By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
There are plenty of post-apocalyptic movies out there, but most of them share the same problem: by the end, you feel just as hopelessly miserable as the characters onscreen. Far too many directors think that the key to this genre is simply giving us scene after scene of bleak despair, but what audiences really want is a movie that uses a fictional future apocalypse as a lens to help us understand our present day. And if you’re ready for the kind of post-apocalyptic film filled with both crunchy philosophical questions and killer action sequences, then it’s time to stream the Tom Cruise film Oblivion on Netflix.
The Plot And Cast Of Oblivion
In the futuristic world of Oblivion, Earth is uninhabitable. We follow the misadventures of the last two people on the planet as they explore the post-apocalyptic wasteland while trying to stay one step ahead of violent and mysterious scavenges. After a NASA astronaut crashes to the planet, though, it kicks off a wild story of technology, clones, and identity that bridges the past and the future in a poignantly haunting way.
Action legend Tom Cruise is the main star of Oblivion, but he is joined by some fairly big names, including Morgan Freeman, whose gentle authority lends the film a sense of grounded vulnerability. The film also stars Olga Kurylenko (best known to action lovers for her role in the James Bond film Quantum of Solace) and Golden Globe-winning character actor Melissa Leo. Finally, the cast includes the talented Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, still best known for his scene-stealing performance in Game of Thrones.
Audiences And Critics Are Mixed
At the box office, Oblivion earned a respectable $287.9 million against a budget of $120 million. Those aren’t exactly Marvel numbers, but the film’s profit is a reminder that there’s still money to be made from smart, cerebral sci-fi thrillers. Unfortunately, the modest box office success didn’t exactly translate to critical acclaim.
On Rotten Tomatoes, Oblivion has a critical rating of 53 percent. In general, critics felt the story was relatively weak but that it was anchored by great production value and a standout performance from Cruise. The film also has a Popcornmeter rating of 61 percent, meaning that it (barely) edged into “fresh” territory with audiences if not with critics.
Oblivion Is Worth Your Time
The movie obviously didn’t win over the majority of critics, so why should you stream Oblivion today? For one thing, the story feels truly original, helping the film to effortlessly stand out amid some very overpacked genres. Make no mistake, this is the movie you put on for friends who think there are no new sci-fi or post-apocalyptic stories to be told.
Additionally, Oblivion is one of those movies that will give you something to think about long after you’ve turned off the TV and gone to bed. On the sci-fi scale, this is much more Star Trek than Star Wars when it comes to delivering a smart and introspective story. That admittedly makes it a terrible “turn off your brain” film, but it’s ideal to watch if you want something to think about even as you process one action sequence after another.
Speaking of which, this smart storytelling of this film doesn’t keep it from delivering some killer action scenes, some of which even put Cruise’s awesome Mission: Impossible stunts to shame. These scenes are spaced out nicely, too. Whenever you think you’re in danger of tuning out, you’ll get some high-octane action to help secure your attention. And due to the aforementioned high production value, these scenes, like the rest of the movie, are jaw-droppingly gorgeous.
Will you find Oblivion as refreshingly revolutionary as I did, or will you want to turn it off and go watch Star Wars instead? You won’t know until you stream it on Netflix for yourself. Afterward, you may never look at anything from the moon to the man in the mirror the same way ever again.
