Early Reviews Say EDGE OF TOMORROW Is "Freaking Crazy Awesome"

5 Reasons Why 'Edge of Tomorrow' Is the Event Movie to Beat This Summer:
1. It’s refreshingly original
2. Tom Cruise is a total wimp
3. A summer movie where a woman is the ultimate action hero
4. It’s actually really funny
5. It features the greatest shotgun moment since 'Terminator 2'
Bonus Kudos: Bill Paxton!

As Vrataski and Cage go through one day over and over again, each time getting a little bit further towards victory, Edge of Tomorrow purrs like a well-tuned machine. The laughs, the action, the performances, and the editing, are all on point. Goals are constantly provided, achieved, then expanded upon, giving the whole film a very satisfying forward momentum and pace. The script even has a few red herrings and other surprises.

Film rating: 8 out of 10

Meanwhile, the performances are illuminating, and Cruise, as expected, shows off his credentials as one of Hollywood’s most dependable leading men. He has such a domineering screen presence and charisma that appears so effortless. That being said, his intrinsic star quality works against him too, as we struggle to truly identify with him as a common, everyday person, which is exactly what Bill Cage is supposed to be. One of the leading themes is that of a normal, regular guy, thrust into abnormal, irregular circumstances, and therefore allow the viewer to relate, yet it’s not easy to abide by such a notion where Cruise is concerned.

Nonetheless, Edge of Tomorrow remains as an unadulterated, captivating thriller, which revels in being such unreservedly good fun. From the very start, right through to the bitter end, this maintains its fast-pace, resulting in a compelling picture that offers little respite to the viewer. Still, it’s no Swingers.

Film rating: 3 out of 5

Plus, almost everything else about Edge of Tomorrow is so well-done that a few little issues hardly mute its adrenaline. Liman’s movie moves fast, and not only because it has a ton of set pieces, but also a sharp sense of humor. It’s obvious what jokes McQuarrie wrote, because his voice is unquestionably present in the film. His sly style adds more character to an already energetic, propulsive, and charismatic summer blockbuster. 

Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are excellent together; exciting, photo-realistic action; fast paced, but not devoid of small character moments; a compelling arc for Cage; Bill Paxton gets some huge laughs; skillful editing; the repetition never gets in the way of a clear buildup

This is exactly the kind of movie that the summers needs more of.

Film rating: A-

As well-suited as Blunt ends up being for Rita, Cruise is doubly matched for Cage. Edge of Tomorrow works very well as a straight action film with a sci-fi bent, but what sets it apart and makes it truly a summer blockbuster worth getting excited over is the frequent injection of actual humor and the kind of Cruise-branded charm that only he can bring to this type of project. Make no mistake — Cruise is the perfect fit for this role and this film, and it is his ease with both the story and its tone that allows Edge of Tomorrow to truly impress and to make it a film well worth watching over and over (and over and over) again. Summer, you’re not too shabby.

The Tom Cruise affinity with sci-fi action films shows no sign of abating and he is in playfully good form in Doug Liman’s engagingly freewheeling futuristic romp that is essentially a coming together of Groundhog Day and Aliens. It is big, bold and breezy entertainment that moves at a cracking pace, offers plenty of fun to balance the sci-fi excesses, and while it finds itself up against hefty competition in the forms of Godzilla and X-Men at the box office it will likely carve out a typically hefty international share.

The effects are exciting, convincing and gritty in the chaotic Normandy battle action, which is filmed in a vivid you-are-there style. Supporting-role casting decisions seem to have been based more on humor than brawn, with Gleeson and especially Bill Paxton as the troop leader contributing a healthy amount of levity for this sort of fare.

But these guys essentially disappear in the late-going, leaving it to the stars to do the heavy lifting during the least engaging section, making for a sense of considerably diminished returns. Cruise's self-deprecation plays well, a good thing in that he's really too old for this role, while Blunt is toned, burnished and physically refurbished into a blunt object, something she's never remotely resembled before.

Like the wartime movies of the 1940s (not to mention Paul Verhoeven's parody of same in “Starship Troopers”), “Edge of Tomorrow” is a movie where a callow, selfish d-bag learns to be a better person by going to war. We've seen Cruise on this jerk-to-gem path before, although this film seems almost cannily designed to draw in ticket buyers who are fed up with the actor. “Don't like Tom Cruise?” the film seems to be offering, “Come watch him get killed over and over again!”

He's actually delivering a nicely underplayed performance, as though he were aware that it's the high-concept plot that's the real star here. Blunt commits to the material as well; she might seem wildly miscast as a war hero, but given the strange circumstances by which Rita achieves her notoriety (as does Cage), it makes sense that they didn't cast a Sigourney Weaver type.

Liman gives editor James Herbert (“Sherlock Holmes”) a lot to work with, giving us different angles on repeated scenes (except when making them identical is part of the joke); for a film about repetition, “Edge of Tomorrow” never feels tired or familiar.

SEE THIS MOVIE. GO AND SEE THIS MOVIE IMMEDIATELY. Edge of Tomorrow is just a goddamn delight. I felt alive and pumped when I left the theater, and so did the other batch of critics who followed me. I want to see it again, right now. You will have fun.

