Movie Review: EDGE OF TOMORROW - 9.1 Stars! No Spoilers

EDGE OF TOMORROW is an excellent movie and well worth seeing in 3D and especially IMAX 3D.  While it is my second highest rated review this year (CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER scored 9.2 stars), had director Doug Liman tackled a few things in a different way, EoT would have had my endorsement as the year best movie thus far.  But it certainly is in the same league as Cap.

Probably my largest complaint with the movie is the third act.  The first two acts had exceptional pacing and was just about perfectly edited - I'll talk about the finale later on in the review. Liman whisked us along with numerous "time loop gags" that worked very well for me - these are inventive and while the premise is reminiscent of GROUNDHOG DAY and BACK TO THE FUTURE, it is still it's own beast.  At no time was my suspension of disbelief blown by something reminding me of another movie.  So rest assured, the most important aspect of this movie - time loop - was done well.

I made the mistake of watching Tom Cruise on the late night talk show circuit and I came away with a very scripted and safe take of the actor.  It's getting worse.  A canned public persona.  Hated it.  I feel he's not capable of being himself in public.  I understand the microscope he is under and that many don't trust his instincts (probably including himself), but wow, I hated watching it.  I won't again.

Emily Blunt's publicity tour however was very upbeat, funny and great to watch. Well, at least up to the point where she starts to talk about Cruise and his quirks. Then it becomes quite awkward. Even the international premieres that opened in 3 cities all within 24 hours was Cruise's idea and while interesting, I don't believe it was worth keeping a mother from her child for that long. Blunt has just given birth. I'm sure that didn't go over very well with her and her family.

HOWEVER, Cruise's performance in EDGE OF TOMORROW is inspired!  He has come a long way as far as taking chances on screen.  In fact his best scenes in EoT are when his character is vulnerable.  Taking into account his performance in TROPIC THUNDER, Cruise is morphing into someone audiences can start to relate to, and not an actor who only plays characters that are safe and invincible.

Domestically EDGE OF TOMORROW is not performing as well as it should be. Cruise may have over extended his stay as a top tier actor in the minds of most - especially the younger crowd. In fact EoT ($29m) opened third behind a strong opening from THE FAULT IN OUR STARS ($48m) and Disney's strong hold over MALEFICENT ($34m). Internationally though, Cruise is still a behemoth of the box office taking in an astounding $82m this weekend bringing us to a total of $140m.

Half the movie's take has been in 3D thus far (47%) and while I thought the 3D was done well - there wasn't anything about the conversion that stood out for me. It was just there. It certainly helped with the immersion and suspension of disbelief - especially with the "Matrix sentinel" influenced aliens, but with the sci-fi genre (and horror for that matter), I like to have a few scenes dialed way up to amplify the anxiety. Other than my preference, there's nothing overly wrong with the 3D.

What shone for me was the story, suspension of disbelief and the visual effects / stunts. This, of course, is an awesome combination of superlatives to have for a sci-fi movie and thus a very nice score of 91 stars.

The weakest links in the movie I felt was the third act, directing and character development. Yes, Cruise character Major Cage goes through significant change but I felt as though there wasn't enough development for me to be invested in his character all that much. The final act lost the movie's outstanding pace and editing, plus I can think of many things that WOULD have worked much better than what finally made it to the screen. I haven't read the original source material (ALL YOU NEED IS KILL), but I bet you it's different in the finale somehow. If you know, please let me know.

So - well worth going to see! I recommend it and endorse the IMAX 3D version. It's a VERY close second to CAPTAIN AMERICA for this year's best movie, so go see it.

EDGE OF TOMORROW is now playing in 3D, IMAX 3D and flat.

Must Watch: Clips And BTS From EDGE OF TOMORROW

Ok - first things first. I saw the trailer for EDGE OF TOMORROW in IMAX 3D and it sucked. Instant headache. I am REALLY hoping that this isn't the case for the whole movie - that this was just a rush job to get the trailer out on time. Or, that it was a theatrical projection error. Because the more I see of this movie the more I really want to love it.

Check the movie clips (visual and some minor plot and character relationship spoilers) and the Behind The Scenes (BTS) clips (visual spoilers) to see what I mean. First of all, I like Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in general but I am really impressed with the level of practical effects being employed along with visual effects! I think this will translate to a believable experience. Yet another reason why I hope they didn't blow the 3D conversion.

Here's the storyline for the movie:
The epic action of “Edge of Tomorrow” unfolds in a near future in which an alien race has hit the Earth in an unrelenting assault, unbeatable by any military unit in the world. Major William Cage (Cruise) is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously dropped into what amounts to a suicide mission. Killed within minutes, Cage now finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop—forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over, fighting and dying again…and again. But with each battle, Cage becomes able to engage the adversaries with increasing skill, alongside Special Forces warrior Rita Vrataski (Blunt). And, as Cage and Rita take the fight to the aliens, each repeated encounter gets them one step closer to defeating the enemy.

