The Mosley Review: The Tomorrow War
It is not a crime in sci-fi to barrow from your fellow friends and neighbors. All sci-fi films borrow from one another and sometimes they compliment what came before them by innovating. Some just a constantly recycled concept, take it for a fun spin and yet make something that isn't entirely new or memorable. This film did both, but more of the latter. Time travel is by far the most utilized sci-fi storytelling trope and it lets you get away with alot of rule breaking. Luckily this film avoids any of those problems by clearly explaining the rules in a concise manner. Where I felt the film was at its weakest was the over abundance of action. The action sequences are awesome and entertaining, but it was honestly used to cut away the fat of too many characters on screen. There were some serious logic problems and choppy editing that nearly breaks a number of scenes. I think the film would've benefitted from more building of tension and less bullets and viscera being thrown at your face. If you take the satirical military gimmick from Starship Troopers, mixed in a more brutal design of the creatures from Edge of Tomorrow, splashed a hefty helping of inspiration from Ridley Scott's Alien and topped it with some Michael Bay esque action shots, then you have this mixed bag. At least the characters in this film were actually developed enough to where you actually cared to follow them.
Chris Pratt is the star of this film and as Dan Forester he was good. I liked seeing the emotional toll it takes on him being drafted to fight a war and even though he had already served, you see a tiny bit of the PTSD from combat. The moments with his family were the best and that is where Pratt shines dramatically. Betty Giplin was excellent as his wife Emmy and Ryan Kiera Armstrong was fantastic as his young daughter Muri. Yvonne Strahovski plays the older version of Muri and I thought she was outstanding and powerful in many great scenes. The chemistry between Pratt, Armstrong and Strahovski was perfect and that is very rare in films like these. It is a testament to all 3 of their acting abilities. J.K. Simmons is always great and as Dan's father James, you sense the history between them. There was a moment of over acting in a scene between the 2 of them that was laughable, but I just choke that up to a bad direction given. Sam Richardson was good as Charlie, but at times he didn't know when to stop. Being the comedic relief in these types of films can be a minefield to walk on and Sam does trip some mines, but he comes out only partially burned. Edwin Hodge was great as Dorian. I loved that he knew how he wanted to die which gave him the perfect motivation and kept him compelling.
The score by Lorne Balfe was decent and bombastic at times. It was atmospheric and emotional in places, but not too particularly memorable by the end. The visual effects were excellent and I do love the creature designs and how brutal they were. Towards the middle of the film, where you thought it could've ended, it doesn't. Half way through it felt like a second film was tacked on and the last action sequence could've easily been cut down to 5 minutes if logic had prevailed over adding more action. Overall, I was entertained by the film. Yeah it felt like the films I listed earlier had a heavy influence, but it is still a perfect popcorn film that is perfect for streaming. The Amazon Original film is now streaming. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