"Edge of Tomorrow" is science fiction at its finest and in its purest form, and unlike other movies that involve time travel, there's none of the confusion or head scratching that often comes with the territory, because you're so caught up in the characters and their surroundings, you never feel the need to dissect it for continuity glitches.

In many ways, it also claims the title of the best action movie of the summer (at least so far) by combining its innovative sci-fi premise with the type of high-gauged action James Cameron delivers so effortlessly.

Film rating: 9 out of 10

“Groundhog Day” and “Starship Troopers” make surprisingly compatible bedfellows in “Edge of Tomorrow,” a cleverly crafted and propulsively executed sci-fi thriller in which an untrained soldier must relive the same day over and over again — expiring violently each time — until he finds a way to defeat the alien marauders that have taken Earth hostage. That our ill-prepared hero is played by Tom Cruise lends a sly if perhaps unintended layer of subtext to this smarter-than-average star vehicle, insofar as the now 51-year-old actor seems to have embraced a similar trial-and-error career strategy: testing out one man-of-action persona after another in his ongoing (some would say undying) bid for bankability. Alas, B.O. success is likely to elude him this time out, as Warners’ June 6 release feels surprisingly low on buzz and audience awareness for an f/x-heavy picture with a $175 million pricetag. International returns will have to work extra-hard to make up the difference.

That’s a shame, because this enjoyably gimmicky entertainment is not only one of Cruise’s better recent efforts, it’s also arguably the most purely pleasurable film Doug Liman has directed in the 12 years since “The Bourne Identity.”

"Edge of Tomorrow" is a witty, trippy, emotionally engaging, impressively strange movie, beautifully staged and photographed (by Dione Beebe). Most importantly though, is that "Edge of Tomorrow" is an outrageously fun thriller that sees the biggest actor of our age come back to vibrant life in a film that allows him to lose the mask and remind us all why he was a movie star in the first place. It's a razzle-dazzle triumph, and one we can't wait to experience again and again and again...

Film rating: A-

Still, Cruise sells it brilliantly. Indeed, this is his strongest performance in some time and he revels in the character’s development. He starts out as a smug, smirking, weaselly coward, not above trying to blackmail an implacable general (Brendan Gleeson); Cage is so ineffectual, he can’t even switch off the safety on his hand-cannons. During his first drop he stumbles lamely about, watching his comrades die in the dirt, doing little useful to help them. But battle is a true redeemer, of course. So gradually, gradually, the weasel becomes a lion. Although not without a self-serving detour or two along the way.

Blunt, too, is on strong form, exhibiting a steely poise that makes her comfortably believable as a war-propaganda poster-girl known simultaneously as The Angel Of Verdun and Full Metal Bitch. She is less a romantic interest for Cruise (who seems to be going through an English actress co-star phase) than she is his mentor, and his foil. Doug Liman has always been an astute, experimental chemist, and while this isn’t quite the Brad-and-Angie lab explosion of Mr. & Mrs. Smith, it’s at least as strong a pairing as Matt Damon and Franka Potente in The Bourne Identity (which, incidentally, is another movie this comes to echo during one later episode particularly).

After the forgettable Jumper and Fair Game, it’s good to see Liman back on pyrotechnic form, orchestrating some inventive combat spectacle. This could well be his biggest hit yet — and Cruise’s for a good while, too. A rebirth, of a sort, for both of them. If nothing else, it’ll stand out as one of summer 2014’s most entertaining surprises. 

A playful and frantic science-fiction twister which mimics the best (Aliens, The Matrix, Groundhog Day) while offering something fresh and — most importantly — thrilling.

Film rating: 4 out of 5

Edge of Tomorrow is magnificent. After a bit of a slow start, Liman launches us into a war that is gut-rattling in its violence and awe-inspiring in its execution, seamless special effects and action, action, action. Tied to a hero who is initially gutless, we can connect to Cage's fear. When Cruise shifts him into the kind of hero we demand of this megastar, we are hooked hard into this rip-roaring ride. The movie positively pulses with adrenaline, reflected in its powerful performances, clever cuts and its fluid yet exhilarating cinematography that weaves around heroes, explosions, and spiraling space monsters. Edge of Tomorrow will leave you breathless and grinning. Simply put, this is why we go to the movies.

Film rating: 4.5 out of 5

Doug Liman’s Edge of Tomorrow is a delightfully entertaining and amusing romp under the guise of a very serious science-fiction action epic. It is almost refreshing to see how much fun director Liman and writers Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Christopher McQuarrie wring out of the film’s deceptively simple premise.

Tom Cruise may never reach his mid-90′s peak of stardom again, and one hopes that he eventually chooses to do something other than pulpy action films again. But the genuine skill and quality control still shines through in Cruise’s star vehicles. In an era when the movie star is dying or being grafted into superhero films, Tom Cruise continues to make high quality (and often wholly original) genre fare that cements his name as a promise of high quality and utter entertainment value. Cruise is still willing to kill himself over and over again to entertain you. As long as his films remain as enjoyable as Edge of Tomorrow, I’ll keep rooting for him. This is pretty terrific entertainment.

Oscar nominee Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt star in Warner Bros. Pictures' and Village Roadshow Pictures' sci-fi thriller "Edge of Tomorrow," under the direction of Doug Liman. 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.