Movie Review: Oblivion

I know, I'm a little late to the game with this one.  In fact, I had to drive about half an hour to just get to a theater that was still showing it.  At first, when the previews were just coming out, I wasn't that interested.  It was just another Tom Cruise action flick.  But then the trailer above really caught my eye and I decided I had to see it.

In Oblivion Tom's character, Jack Harper, and Andrea Riseborough's character, Victoria, are the only two humans left on earth.  Their job is to keep track of the drones- basically fighting machines- that in turn take care of destroying Scav's- the aliens that tried to take over earth- and protect the drills that are working on sucking the ocean's dry to use as energy on the new home for humans, Titan.  Jack is drawn to the idea of earth and wishes he could have remembered living there while Victoria just wants to get home to the other humans.

There's a deep mythology to the end of the world and the dynamics, and it's interesting enough, except that it takes a while to tell.  Plus, there are so many secrets that need to be revealed, there are several parts where it drags.  But the secrets- oh! the secrets!- are probably the best part!  They really do catch you off guard and you feel a little more fulfilled for having them there.  Because, without the mythology and surprises around every corner, it really is just another Tom Cruise action flick.

I was happy with the movie, in fact I was rather glad I got to see it on the big screen because with all the special effects it looked really nice.  My only complaint is that the graphic novel it was based on (by the same guy who directed the movie) wasn't actually released.  I would have loved to read it.  There's still hope!

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars