Old wine in a new bottle but with an excellent flavor !

Rating: 10/10 (9 June 2014)

The overall theme of the movie is inspired from the Groundhog Day, Source Code etc. The aliens in the movie are inspired from the Matrix and to some extent from The Darkest Hour, even the battlefield setup itself looks like to be copied from Battle LA. I also felt that the dialogs could have been better and the background score more inspiring but tell me one thing - What in this world exists without any flaws? Flaws make us more human, more vulnerable and more believable. isn't it?
I believe that not even one of these is a showstopper at least not for me and if I try to see beyond these shortcomings, I can say convincingly that the smart and excellent execution by the director Doug Liman along with an engaging script was a pleasant surprise. Most of us usually develop preconceived notions about a movie after seeing its trailer, the cast or the storyline and take them with us to the theater but once that movie starts breaking out of these shackles of expectations, we start enjoying it. So even though I was aware about the overall plot of the movie (which can be easily inferred from the trailer), it never felt boring or repetitive (in spite this being the central premise of the movie). There were many elements incorporated in the movie which kept it going in the right direction and preserved the freshness of the plot. Some action sequences were funny and intense at the same time and none of them looked bIand. The movie was a fun watch and managed to keep me on the hook till the last moment although I was not very convinced with the ending but nevertheless, that can be digested after some pondering.
Cruise was good enough (looks like he has continued the mode from Oblivion), Paxton and Gleeson fulfilled their duties religiously but the crown jewel of the performance should go to Emily Blunt without a doubt. She looked beautiful, charismatic and delivered a top notch performance which was believable and right on the target. Although the chemistry between Cruise and Blunt could have been better but given the plot, this can be overlooked.
Special effects were good in most parts barring a few at the end and the director tried to keep the fighting sequences simple and clean unlike the Transformers where you can't even figure out who's beating who. The exoskeletons seemed to be of high production quality and looked solid.
To conclude, I can only say that this movie defied my expectations and came out as one of the best entertainers of this year till now.