Universal Pictures’ upcoming Sci-fi action-adventure set in the future, Oblivion, seems very much aware of its audience and poised for box office success.
Hollywood has long churned out storyboards that venture into the future but, more often than not, take too much for granted, believing the audience will stay mesmerised by unrealistic stories relying heavily on special effects.
Oblivion promises to be more authentic; not an old, worn out concept wrapped in a new package.
Based on director/producer Joseph Kosinski’s (of TRON: Legacy fame) novel of the same name and brought to the screen by the producers of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Oblivion stars Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and Melissa Leo.
The plot has veteran soldier, Commander Jack Harper (Tom Cruise), issued with a court martial and sent to a distant planet, where he is to destroy what remains of an alien race. When he encounters a crashed spacecraft with a lone survivor, her story propels them on an epic adventure that will alter both their destinies.
Director Kosinski describes Oblivion as “an action-adventure set in the year 2077 after a massive war has left Earth uninhabited and in ruins. The story centers on Jack, a drone repairman who is an integral part of a larger mission”.
Kosinski praises his lead actor, Tom Cruise, saying he has “a fantastic sense of what makes a great movie”.
“It has been an amazing experience working with him, not just on set during production, but developing the script and his character early on,” he adds.
Cruise is also pretty upbeat about the movie: “Joe is someone who creates other worlds, and his vision for Oblivion is what interested me. I’ve never seen anything like it: the way that he wanted to direct it and all the elements that were involved. Although I haven’t made a sci-fi film since Minority Report, I love the genre and I knew that Joe works well in it.”
This is also the first time superstars Cruise and Morgan Freeman are gracing the big screen together. Cruise has welcomed the opportunity to work with Freeman describing him as a wonderful man and an extraordinary actor.
Freeman plays Beech, the leader of a resistance group. He has also spoken of his enthusiasm for working with Kosinski: “One of the things that will set Oblivion apart as a movie is its creativity, the costumes, the sets and the machinery. It’s a world all its own and Joe’s a perfectionist, which makes working with him a joy, as he knows exactly what he wants.”
This film has an intriguing plot, a talented cast and a visionary director. In the words of Academy Award-winner Melissa Leo, who plays Sally: “The core of Oblivion is a human tale, and it is the marriage of story and technology. It is the future of filmmaking.”
Oblivion releases in Australian Cinemas on April 11.
