The Themes of Oblivion: A Deeper Analysis
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
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The Victoria experience was sad. She became a victim of the temporal comfort lies offer and rejected the freedom that truth brings.
All too common in today's world.
Why else would people pretend that having a mumbling mummy in the White House is actually a good thing, and worth HATING family & friends who think otherwise.
She took the blue pill. Her life is a lie but it's also a fantasy so she refused to give it up. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of real life people would make the same choices.
:-( Yeah, I felt sorry for her, and never saw her as a villain.
@@eugenetswong I didn't even think there was a modicum of evidence she was supposed to be a villain. She got tricked. She got manipulated.
That's exactly how they were able to do Covid. 96% refused to even consider the evidence. Now that the effects of the gene therapies are undeniable, most still deny.
One thing I think you missed in the movie was that the Odyssey was actually set to be a deep space exploration mission to go to Saturn, but then the Tet showed up and the world wanted to know what it was. The majority of the crew, therefore had been placed in stasis for the journey except for Jack and Victoria. My guess is that Victoria was somewhat anticipating the long journey with Jack. Possibly, Victoria was considering on some level that the isolation with each other would develop into something.
An excellent addition. Something to ponder for sure
Brilliant as always! I loved this movie and suggest it to anyone who would listen. Thats why we go to movies... not for the same ole cookie cutter themes, it was different and very entertaining (and i even enjoy the sountrack) Total win!
I figured that Victoria developed those feelings along the way, Saturn is a long ways out so they had plenty of time together - lets face it, it's entirely unrealistic that NASA would send husband/wife on a mission, much less husband/wife/interested, talk about doomed to fail... I loved Victorias tragic love story, the heartbreak really came through. To love and always have that gnawing doubt, that splinter in your mind, of knowing it is all on the edge of a knife, all you love and want... and when he opens the case with Julia in it, that might as well have been a terminal diagnosis.
Jack took the red pill. Victoria took the blue pill.
Jack had to learn the truth bit by bit by himself.
Jack explaining everything to Victoria all at once just freaked her out.
I had the same experience with friends, too much of reality shuts them down.
Side note, this was the movie that made appreciate Tom as a great actor.
Cool vid.
I was just saying that downstream. Victoria doesn't get to live Jack's experience. She's alone up there. Getting a glut of info all at once that fundamentally changes her worldview? No way.
no way, she didn't want to wake up at all. she was literally in the heavens. she was living her dream job, dream place, dream guy, and looking forward to going back to the incinerator on the TET lol he was trying to change all that and right then and there she chose death, without really understanding why
@@businesswalks8301 Perhaps at the beginning. I agree that Victoria is living her dream life. She's clean and strapped in and literally living in the clouds. it saddens me that she would rather get erased than save herself. That moment where she finally sez the Team Ain't Effective is shocking. I guess I understand it , she's inculcated, but she could have saved herself.
@@guyjperson Though Jack invited Victoria down to the surface several times. She never went.
@alexander-yd3hz I can't give you that. She sees every event in a panel on a Smart Desk. The visual is not his POV and even if it was, she doesn't get the visceral connection to it all. She's Overwatch. No smells, no sounds just basic data. It's not fair to judge her based on Cruise's interaction.
0:58 Sally/Tet AI wanted the "survivor" (Julia) as a better pair-bonded system of control for the Jack clones. He even threw the verbiage back at Sally about them being a more effective team. That's the reason why the Tet didn't blow them out of the sky when deception was detected.
Also Jack didn't lie about why he was there, that's why sally let him enter.
The chewing gum is a brilliant way to illustrate the Tet's need for human interaction
I thought the chewing gum was a great way to explain how he could defeat a super-advanced drone. Establish that it's there so he could use that weakness in the fight later. Other movies would have simply had him beat the drone with some cool explosion.
As a long time service technician, I can reiterate that anyone working on critical systems develops "unorthodox" solutions and work around to keep equipment online, especially when the original parts are not available or are not suitable for the task. My nom de guerre became "Frankenstein" over the years for my ability to sense failures that showed little evidence and ability to put unrelated pieces together to make a system work as required.
Except they got thousands of drone in the Tet. Absolutely no need to fix broken ones. In fact, it would have been far better to have a self destruction sequence for the drones so that they wouldn't fall into the wrong hands. Also, if they had the technology to design and build the drone, they should be able to repair them without human.