EDGE OF TOMORROW opens on June 6 in 3D, IMAX 3D and flat. Here's hoping for a good conversion.

Warner Bros. Presentation from CinemaCon 2014

Tim here, and the last studio presentation from this year's CinemaCon was Warner Brothers Pictures. Now, they went all out with their presentation by bringing in tons of stars (Johnny Depp, Morgan Freeman, Clint Eastwood, Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, and a few others) to introduce each picture from their upcoming slate. Warner Bros. upcoming 3D movie line-up: Godzilla (Conversion), Edge of Tomorrow (Conversion), Jupiter Ascending (Native), and The Hobbit: There and Back Again (Native). I felt it was a bit overkill with all the stars, and wanted them to stop talking and show the footage.

The coolest thing was that Gareth Edwards got up to introduce Godzilla, which he revealed they just finished editing. That might not mean it's completely finished as they could still have some VFX tweaking and finalizing, or that the stereo conversion isn't done. The footage we saw was a bit of an extended trailer, but even more than what the trailers have shown thus far. It looks insane! This movie is amongst my most anticipated of the year. They were still a little wary about showing a clean full shot of Godzilla, but I think that adds to the awesomeness of the movie. See by obscuring Godzilla in smoke and rubble it keeps the tension, which I applaud. Godzilla hits theaters May 16^th, 2014.

Next was Edge of Tomorrow, which is directed by Doug Liman and stars Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. The movie looks like a thrilling sci-fi version of Groundhogs Day and it will filled with lots of action. I'm intrigued, and look forward to checking it out. The footage we saw had a lot of footage from the previous two trailers, and a bit more. Edge of Tomorrow hits theaters June 6^th, 2014.

Second to last was the Wachowskis and their sci-fi film Jupiter Ascending that has at its center Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum, who were in attendance to introduce the footage. A return to sci-fi from The Matrix filmmakers makes this one of the more anticipated movies of the year. It's also the first stereopscopic 3D movie made by the Wachowskis, and they chose to shoot it natively. The footage was screened in 2D and included a decent amount already seen in the trailers already released, plus a little bit more. Jupiter Ascending hits theaters July 18^th, 2014.

Finally, we got a quick sneak peak at The Hobbit: There and Back Again, which didn't show a whole lot to write about. A couple of shots that look like the calm before the storm at Laketown, Gandalf saying "The time is upon us where all must choose what side we're on," and clear tense character close-ups. This was all after production diary behind-the-scenes footage and a montage of the journey so far. It wasn't by any means an indication that a trailer is close.

Got to love Warner Bros. right now! I can't wait for more Hobbit footage. Overall, however, the best studio presentation at CinemaCon goes to 20th Century Fox who started with a Vegas style song and dance and decided to let the footage speak for itself. Look out for my interview with Andy Serkis coming soon.

TOP GUN 3D Impresses! Nostalgia And Great 3D Make For A Wonderful IMAX Experience

Definitely recommended. TOP GUN 3D delivers of the action and memories of the original Tom Cruise movie but with depth and added emotion.

Legend3D is responsible for the 3D conversion and they did an outstanding job considering that the original was not 4K remastered. It was fascinating to see an old school "film" converted for IMAX because you can see the film grain and obviously that would present some issues for a conversion. And yet Legend3D delivered. Yes there were some small items of note (the beach volleyball scene has some very tiny issues with the net that lasted about 2 seconds) but overall I was shocked at how well the whole thing looked blown up on a huge IMAX screen.

Some of the scenes must be addressed individually because they looked stunning in 3D. The POV shot overlooking the tail (with smoke streamers) of the navy jet after takeoff - WOW. The runway night shot with the flashing landing lights and Cruise's motorcycle nearby looked great. One of the highlights is seeing a 3 dimensional view of a reflection in the jet's cockpit canopy glass - amazing.

The emotional scenes draw you in more in 3D. You feel like you are in that blistering hot aircraft carrier about to get chewed out for a tower flyby. It's a rather intense experience to see a movie that you watched over and over again in younger years presented in such a modern, immersive fashion. It's almost dreamlike.

And finally, this was a Tony Scott film. If you're a fan then what better way to celebrate his memory than to go to the cinema and see one of his better films on the big screen. You may not have another chance like this one. Think about Scott's warm use of color, his attention to time of day scenes, intense, emotional closeups and his use of soundtrack. Frankly I was in awe of his ability to simply create a blockbuster movie! The resources and cooperation needed to pull off TOP GUN was staggering.

