Oblivion: A movie worth 'going out' for?

Rating: 7/10 (13 June 2013)

Oblivion had been on my 'must-see' radar for quite a while now. First because director Joseph Kosinski has already proved himself as being a capable director with Tron: Legacy, and second, for not jumping on the 'nowadays mandatory' 3D bandwagon. Tron didn't fully live up to it's true potential with it's questionable narrative decisions, but Oblivion (at least as the early trailers indicated) seemed like a more character- driven and unique movie.
Oblivion follows the story of Jack Harper (Tom Cruise), one of the last few humans stationing on Earth somewhere in the distant future. Earth is devastated by a nuclear blast, and the remainder of humanity live on Titan, Saturn's largest moon. Jack is tasked from higher above to repair and maintain the drones responsible for defending some drill-like machines, which are extracting energy from Earth's water resources. On patrol on his mission he discovers a spaceship full of survivors crashed into the surface which will ultimately lead him to question everything he knows.
Despite that the story borrows from familiar scripts, it still follows a strong narrative. As the story unfolds more characters start to fill up the screen and the plot becomes more convoluted and befuddling. But in the end, everything will make sense though.
Lead actor Tom Cruise projects strong performance, and contrary to the film's motto, he indeed makes an effective team with his inmate 'lover' Vica (Andrea Riseborough). Morgan Freeman (who admittedly has less role than the posters would suggest) provides contrast and color to Tom's role. Not only the cast excels, it's also the imagery of the wasteland which is drear and wonderfully realized. It mixes the design elements (spaceships, drones, the weaponry of Jack) of Mass Effect, with the barren and outlandish scenarios of Fallout. The visuals accompanied by the epic soundtrack made by M83 make a powerful 'audiovisual' whole.
Bottom line
Kosinki delivers a strong and excellent fiction. Where the pacing or the narration falls short, the orgasmic audiovisuals kick in. I, for one, tremendously enjoyed it with all it's inconsistencies, and it's absence left me craving for some more sci-fi action.