Another little gem- unlike most of the film, the scene where Julia wakes up in the infirmary is shot from *her* pov, in a twilight-zone nightmarish atmosphere where her husband doesnt recognize her and appears in a relationship w Victoria, everything seems futuristic and alien, and she is told she has slept for 60 years and earth was destroyed. Pure horror
Reminded me of Ripley being out 58 years between Alien and Aliens
I got a recommendation for you Dave, 1984's "The Last Starfighter", a film made to cash in on the Star Wars craze but does Star Wars a lot better than anything Lucasfilm is currently putting out.
An underrated masterpiece. Fun. Beautiful imagery. Hints of an expansive universe. Xur was a weak villain though, doomed before Alex even got there.
It's even more compelling when you learn that the special effects were created with CGI. In the mid 80s! A decade before Jurassic Park was released.
It's gonna be a sparkling day!
Sounds like they're remaking it a a car race movie.
Yes! Classic!
Wow! I've been a bloody idiot for ten years I realize! I never realized that Victoria had a thing for Jack, as in the original Victoria. The clone, yes. But it never dawned on me, until now, that the original Victoria was in love with him. And that has made its way into the clones of her! OMG! How could I not see this?
And you have also possibly managed to answer a ten year old question of mine. What was the need for the clones in phase 2 to have memory wipes if the Jack clones of the first phase never needed it? The clones should be working for Tet regardless, so why all the deception that takes up time & resources? And, of course, that contradicts the whole movie & its reveal. Dave, you have just given me the answer. That the clones of phase 2 needed to be more human, just with memories wiped, to be able to do the second phase job far better & more efficiently. Well, I guess I am as dumb as the Tet that didn't see this coming. I didn't see the reason/need for the memory wipe & the Tet failed to calculate what it could mean if the clones became too human.
Dave, I think you have just made Oblivion a hell lot better & more fascinating! And I was planning to re-watch it again soon anyway. Thanks!
I think we're enjoying movie logic there. Victoria Mark I might have had a crush on Jack. That was certainly far too close for a random selfie. But a Shakespearean unrequited love is a stretch. Victoria in the Sky Base loved Jack. They had been a couple and lived and worked together while boinking. There are three possibilities here. Vic was in love with Jack.(I reject it). Vic fancied Jack, and the Tet amplified this, based on the selfie( Truly the most plausible), Vic and Jack worked together, trusted each other, and loved each other because of that bond. This is only the second most plausible explanation, but the one I prefer. Blank slate versions of motivated models who developed a bond because they did a stressful job together. Minimized Option Attraction Syndrome (MOAS)
In the beginning, Jack had an uncertainty & incompleteness about his life.
When he saw the drones destroying those he knew to be human in that downed craft, I believe that is what solidified his thoughts of something being wrong & began to ask the hard questions.
A masterful analysis. You've brought up many of the aspects that I've found upon multiple viewings of this film. There is enough left unsaid that the viewer can insert their own interpretations of the character's actions, without breaking other parts of the narrative. That's what makes a great script.
Great additional notes - especially how the ai ‘misinterprets’ the relationship from the photo and assumes a relationship - which is how ai currently confidently presents errors
I had chatgpt confidently tell me the name and artist of a song that didnt exist.
I went to see this around 10 times on the big screen. It became something of a tradition with an online friend of mine, we talked 24/7 back then. And that particular spring, whenever we'd had a particularly good day, one of us would go see Oblivion in the cinema to finish the day off on a high note. For me it was the mood, the M83 score, the visuals. Just a complete feast for us sci-fi lovers.
I wanted nothing more than to live in that sky tower. The year before that, I bought a projector and put together my own home cinema with a 5.1 surround system. Seeing the behind the scenes videos on how they used projectors to make that sky tower look as realistic as it did, particularly with the light reflecting off of surfaces and the actor's faces; it made my imagination run wild.
I put up these time-lapses of nature on the projector and I remember just getting lost at night. It was that, it was listening to M83, it was rewatching Oblivion. I took long, warm showers lit by candlelight and with M83 blasting from my phone. I have this film to thank for those days and nights.
I even made a "movie edit" of the track StarWaves, syncing up thunder sounds to match the iconic pool scene in the film. I remember my sister showing up in my room one day when I was editing it, and by then it was summer. She laughed, thinking I was crazy sitting there listening to all these thunder sounds, picking out just the right ones. It was a particularly warm day, and I was sitting there like a vampire, lost in the world of this film. She still hasn't forgotten it.
These days I sometimes go for a fan edit called "Oblivion Redeemed". It omits some good stuff so I can't say it has replaced the original for me, but its biggest contribution to the viewing experience as far as I'm concerned is the removal of the narration in the opening scene. Letting the score and the visuals do the talking helps bring out something the film could've used more of. It feels so much more artistic when you don't have that bit of spoon feeding right at the start.
