Oblivion Starring Tom Cruise – 2013
Seldom does a movie live up to the hype that goes along with
it, but in the case of Oblivion, it not only lives up to the hype, but it
actually surpassed my expectations. I
was ready for a great film, but I had no idea just how good this film was going
to be.
Set in the year 2077, aliens known as Scavs have invaded the
Earth starting a war and destroying the moon in the process. The destruction of the moon causes seismic
disasters on the Earth causing the entire population to be forced to move to
Titan, an Earth-like moon orbiting the planet Saturn. At least this is what Jack Harper (Tom
Cruise) believes while he goes about his business maintaining and repairing
drones that are charged with eradicating remaining Scavs and protecting giant
machines that collect sea-water and convert it into fuel for the select few to
take their trip to Titan. Jack is
assisted by his partner, Vica, who is advised by someone called Sally on a
giant orbiting space station called Tet.
As the story develops, Jack learns that things aren’t what
he has been led to believe. Because of
what he learns, he is able to save what is left of humanity on the Earth.
As far as I am concerned, this is Tom Cruise’s best career
performance as he leaves his usual over-the –top style of acting. While Morgan Freeman plays an integral part
in the film, his part is actually small.
The special effects in this film serve to advance the story, but do not
upstage the performance of the characters or the plot development.
In short, this is a great movie to kick off this season’s
fare of what promises to be a great season for Sci-Fi. If you are expecting one of those “in your
face” action flicks, you are going to be disappointed. This film is far more cerebral employing a
very intricate story line and characters that are well developed.
This is a must see film by my estimation and should do well.
Good review Jim. The only thing is that some people might not find the payoff really interesting and it might even lead to confusion among the general movie audience.
ReplyDeleteYou might be right about the ending and the way it is taken by the general audience. I, on the other hand, found it appropriate to the story IMHO. Thanks for the feedback and I will be looking at your blog also.
DeleteHey Jim! Found your blog by following people who disagreed with dtmmr.com and I gotta say I'm totally with you on this one. I feel like the ending isn't too much to grasp but I guess judging by the popularity of the Transformer movies maybe audiences are content with their sci-fi remaining meaningless. Great review & keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteThanks Wes. I appreciate what you said.
DeleteI listened to a podcast (SciFi Diner) and there was a comment by another podcaster named Colin. He said that the ending was akin to 2001: A Space Odyssey. I thought it was more like the ending of Logan's Run myself.
Welcome aboard and come back again.