The post-apocalyptic movie fascination continues this week with “Oblivion”, starring Tom Cruise (“Mission: Impossible”) and Morgan Freeman (“The Shawshank Redemption”). In a world ravaged by nuclear war and alien attacks, nearly all of the population has gone either to Titan, one of Saturn’s moons, or the Tet, a nearby space station shaped like a tetrahedron. Jack Harper, played by Cruise, and Victoria Olsen (Andrea Riseborough, “Happy-Go-Lucky”) are two of the few people left on Earth, repairing and maintaining drones while preparing to leave for Titan; yet just a few days before their departure, Jack makes a discovery that could change everything.
Much of the plot of “Oblivion” was revealed in trailers, taking away from some revelations that could have been quite shocking. Jack finds out that the supposed aliens still scavenging about Earth are in fact humans, with Freeman as their leader, Beech. He and his followers are set on destroying those that killed much of the human race and took away their planet. They have been relegated to hiding in caves, while only subsisting off of limited food and weaponry, waiting for someone that can help save what is left of the human species.
One of the major strengths of “Oblivion” is its cinematography, with beautiful and enticing scenery throughout. The depiction of the earth is extremely interesting, though a bit contrived, as the movie opens with Jack’s monologue while panning over wrecked monuments around the United States. In one particularly beautiful scene Jack rides through the desert on his motorcycle, the only moving thing within the miles of flatness about him, his motorcycle tracks stark against the rarely visited landscape. The special effects are also very alluring and it’s clear that the creators paid much attention to detail, especially in ensuring that flying stunts were physically plausible.
Out of all the characters, Freeman easily plays the most captivating part, though he does not have nearly as much screen time as Cruise, Riseborough, or Olga Kurylenko (“Quantum of Solace”) who plays Julia, a woman who has been haunting Jack’s dreams. As Beech, Freeman’s opening scene is stunning; a single ignited match highlights his face before he lights his cigar and blows out the match, leaving his face in darkness. Also interesting was Victoria, Jack’s assistant. Though presented as not particularly likeable as a result of the fact that she refuses to break the rules, she presents a true picture of an intelligent woman who sticks to her beliefs. Granted, Victoria and Julia are both marginalized from the potential greatness of their characters, depicted as women who tend to stay at home while Jack has the exciting plot line.
“Oblivion” is reasonably well made and interesting, as it breaks out from the constraints of the genre with its beautiful imagery and thought-provoking plot line. This movie is only one of the many post apocalyptic films to be released in 2013, so it will be interesting to see how this film will compare to the rest.