It's good to see Dave highlight this one. There's so much good stuff in the past, waiting to be discovered and rediscovered, studied and celebrated in these modern times.
I completely agree about the voice-over. That was clearly put there by movie execs who thought the audience needed some of the mystery solved before the get-go.
@@spilchsaysstuff1427 Absolutely. The lack of dialogue leads me to believe the scene was intended to be this way. It really was ”redeemed” by a fan, as many films are, with stubborn execs taking the subtlety out of them.
Love this film already but your deep dive into Julia really helps show the depth this movie has in what may seem like a simple one dimensional character.
I think another reason why the Tent made a less robotic Jack for maintenance is because of human ingenuity, they show us him fixing the drones in odd ways that confuse vik.
This was always a favorite of mine. Was just a different. And the cgi was great.
I agree 100% with you. Not every plot thread needs to be explored to completion. Like you mentioned, sometimes a little mystery keeps you thinking about the film, even rewatching it again to see if there was something you missed. If there is no obvious conclusion to the thread, supplying one for yourself just adds to the experience of the movie.
Awesome to get some more depth. Such a great movie.
To the good question of how many clones were left on after the destruction of the Tet,
the fact they were numbered implies 50.
At least 100, (52 pairs, minus Victoria & Jack 49.)
it really is a brilliant character contrast with Jack and Victoria. She prefers comfortable lies and staying in the Matrix.
Blue Pill comforting lies vs Red Pill harsh and uncomfortable truth. It's one of the most fundamental human decisions...
There's another point to Victoria's characters: she was originally in love with Jack, and she thus finds it comforting the life she has with Jack, and it's suggested in the movie she, at some point, she tried to kill Jack's wife so she could have him for herself That's reflected on her clone character in the movie.
And another thing is that Jack had another path open to him when he discovered the lie but Victoria didn't.
The tet could tell that jack and victoria were no longer an effective team, since it could tell victoria was laying when she kept answering that they were once jack had been keeping his distance a little. Julia was proven to be a more effective team so the tet wanted julia so it could clone her so that all teams could be julia and jack instead of victoria and jack. That was why it didn’t just destroy jack, it was allowing him in under the pretence that jack wanted ‘our species to survive’, convincing the tet that he was thinking of the bigger picture. Though what he was really considering was the bigger picture of saving earth from the tet.
One of my favorite movies; your analysis only makes it better; well done.
I was thoroughly impressed by Andrea Riseborough's performance as Victoria.
Her dedication, pain and despair so brilliantly played.
While Olga Kurylenko also gave a good performance and may be more "classically beautiful" there is no question for me which woman would win my heart.
But then again, sometimes there is no choice.
A great analysis which underlines my conviction that "Oblivion" is a great movie.
Back then I was quite alone with this opinion. Thank you.
Wow, I had never thought about the significance of the photograph and Tet's interpretation of it. Also, I was somewhat annoyed with Victoria's response to events as the story unfolded, but this explanation makes her more understandable and tragic now. I'm going to have to re-watch the movie.
I discovered Oblivion on TV a year after its release and fall immediately in love with it... Still one of my favorite movies of all time.
I really enjoyed this movie, very 80s feel.
It's not perfect , but definitely a great sci-fi experience.
Awesome video. I'm glad you reviewed it because I've felt the same way about Oblivion since I saw it!
Very good. Your analysis explains the constant "Are you and effective team?" query, and the reaction when the answer was no.
I just bought this a couple of weeks ago on dvd from a charity shop...still haven't re watched it yet but l remember really liking it at the time.
Thank you for the review - I watched Oblivion for the first time this week and really enjoyed it. It was well shot and had a good storyline. My only complaint is that the dialog channel was so low that I had to crank up the volume to hear what was being said, and then would get blown out when the action scenes kicked in.
Don’t usually comment but felt this analysis was excellent. Loved this movie and your insight helped me understand why.
Thank you Barry
Willful ignorance (the denial of truth perceived) has destroyed nations and cultures throughout history. Denial can be a stronger feeling than the will to live, though preemptively shorter.
11:00 "show, don't tell" in perfection
Great analysis, you've earned a subscriber. I think this is one of the most underrated sci-fi movies out there and will become a classic much like Blade Runner did.
One big point you missed/left out though; from the first time I saw this (I remember because I had a lengthy debate/discussion with my friend over it after the movie) I always took 52 finding Julia at the end as happening purely BECAUSE of his interaction with her earlier on thanks to 49. Much like 49, it was seeing his wife and realizing that his memories were not just dreams that sparked his realization of the lies he'd been living and that his wife DID exist.
