WATCH: The trailer for Tom Cruise's new sci-fi blockbuster Oblivion
In the futuristic film, coming next April, Cruise plays one of the last men on Earth — not that there's much left of it
The trailer: Universal Studios is taking a gamble on Oblivion, a Tom Cruise-starring sci-fi thriller coming next April from the director of Tron: Legacy. "The last Super Bowl was played right here," says Cruise in the film's trailer, standing in the center of an obliterated football stadium, evidence of the devastation the Earth has suffered in a decades-long war with a mysterious alien race. (Watch the trailer for Oblivion below.) Though we know from the official synopsis that Cruise plays one of the "last few drone repairmen stationed on Earth," and thus a sort of everyman, Oblivion's trailer is light on plot and heavy on atmosphere, showing off the dystopian splendor of the ruined planet. Will Oblivion be the next Inception, or the next John Carter?
The reaction: Judging from the trailer, Oblivion "sports all the flashy imagery one would hope for from an adventure of this scale," says Matt Patches at Hollywood.com, but "whether Cruise can embody humanity in this epic sci-fi" is a question that remains to be answered. "I have trouble buying Cruise as the last everyman on Earth," says Russ Fischer at Slashfilm, but if audiences can get past that incongruity, this sci-fi dystopia "looks pretty appealing."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.
-
5 high-caliber cartoons about Kristi Noem shooting her puppy
Cartoons Artists take on the rainbow bridge, a farm upstate, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Why is the world running low on blood?
Podcast Scientists believe universal donor blood is within reach – plus, the row over an immersive D-Day simulation, and an Ozempic faux pas
By The Week Staff Published
-
Rishi Sunak's asylum spat with Ireland explained
In Depth Irish government plans to override court ruling that the UK is unsafe for asylum seekers
By The Week UK Published