Movie Review - Oblivion

Oblivion (2013)

Starring Tom Cruise, Andrea Riseborough, Olga Kurylenko, Morgan Freeman, and Melissa Leo

Directed by Joseph Kosinski

I saw Oblivion on a whim on its last day of release in theaters and the only thing I really knew about it was that some article I read said that most audiences would find it too complicated to comprehend -- "You really have to pay attention," it stated.  I'm all for something deep and intricate, but I found myself bracing for something rough.  All I can say is that it'd be a shame if people read the same article as me and shied away from seeing this flick like I almost did because Oblivion is one of the best science fiction films I've seen in a long time.

In 2017, aliens known as the Scavengers destroyed Earth's moon which wreaked havoc on our atmosphere, causing earthquakes, tsunamis, and other weather-related disasters.  Seeing our weakness, the "Scavs" invaded Earth, and while we managed to defeat them it was only via nuclear warfare which left most of our planet inhabitable.  Sixty years have passed and the humans that survived the ordeal now find themselves living on Titan, one of Saturn's moons.  Their new colony is powered by giant energy stations that sit atop Earth's oceans and Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) and his partner Victoria "Vic" Olsen (Andrea Riseborough) live atop and run station #49, reporting back daily to Sally (Melissa Leo), their mission commander back on Titan.  One day, while Jack is out fixing a drone that protects the power stations from the few remaining Scavs on Earth, five pods fall from the sky containing humans including a woman named Julia (Olga Kurylenko) whom Jack has been seeing in his dreams -- a woman whose past may hold secrets that could change Jack's future.

Director Joseph Kosinski helmed Tron: Legacy three years ago and while I enjoyed that film, I felt that the action sequences weren't quite up to par, making me wonder if the then-first-time director had what it took to craft a special effects-heavy film.  Oblivion erases any questions in my mind about Kosinski's capabilities as he not only gets solid performances from all his actors and corrects any pacing issues I may have had with his prior work (this film moves along exceedingly well), but also creates a fantastic world here for the characters to inhabit.  Granted, considering that the film takes place only sixty years in the future, it is a little bit difficult to fathom the seemingly amazing advancements this plot believes that we as a civilization would have made (especially considering we would have been making said advancements in the midst of an alien invasion), but once you get past the notion that incredibly complicated hovercrafts and flying metallic autonomous drones are commonplace, Kosinski's Earth is a pretty nifty one.  All of the effects here are top notch and are really seamless -- they deserve to be remembered at year's end.

Tom Cruise has his ups and downs in my opinion, but for every Rock of Ages, there's a an action film like this one and I think this is the genre where he succeeds the most for me.  For a good portion of the film, it's just Cruise onscreen alone and he completely holds our attention.  Granted, the film isn't exactly asking for a lot from the guy, but he does a nice job.  Andrea Riseborough (whom I saw live on stage in a play in New York several years ago) is a presence I'd like to see in movies a bit more often.  This was her first big budget film and despite her character's cold exterior, she lit up the screen for me.  I thought there was something special about her when I saw her onstage and I think that's certainly the case.

The film's one disappointment is Olga Kurylenko whom I didn't love in Quantum of Solace and I wasn't a huge fan of here either.  It's not that Ms. Kurylenko does anything drastically wrong, it's just that I've yet to see her bring any modicum of enthusiasm or spark to her acting.  She's a pretty face, but she might have been better off sticking to her earlier modeling career.

Nevertheless, Oblivion surprised me for sure, providing me with one of the best science fiction moviegoing experiences I've had in a long time.  When this one eventually makes its way to Blu Ray, I highly suggest giving it a go.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+