Rule number one of Oblivion: You do not talk about Oblivion.

Rating: 9/10 (21 April 2013)

Second rule of Oblivion: You do not talk about Oblivion.
Alright, I hate to rip off the excellent Fight Club, but I felt that really sums up the film perfectly. Because it's impossible to talk about this film without really spoiling it; as I was telling my parents about it last night after having gone to see an matinÃ©e IMAX showing with my sister, I found myself having to hold back. Basically, you can only give them a description of what happens in the trailer and not spoil it. So while the fact that I'm trying to write a review of a film that's full of stuff which can't be given away may seem like an impossible task, what I can tell you is that this is simply a must see film.
Joseph Kosinski's sophomore film effort after the stellar TRON: Legacy was a passion project of him since 2005; when Kosinski moved to Los Angeles looking for film/music video projects, he kept himself sane by writing an 8-page story about Jack Harper, a drone repairman in a post-apocalyptic New York. While writing it, he listened then- unknown French electronic musician Anthony "M83" Gonzales. For 6 years he tried to get the film made, and now it's finally here. And it's not a film for everyone, based on the reactions to it: some people will not like it, some people will love it, and some will be left wondering what to think about it. But one thing we can agree on is that it is one of the most ambitious films of the year, and maybe even in a long time. Shooting the film with Sony CineAlta cameras and having M83 score the film just adds to the cleverness of the film- for one, the film looks and sounds ahead of its time. M83's score is reminiscent of Hans Zimmer and Mike Oldfield with a futuristic twist, and the cinematography is nothing short of gorgeous. In particular, the pool scene looks like a pretty screen saver. It's wonderful.
Right from the first frames of Oblivion, one can tell that it's a lot more intimate than most blockbusters out there. Same can be said for the opening bits where Jack Harper gets his plane ready and his wife sits in the control tower and sets base up. It definitely seems grand and epic, but at the same time, we're getting a lot more of an up-close- and-personal portrait of a couple paired together after a war that caused a huge disaster worldwide. Throughout much of the film we follow Jack as he repairs drones for the big robotic guardian in the sky named TET, and maintains the stability of the apocalyptic wasteland that is New York. He is almost always surrounded by danger, whether in the form of stray dogs or people dressed in creepy looking suits that resemble the creatures from the film "Predator". He does, at one point, notice a ship crashing and rescues a survivor, who seems to be hidden in his dreams a lot. From there on things get a lot stranger, and that's where I can stop telling you about the general gist of the film.Â
I'll admit that I was a tad disappointed that the trailer gave away a lot of what happens in the film, and so if you have only seen the one trailer, I'd definitely recommend you leave it at that. Because the rest of the movie has lots of shocking twists and turns; great character changes and lots of secrets that will definitely surprise you. Of course, the buildup to the big climax at the end gets greater and greater as it goes on, and the payoff is ultimately very satisfying and emotional. Of course I do have a few small gripes about the film- the finish definitely seems a bit rushed, the film definitely seems familiar at times (with obvious plot elements from The Giver, Minority Report and The Book of Eli), and Â a little more development of Jack's little hideout wouldn't have hurt, but overall, the film was really a stellar sophomore effort from Joseph Kosinski, and definitely will get itself a much deserved cult following. I can definitely imagine it being a film that will benefit from multiple viewings. The performances are excellent, especially from Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, who at times seems just plain creepy. The story is very thought provoking and will definitely leave you thinking about it long after the film is over, and the score is nothing short of stellar, and deserves to be heard on its own.
So by all means, see it, and recommend it to your friends and family. But like I said, do not, by any means, give anything away for them.