Oblivion Review

Tom Cruise has recently revived his fading career with impressive performances in movies like Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and Jack Reacher. A film directed and written by Joseph Kosinski, as Oblivion is, should not be expected to feature the greatest story. What you can expect, though, is stunning visuals, something that Oblivion delivers.

The movie's story is neither completely original, nor all that interesting. But the film is saved by its strong performances, and impressive special effects. Some of its set pieces are truly staggering to look at, and it packs tons of visual dazzle. That is one thing I cannot complain about for this movie.

Tom Cruise's performance was surprisingly good to me. With a weak story, the film relies on its cast and effects to carry it. Cruise largely succeeds in doing this. He is emotional when it is needed, and is always up for a good action sequence.

Andrea Riseborough's performance is solid as well. She plays Cruise's character's partner on Earth. Overall, she was entertaining to watch.

Morgan Freeman's role was disappointing. He was only in the film for two or three scenes, and never really took over as he usually does.

The only performance that I didn't find all that good was Olga Kurylenko's. Her character wasn't all that interesting, and I didn't feel connected to her as was intended. She wasn't terrible, but she also wasn't near as good as Cruise or even Riseborough.

As I mentioned before, the film's visuals are incredible. The setting is beautiful, and the action looks terrific. Overall, it was just fun to look at.

The story, however, was lacking. At times, I had no idea what was going on, and I was never even engaged in what was going on.

Conclusion

Oblivion is a visually dazzling piece of sci-fi that features solid performances from its cast. The story does leave a lot to be desired, but bottom line, it sets out to entertain...and succeeds in doing so. 

Rating: 7/10