Tom Cruise is on a sci-fi kick lately. He's already starring in Oblivion as a soldier sent to a distant planet to destroy the remains of an alien race, only to question what he knows about the planet, his mission and himself. Now, we have a lengthy synopsis and a release date for All You Need Is Kill, another sci-fi movie. Co-starring Emily Blunt, the film is being directed by Doug Liman, who's best known for directing Mr. and Mrs. Smith, as well as executive producing The Bourne series. The synopsis of All You Need Is Kill is:
“The story unfolds in a near future in which a hive-like alien race, called Mimics, have hit the Earth in an unrelenting assault, shredding great cities to rubble and leaving millions of human casualties in their wake. No army in the world can match the speed, brutality or seeming prescience of the weaponized Mimic fighters or their telepathic commanders. But now the world's armies have joined forces for a last stand offensive against the alien horde, with no second chances."
“Lt. Col. Bill Cage (Cruise) is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously demoted and then dropped — untrained and ill-equipped — into what amounts to little more than a suicide mission. Cage is killed within minutes, managing to take an Alpha down with him. But, impossibly, he awakens back at the beginning of the same hellish day, and is forced to fight and die again… and again. Direct physical contact with the alien has thrown him into a time loop — dooming him to live out the same brutal combat over and over.”
“But with each pass, Cage becomes tougher, smarter, and able to engage the Mimics with increasing skill, alongside Special Forces warrior Rita Vrataski (Blunt), who has laid waste to more Mimics than anyone on Earth. As Cage and Rita take the fight to the aliens, each repeated battle becomes an opportunity to find the key to annihilating the alien invaders and saving the Earth.”
If you're thinking it sounds like a sci-fi Groundhog's Day, you're right. I couldn't get through reading the synopsis out loud in our office without laughing. It's not that it's funny, it's just… typical, I guess. Two movies about Tom Cruise saving us from aliens that'll come out within a year of one another. He's an excellent actor, so he can carry even a bad movie into being decent. But I'm also having a hard time believing Emily Blunt can be a 'Special Forces warrior' name Rita Vrataski. Then again, Matt Damn became an action star and Tobey Maguire has been a superhero, so I guess anything is possible. She's also a fine actress. To be honest, I don't even know why I'm weary about this movie. Maybe it's the title. What does it mean? All You Need Is Kill? It's like they forgot the 'to' before 'Kill.'
The cherry on top? Bill Paxton is in it. So get all of your Hudson jokes ready. All You Need Is Kill is set to open in the US on March 14, 2014.
You can follow Movies and Culture Editor Lance Liebl on Twitter @Lance_GZ. He likes talking sports, video games, and the stupidity of celebrities.
[Source: Totalfilm]