I have always liked well made sci-fi movies, well made action movies, well made Tom Cruise movies and therefore when all three of them came together in Edge of Tomorrow, it was quite a no brainer that I would immensely enjoy the movie.
The basic premise of the movie is quite simple. Aliens (called Mimics by humans) have invaded Earth and have pretty much taken over most of Continental Europe and are now heading towards England. The United Defense Force, an armed force comprising of armies of the world have now planned a final offensive against the Mimics based on the assumption that Super Soldier Suits that they have developed have the capability to defeat the enemy, as was recently proved by Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt) in one of the battles.
Major William Cage (Tom Cruise), an army media liaison (Public Relations) is ordered by the commander of the United Defense Force to get to the front and cover this momentous amphibious assault in France. When he refuses to do so citing lack of any combat experience, he is arrested and knocked out. When he wakes up, he finds himself at a forward operating base in Heathrow as member of a combat squad. One thing leads to another and pretty soon he is airdropped into France as part of the invading forces. Not surprisingly, when he kills a large Mimic, he dies covered in its acid-like blood. But then, he wakes up to find himself at Heathrow again, only that it is the previous morning all over again. He suddenly finds out that he is literally ‘born again’ and the events of the previous day repeat themselves all over again in the same order.
What happens that puts him in this situation, how does he manage to ‘respawn’ again and again whenever he dies, what does he do with this ‘gift’ is what forms the crux of the movie and its narrative. If I give away any more of the plot, I will surely end up spoiling the entire movie experience for you readers.
Playing with the ‘time space continuum’ theory which has somewhat been beaten to death by various sci-fi movies, this narrative however gives it a nicely different twist by putting the same in a loop over and over again. Although viewers will surely know where Major Cage will start over again, the events that lead to the end of the loop make all the difference. Does he manage to end the loop? What will it take for him to end the loop? These are the questions that make the movie worth watching.
Surely a must watch for all Tom Cruise and sci-fi movie fans. For now watch the trailer below.
