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| Review by Clay N Ferno |
Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt star in this dystopian sci-fi tale directed by Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Mr. Mrs. Smith).
With spectacular robot control suits and space age firepower, the heroes take on the Mimics, a spindly looking race of alien monsters that seem to know what is happening next.
When Private Bill Cage (Cruise) has an encounter with one of the slippery beasts, his fate is changed by absorbing some of the Mimic’s power.
Under Rita’s (Blunt) training, Cage and the misfit goons of Master Sergeant Farell’s (Bill Paxton) J Squad go after the enemy with guns blazing.
The catch?
They get to do it over again by resetting Cage’s life.
No review of this movie is going to not reference Groundhog Day. So yeah, it’s kinda like Battlestar Galactica meets Groundhog Day.
That
elevator pitch is no slight to the movie, it may actually hook some of
your on the fence pals to head to the theatre for this one.
It seems like the Vogons or whatever juju Cruise is paying tribute to seems to be paying off for him.
With Jack Reacher getting a sequel and Oblivion being a hit, there’s no surprise that he’s gearing up to reprise his role as Ethan Hunt in another Mission: Impossible film, once again teaming up with Edge of Tomorrow writer and Jack Reacher writer/director Christopher McQuarrie. There’s a reason he’s still the man in the box office, even with the ‘Tom Cruise Crazy’ he remains the best action leading man in Hollywood.
Contrasting the star power of our leading man is the seriously bad ass Blunt, who’s Rita is the world’s ultimate super soldier. Her desiccation of Mimics in the course of the five years since the Invasion has given her the street nickname of “Full Metal Bitch:, inspiring recruitment videos for United Defense Force (UDF). She takes a full boar Lara Croft meets Kara “Starbuck” Thrace military leading role that of course makes the guys drool while the ladies in the audience get to see what they deserve to see but rarely get.
Blunt’s action heroine is as fierce and even more deadly than the leading male role and we hope she gets the attention she deserves. A veteran of the screen, seeing her blast and cut up the Mimics and inspire not only the nation, but the world as the supreme model of a soldier is beyond refreshing and frankly overdue.
Cage starts out the movie as a Major in rank, head of the UDF propaganda machine. His number one tool was spinning Rita’s soldier image into one that inspired millions to sign up against the invasion. By back talking to General Brigham (Brendan Gleeson) he is busted down to Private, delivered to Farrell (Paxton) and assigned to robot suit wearing J Squad. While in the field, he’s floundering and can barely move his suit or unlock the safety. After a lucky shot, he is forever changed and the movie takes on it’s Groundhog Day adventure.
Cage is killed and gets to relive his day from the moment he wakes up on the tarmac and is introduced to Farrell. After the first few resets, he’s telling Farrell what he is going to say next, not unlike the charming Ned Ryerson! (Stephen Tobolowsky) scenes in Groundhog Day.
What this eventually serves as — even if the resets seem a bit overboard at some points — is a way for Cage to get muscle memory for the next time he dies and is resurrected. In string theory, or multiple universe theory, you could have him repeat this until the inevitable outcome of destroying the Mimics is achieved.
There is a catch however, if he is treated medically, the power goes away.
Eventually — and at one point particularly funny point where Cage miscalculates rolling under a moving vehicle —during his training he makes it to Rita to explain this phenomenon. Apparently she had it too, until her Achilles Heel was stricken. Rita and scientist du jour Dr. Carter (Noah Carter) are able to explain the reset phenomenon as well as the ultimate secret to taking down the Mimics. Cage will need to find the Mother (The Omega) and destroy it.
The third act is when we see it all go down, and just when we are sick of hearing Cage get called a “maggot” by drill instructor Terence Maynard (billed only as Cruel Sergeant) in one last reset, the team of Cage, Rita and J Squad head to Paris.
We’re not told how or why the Mimics are here, or what they want exactly but they are a world conquering race, (see Man of Steel). That small detail aside, this is a summer popcorn movie sure to satisfy the sci-fi fans out there looking beyond what Godzilla, Transformers and the Marvel movies have to offer.
Getting out of the franchise mode and throwing in a bit of Looper to a robot and alien blaster fight makes for a fun one. With stars like Cruise, Blunt and even Bill Paxton (being a complete dick in a sci-fi military role, not unlike his debut on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. this season) leading the charge, the Mimics don’t stand a chance.
You might find yourself stuck in the theatre or this Blu-ray on repeat. If you don’t enjoy this the first time around, reset yourself and try it again!
