EDGE OF TOMORROW: Groundhog Day, but with guns

The Webbers Three saw Edge of Tomorrow based on the recommendations of a number of folks we love and respect, and I’m pleased to say that they didn’t steer us wrong. Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt did not disappoint, and once the action got going, it never stopped.

EOT is one of those “looping movies” where our hero has to live the same day over and over again — just like in Groundhog Day, except that in this case the hero is not a grumpy weatherman from Philly but a reluctant draftee. And I’d be reluctant too — he’s heading into a battle with some pretty intimidating aliens that are trying to take over the planet. And, as in Groundhog Day, each day is a little different based on the choices our hero decides to make based on what he learned the day before.

Mr. Webber has since discovered that Edge of Tomorrow is actually based on a Japanese science fiction manga novel called All You Need Is Kill. A name like that makes Edge of Tomorrow sound downright fluffy by comparison! EOT is PG-13, but it ain’t fluffy by a long shot. I looked over at my kiddo several times to make sure she was hanging in there. Of course she was hanging in there just fine — better than I was, actually. To my credit, I only screamed once.

Come to mention it, though, the kiddo was a little disappointed in Emily Blunt. She thought Emily would be the hero of the story and was really looking forward to seeing her be a total badass. Fat chance of that, even in a science fiction movie! I mean, she was a badass, but she certainly wasn’t the hero of the story, and Tom Cruise certainly wasn’t signed up to be her sidekick. Maybe next time . . .

Watch the trailer here.