Oblivion

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Oblivion.

Directed by Joseph Kosinski.

Written by Karl Gadjusek & Michael Arndt.

Based on the Graphic Novel "Oblivion" created by Joseph Kosinski.

Review #210

MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, brief strong language, and some sensuality/nudity.

Run Time: 124 min

Cast

Tom Cruise...Jack

Morgan Freeman...Beech

Olga Kurylenko...Julia

Andrea Riseborough...Victoria

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau...Sykes

Melissa Leo...Sally

Zoe Bell...Kara

Sci Fi is at times a real tough nut to crack for Tinseltown. Originality is hard enough for the film industry today. It's even harder for Sci Fi. I can't give an exact reason why but my theory is because successful films of the genre featured stories that included one or some of these elements.

1) Space exploration or travel.

2) Extraterrestrials.

3) The future.

4) Time travel.

5) Cloning.

When your options are limited, it's much more difficult to bring a fresh perspective to old ideas.

Recently there have been a couple of pretty good sci fi films that were conceptually brilliant. In Time and Looper. Very simple premises yet filled with intrigue and suspense. In Time however drops the ball a bit on it's execution. Part of it was casting but there seemed to be a flaw in the storytelling. The film goes a different way between acts 2 and 3 that bog things down. Looper on the other hand was a terrific film that treated time travel with respect and intelligence. It's by now means a prefect film but one of the better genre pics to come out in recent memory.

So how does Hollywood keep up the momentum that these latest sci fi entries has created? By going back to the classics. Star Trek and Star Wars. The sequel to 2009's Star Trek hits theaters soon and a new Star Wars film is headed to our screens in a couple of years. I'm excited for both to say the least. However, before we visit space....the final frontier or a galaxy far far away there's a little sci fi film called Oblivion that in my opinion has earned it's place as one of the better sci fi films of the last few years.

Plot

A veteran assigned to extract Earth's remaining resources begins to question what he knows about his mission and himself. 

The first thing to understand about this film is that like it's predecessors, there is NOTHING original about this story. Normally that would be a bad thing. Not here, because the filmmakers knew what they were doing and told us a story. I wasn't beaten over the head with overbearing action or sensory overloading CGI. I was treated to a been there done that plot that had a different feel to it. There was a freshness and a vitality to the story that put a smile on my face. Then the film does something that I thought for sure was a deal breaker.

They start to slowly pull back the curtain and give you a glimpse of who the enemy is. Then as the film goes further along you see a bit more of the "bad guys" and if you're paying enough attention you'll realize that you have been baited and switched. However, Oblivion regains the trust you gave it early on by giving you more moments of Jack's memory flashes. These were critical in service of the story and overall direction of the film. They keep you reeled in because it's obvious that there is a mystery surrounding these images and flashes and no clues have been given to figure it out.

Oblivion doesn't make it easy on you. There are quite a few twists and turns before you reach the finale but your patience is rewarded because the film ends with a wonderful sequence of scenes that wraps everything up in a nicely tied bow. Then when you rewind the tape in your mind and go back to a scene that felt incomplete. The feeling of clarity comes through and gives you a much better appreciation for what just took place with these characters.

This is thanks to Joseph Kosinski who not only directed the film but created the graphic novel that it's based on. This is a prime example of what happens when you adapt a comic book and place that adaptation in the hands of it's original creator. I have been begging for this as long as I can remember begging for anything. In my opinion only good things can happen when a filmmaker is also the creative force behind the project they are adapting. Full disclosure, I have not read the graphic novel but I'll tell you this.

My package from Amazon is on the way.

Kosinski may not sound like a household name but he directed the very entertaining Tron: Legacy. More importantly he established a visual style that was both stunning and practical. He employs those same tactics with Oblivion. The world he created for this movie was GORGEOUS. He finds a way to make the Empire State Building buried under ground look amazing. The detail that was paid to all of the surrounding environments was just superb. Kosinski does what all good film makers do. He uses his visual effects both computer and not to enhance his story. Not dominate it. He understands that visual effects like an action scene or song in a musical is a tool to serve the greater good of the project as a whole. Because of this, the scope of the world Kosinski created at times overshadows the cast.

Which was a good thing in this case.

Oblivion did not need break the bank performances from any of it's cast. Though there were some heavyweights in the film highlighted by Cruise and Freeman. The overall presentation and flow of the narrative gave Oblivion enough life that the actors didn't stand out. What they did which was much more important was blend themselves into the project, making them another piece to the puzzle.

Oblivion is not perfect.

It's not a masterpiece.

It's not original.

What it is is a DAMN GOOD MOVIE!

On the 5 star scale. Oblivion gets 4 stars with a "Go See It!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today. Up next is Iron Man 3.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"