Mark Elliot

Weird as hell. Almost as if the projectionist skipped a reel. Entire plot threads just evaporate and the resolution makes no sense. Which is a shame because the first two thirds, or, what should have been the first half, is pretty entertaining. It’s like they just stopped editing the film at some random spot. The reason might actually be more interesting than the movie. Maybe someday we’ll hear that story. But still, I can’t give it only two stars. The dialogue, the acting, the sex, and the half a story are just too good.

Oblivion is nine years old as I write this, and in perusing the reviews written when it opened, they have aged far less well than the movie. Those reviews are mostly infected by whatever Tom Cruise was going through at the time, or obsessed with obscure symbolism in the production design. For whatever reason, it appears the reviewers couldn’t get over themselves enough to just watch the movie and evaluate it on its merits. On the off chance this film has escaped your attention, it is well worth two hours of your time. It is solidly acted and produced, combining some emotional heft with a clever and satisfying twist at the end.

Worth every cent, this a superbly acted and beautifully shot mythology, and whatever all the one star ratings are actually about, they have nothing to do with this film.