If you haven't seen TOP GUN let alone TOP GUN 3D, then don't wait - get out and see it! It's only in IMAX theaters for less than a week now. Trust me, if you liked the original classic movie then you'll love TOP GUN 3D.

TOP GUN 3D is also now available for preorder in Blu-ray at Amazon.

Guillermo del Toro Is AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS Once Again!

I have to say this project absolutely fascinates me. Guillermo del Toro came close with his James Cameron produced effort to obtain financing from Universal for AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS but in the end the studio backed out. And with that rejection del Toro decided that the project resembled Ridley Scott's PROMETHEUS too much and completely shelved it.

Or did he? Tom Cruise is STILL attached. I'm uncertain if Cameron is still around to produce (his life is about to get some Pandora pandemonium), but this thing is still alive. Sounds more like halfway between the back and front burners to me!

Now check what Guillermo had to say about the project:
"I'm going to try it one more time. Once more into the dark abyss. We're gonna do a big presentation of the project again at the start of the year and see if any [studio's] interested...Yeah, Tom [Cruise] is still attached. I think it would be so fantastic to make it with him. He's been such a great ally of the project."

And after seeing PROMETHEUS in theaters, del Toro seemed to be comfortable with the whole thing and laughed it off:
"I saw it finally and.. yes, there are things in common, but, you know, screw it. Lovecraft was there first."

...And a huge smile spreads across my face. AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS is an all or nothing effort and judging by the way PACIFIC RIM looks, I think he will get his financing finally. Will Legendary Pictures step up to the plate? Here's hoping! Imagine that Lovecraft classic amplified by del Toro's magic on the silver screen in 3D...

Source: Indiewire

TOP GUN 3D Kicks The Fires And Lights The Fires February 8th!!

Yes, Paramount has determined when it's best to release the Tony Scott actioner since the famed director's passing and that date is February 8th, 2013 when it will be shown in IMAX 3D.

Note that TOP GUN 3D will also be released in 3D Blu-ray on February 19th.

Here's the press release for the movie:
Top Gun, Paramount Pictures' 1986 classic from director Tony Scott, producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Tom Cruise, takes off on a new adventure with an exclusive six-day 3D engagement in select IMAX® theatres beginning February 8, 2013. The film has been re-mastered for the IMAX® 3D release and subsequent debut on Blu-ray.

Top Gun was re-mastered for the big screen from high-resolution original negative scans and painstakingly converted to 3D by Legend3D under the supervision of the film’s director, Tony Scott. Rendered in 3D, the film's complex, long shots reveal extraordinary depth and clarity, allowing viewers to explore every detail of the action. From the spectacular aerial dogfights to the intense close-ups in the cockpits, each frame enables the audience to feel a part of the story.

The story of an elite group of pilots competing to be the best in their class and earn the title of "Top Gun" captured the imagination of a generation and earned a worldwide box office of over $350 million upon its release. The film stars Tom Cruise as Maverick and Kelly McGillis as his civilian instructor. The film also stars Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards and Meg Ryan.

The Top Gun Blu-ray 3D disc presents the film with pristine high definition picture and sparkling sound in spectacular 3D for the ultimate home viewing experience. The Blu-ray 2D includes the re-mastered film in high definition, along with a six-part documentary on the making of the movie, a behind-the-scenes featurette, interviews with Tom Cruise, commentary by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, director Tony Scott, co-screenwriter Jack Epps, Jr. and more. The two-disc set available for purchase also includes a digital copy of the film and will be enabled with UltraViolet technology.

Should be great. Can't wait to see that stunning Tony Scott imagery in 3D!

10 Mins Of TOP GUN 3D Being Screened At The 3D Entertainment Summit!!

Attending the 3D Entertainment Summit in Los Angeles or tempted to go? Here's a great reason to attend: Approximately 10 mins of TOP GUN 3D will be screened on Thursday, September 20th at the Summit!

As you probably know, TOP GUN was a huge success for director Tony Scott who recently passed away. Just 10 days before his death, Scott made it very clear how much he loved his movie in 3D to the founder of the company that converted it for him, Barry Sandrew of Legend 3D.

Barry will be in attendance at the highlights screening of TOP GUN 3D and it will be shown as a tribute to Tony Scott.

Obviously the movie is a successful, tent pole starring Tom Cruise, but for me it was about the stunning visuals and high octane action sequences mixed with an amazing soundtrack that brought it home. Add in 3D? Wow. I've got to see this whole thing as soon as possible! Wish I was there at the Summit this year. If you manage to check it out, let me know your thoughts...