tron Legacy") delves into the themes of memory, and identity while Jack (Cruise)  fights to liberate Earth from an alien race. "Ender's Game" provides us with a view of war as if it was a game, and the qualities required to lead people into battle and brief of glimpse of the politics of war. 

Staying in the realm of Sci-Fi, another film that has the theme of returning to life after "death" is Duncan Jones's "Source Code."  Jake Gyllenhaal's character, Captain Colter Stevens, must relive a horrible train bombing repeatedly in order to prevent future deaths.  Christopher and Johnathon Nolan's "Inception" plays with the concept with the virtual world of dreams affecting the waking world. The technology, and the beach landing are reminiscent of "Starship Troopers" and "Saving Private Ryan," with a bit of James Cameron's "Aliens" thrown in as well.  Speaking of "Aliens, " Bill Paxton who played Pvt. Hudson as the most vocal the ill-fated soldiers who landed on LV-426 over 25 years ago.

  


 "The Edge of Tomorrow"  is in theaters Friday, June 6, 2014. 

Related

Edge of Tomorrow: A Timeless Tale of Redemption, Karma, & Fate
Edge of Tomorrow: The Only Rule Trailer 
Edge of Tomorrow - D-day Approacheth
Edge of Tomorrow First Look

Movie Data

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi

Year:  2014

Staring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton, Jeremy Piven, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Doug Liman 

Producer(s): Jason Hoffs, Gregory Jacobs, Tom Lassally, Jeffrey Silver

Writer: Christopher McQuarrie, Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, Hiroshi Sakurazaka

Rating: PG-13

Running Time: 113 minutes

Release Date:  6/6/2014