Edge of Tomorrow movie review

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic reviews...

Edge of Tomorrow is a science fiction action film starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brendan Gleeson, and Bill Paxton. The film follows this soldier (played by Tom Cruise), fighting in a war against aliens. Basically, the aliens have taken over a good chunk of Europe, and plan on taking the rest of the world. Incase this didn't seem like world war 2 enough already, the plan is to invade a beach in France, and work from there. However, after dying in combat, Cruise wakes up, back where that day started. So, yeah, it's essentially Groundhog Day mixed with Aliens.

Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow

I've got to say, I was pleasantly surprised with this film. First of all, Tom Cruise is really good in the film. He usually plays the tough and stoic lead man, and although there is a point where he is that character, his character has an interesting arc leading up to that point in the plot. At the start of the film, he's not a soldier at all. He tries to blackmail a guy to get out of going to battle, he doesn't know what he's doing at all. However, after going through the beach several times, through trial and error, he becomes a solid soldier. It's interesting seeing that arc take place.

Emily Blunt in Edge of Tomorrow

The characters in the film are probably (for me) the best part of the film. Each one of them is played excellently, and they're all interesting and unique. Tom's character, Will, becomes a part of this military squad, who call themselves "J-Squad". They reminded me of the team in Aliens, they were each unique and likable characters, and the chemistry between the squad was fantastic. However, the standout for me was Emily Blunts character. She was completely badass, she was cool to be around, and she had an intimidating presence.

Bill Paxton in Edge of Tomorrow

The thing that surprised me the most with this film was how in depth some of the repeating mechanics were. He's repeating the day over and over again, so the real focus of the film is trial and error. He has to learn what happens, and when it's going to happen so he can avoid it. Some of the time, you saw the day play out, but other times the film implied that he has lived through these days multiple times over. All this played into what felt like a video game, like how in video games you'll die by a certain thing, then respawn but knowing to do something else.

The art style and visual elements are also great here, with a both the practical effects and special effects looking great. The mech suits that Tom Cruise has in the film seemed real, like when he moved around, it seemed like how someone would move around in a heavy mech suit. The aliens in the film are also fantastic, having both a great and unique design to them. Also, the way they moved around was very fast, almost ninja-like, and it added to just how threatening they were.

Final Rating
Edge of Tomorrow is a pleasantly surprising film, boasting both great cinematic and dramatic elements. I had nothing wrong with the film that would be major enough to bring up, just stuff that if I made this film, I would've done differently. However, I don't take a film as I think it should be, I take it as it is. And as it is, Edge of Tomorrow is a great film. I'd say pretty much everyone can watch and enjoy this movie, because it is simply fantastic.

Edge of Tomorrow: 4.7/5