The story is in the end really about love. His love for his wife transcended his very life, it lived on in his clones and that knowledge of his wife drove him to find her at all costs once he knew she was out there. That's why even if there are other clones left, they didn't find her, he did, because he knew she was out there.
I loved this aspect of the story and it's one that I feel most people missed.
It would have been interesting to see the events from Victoria's POV. Another Victoria going through the events. The difference between Jack and Victoria is also an environmental one. She LIVES in the Ivory Tower and can't get out. Jack has disparate sensory input that Victoria can only see from her view screen. Disjointed and scary from that perspective. Well done, sir. A great analysis.
Yeah, I was thinking that a remake from her perspective would be fun.
This movie was so much more than a summer action flic. Really loved your take man.
I think you captured Victoria's character brilliantly. Her feelings of unrequited love, and I think she felt that about Jack throughout the entire movie, were a driving force in the relationship, and eventually in her demise. I think she always knew that Jack didn't fully love her, and she was hoping that once they reached Titan their relationship would be secure.
The concept of the Tet making mistakes is intriguing. We tend to assume that alien races and tech are SO advanced they are beyond fallibility, while simple humans are always screwing up something. How refreshing to see the big brains trip over their own feet once in a while. :)
About Andrea Riseborough (Victoria) - Something either unique to the actress or unique to the actress while in the movie, is her EYES, unlike any other actress ever seen, something you may not be able to unsee once said, is UNUSUALLY LARGE PUPILS, which I found captivating/mesmerizing. In general this is prime Andrea Riseborough, she is a great actress, something of a obscure quirky foreign independent darling, and has taken alot of roles that made her appear quite unflattering, yet in this movie, pretty. Kinda overshadowed by Julia/Olga though, probably by design.
I really liked the way Andrea looks and sounds in this movie. Even just the parts where she's talking to the Tet are really well executed. She's an effective teammate.
Yeah, I noticed her pupils and great acting, too. I wonder if editing was needed to adjust the pupils.
Good point about whether Jack 52 ever retrieved Vika from their base. He searched for the cabin and Julia for three years. Long after the Tet was destroyed. Vika was not in the last scene showing the survivors, including Jack 52, arriving at the cabin. Who knows if she and any other clones survived. I assume there were other clones on Earth based on the number that were in stasis at the Tet base.
Could you possibly put your movie breakdowns into a playlist? I've really enjoyed the few I've watched.
I've been very fond of this movie since I saw it in the Theater 10 years ago. These scifi movies failed, because they were a little too cerebral for the normies. At the time Tom Cruise had a stigma around him.
The only reason I watched it is because I loved Tron Legacy. Kosinski really is a great director. Can’t wait for his future films.
3:49 Oh boy here we go. 😄 Ridley Scott dumbed the story down. Phil K emphatically wrote and quite emphatically stated Deckard is human who ended up behaving like the violent replicants due to his constant pursuit of them. Scott even stated to PK that he didn't want to go down that nuanced philosophical road. Source material is always the canon and lore to me. Tolkien is another example of that. The movies are great but still can't compare to the original source material.
Deckard could've just had his memory manipulated to keep him in service, something which Gaff is aware of.
I would also add If Deckard was a replicant, why doesn't he have superior strength like the others?
@Inspector #23 In the context of the movie that's a possibility. If you're wondering where I got my information about Phillip K it's right here: ruclips.net/video/3d7XMnmPgUk/видео.html Interview starts at 2:40. One important time stamp at 20:22. The last segment was very good too PK talking about Harrison taking on the character of Deckard at 24:42 (hopefully the comment accepts the youtube link. Sometimes it doesn't)
I reckon I've tried to watch this 20 times & fallen asleep every time
Dave. I recently watched your video on Babylon 5 and decided to give it a watch. I'm a Original Series Star Trek guy who loves the OS movies. I like TNG and DS9 and really like Enterprise but couldn't really get into Voyager. I like Farscape pretty well too. That being said I am so glad I have started watching Babylon 5 thanks to your review! Now it's one of my favorite sci-fi series. Wow. Any chance you could talk about The Babylon 5 curse ? (Many actors on the show dying in their 60s primarily)
Edit: One other thought. I was thinking about well written likable tough female characters in Movies and tv shows. Ones who don't trash the male characters or complain about how they are oppressed to the audience. Susan Ivanova definitely fits that criteria. She is great
B5 is my absolute favourite of all time.
For the next video, may I recommend the movie ** directed by Jason Reitman?
