Recycled Theme? No Problem 'Cause It Works.

Rating: 8/10 (12 July 2014)

First, this is a good Sci-Fi. The movie gets to it too as whoever the aliens are need not be explained as what's important is they're here and they're on the brink of eliminating mankind. The CGI effects are definitely "perfect" here as we get really original bad-ass aliens and well realized battle scenes with them.
Then there's the compelling differences. One big one, and it ain't even original, is the premise of replaying the day as per Groundhog Day. It doesn't ever feel recycled though and it is the absolute core of the story. Perhaps the biggest difference is we get a Tom Cruise character that isn't in any way a typical summer "money-grab" cut-out: cooler than cool character. We get a real Sci-Fi anomaly whose persona is in a desperate situation and he plays it perfectly. PR officer Bill Cage, Cruise's character, is suddenly thrust into a major front line battle situation in which he, quite accidentally, becomes the one valiant person who can divert humankind's demise. He gets some nice support by a very physical woman warrior played by Emily Blunt and an obliviously gung-ho Master Sargent Farrell Bill Paxton (he drank much Cool-Aid).
So, if you enjoy "nasty" (i.e., big and good action) Sci-Fi this ones got you covered. The living the day over thing is treated with both humor and that needed tiny crack of hope in that outcomes actually can be changed by extraordinary means.