Movie Week - Oblivion

via www.behance.net

Ok, so the actual final double feature for Movie Week is a Tom Cruise double feature.  As my fellow Bronx resident Un Gajje likes to point out to me every chance he gets, Tom Cruise is the greatest living movie star around.  So Oblivion should be a great, right? 

As an added bonus, the film also stars Morgan Freeman, which means if I’m lucky Morgan Freeman’s Dead Hand will be front and center during much of the action.  I think it’s fair to say that I’m the world’s biggest fan of Morgan Freeman’s Dead Hand. 

And so we have Oblivion.

I can’t front; Oblivion did very little for me.  I don’t know if it’s because I’m over post-apocalyptic futures or if it’s because the first act is basically Jack’s routine, which is in and of itself meant to be mundane. 

I do think that part of the problem is the trope of the guy in the future who views Earth in a sentimental way.  Seeing Jack in his hidden utopia on Earth is meant to ground him, both literally and figuratively, but goodness it caused me to roll my eyes. 

Another problem is that the film took leaps that I didn’t feel necessarily it had earned my following them.  The whole thing with Beech being able to discern that Jack was different and would be receptive to the truth, so he pulls the one card he has up his sleeve, out of orbit.  It seems like an incredibly huge gamble that conveniently works out. 

I guess I’m fine with the reveal about the nature of Jack and his mission.  The ending is horribly predictable.  And the lingering questions about what happened to Tech 52’s Vika is one that kept me up at night. 

Like, is she still waiting to get into contact with Tet?  Is she worried about where Jack is?  Can she adapt to things in the new world?  I need to know what’s up with that extra Vika. 

And of course to top things off, Morgan Freeman’s Dead Hand barely had any screen time. When you have that at your disposal and you don’t use it, I’ve got no idea what you’re doing.  How do you squander that opportunity?  Unbelievable. 

I can’t recommend Oblivion.  I’m not saying that it’s the worst movie that I’ve watched this Movie Week, but it’s not anywhere near the best.