I think it's a very interesting film and the messages the movie conveys have grown even more relavent today then they did back then.
The Tet’s motivations are revealed as The Mantis in “Great Sky River” Gregory Benford’s 3rd Galactic Center Saga book.
I wanted to see the reaction of the other clones when suddenly the Tet was destroyed and the drones stopped working. They might have sought some kind of revenge against the scavengers, who they believed destroyed humanitys last hope.
I like to think that Jack 52 convinced other Jacks since it was in his nature to do so.
LOLOLS i blasted it on Blu Ray immediately after watching your previous video..... if it wasn't 3 am i'd be watching it again rn SUCH AMAZING AUDIO QUALITY on top of everything..............
Amazing analysis Dave 👍 i was a bit tough on your last review because I knew you had this one in you, And I was right!!
Great insights! Idk how it never occurred to me why she says don’t touch me. I always found it odd. But now it makes perfect sense. Love your channel. Keep ‘em coming!
With this analysis in mind, there could be room for a prequel, even if just a comic, exploring how the first wave of clones rebelled and why
Love the analysis and agree 100% Oblivion is o e of my favorite movies and I have watched it multiple times. Can't wait for tomorrow's video on this movie😂 but seriously, I would watch as many as you put out!
bro I thought we were going to do an in-depth analysis of the Amulet of Kings and Martin Septim
Love your analyses of movies like this Mr. Cullen. Would you do a fan a favor and review The Black Hole from Disney? I'm particularly keen to get your insights into the ending of the movie (probably the freakiest Disney moment ever.)
I vaguely remember this movie I may actually have to go back and try to find it and re-watch it
Thanks to this and your previous video, i plan on rewatching this one on the weekend or even tonight
It's A Fascinating Movie Concept. Can You Imagine Being Jack Running Up On "Yourself" & Trying To Back Your Other "Self" Down? It Would Be Weird & Amusing At The Same Time.
I don't see any problem for the story line that there could be numerous maintanence clones of Jack and Victoria. Beech points out that he saw something different in Jack 49 compared to the other drones that the scavengers observed. That means that all the other clones where able to supress the memories.
Also it makes sense that it's Jack 52 that wants to meet with Julia. He managed to supress his memories untill he saw Julia in person. When he sawe Julia on that dune knew his memories where real - or at least worth exploring. Also him being tied down would actually make his survival change better. When he was found by the scavengers he most likely saw them as the enemy. But being tied down he couldn't resist and the scavengers could engage in dialogue with him.
All the other Jacks would have regarded the scavengers as the enemy and as the maintanence Jacks where armed and dangerous they would have had to be killed.
As long as an unanswered question is not also a plot hole, it can be used as a sequel hook. The unanswered question my favorite kind of sequel hook.
I envision the ending for the 2nd Vitoria to be tragic, she would have had no time to emotionally comprehend the sudden destruction of all she knew and the earnest hope of returning "home" to the mother ship dashed once seeing it destroyed. Also, the suddenness and confusion of Jack acting strange and leaving her feeling lost and alone, compounds her emotional trauma.
She finds a scenic view on the station and poisons herself or perhaps drugs/drinks herself near unconsciousness and sinks herself to the bottom of the glass pool.
I went through a similar process to you with this film. It is underrated, but very dry, cold... The "realism" of it is what I think harmed it, that kind of infiltration is far less exciting than something like, Terminator etc.
I personally want more entertainment like it, Andor style.
I enjoy this movie and the other one Edge of Tomorrow (Live, Die, Repeat) from time to time. I do prefer Day After Tomorrow though. I fire both up every now and again.
I think you mean Edge of Tomorrow
@@TheDaveCullenShow You know I'm forever doing that with that title. Usually I catch it in time. Thanks for the heads up. Fixed.
It's one of those routines when something like that gets stuck in your head, you keep repeating it.
Great review! I’m glad you dove deeper - I want to watch it again now.
About the readings on Jack's breathing and heartbeat indicating that he was lying, the movie answers that the next minute. Sally asks him to make a statement and he says : I want Julia to live i want humanity to survive. So because he was telling the truth there he let him dock. Simple.
When Jack was questioned by the Tet, after it could tell his pulse and respirations were increasing and where inferred it could tell if he was lying, everything he said after was true. He wanted Julia to survive, his species to survive and that his going to the Tet was the best or only way to ensure that. Given that everything he said was true and made sense to the Tet, it would only naturally let him proceed. I respectfully submit that this wasn’t oversight or convenience, but, rather, intentionally included in the script as an intentional scene where Jack outsmarted the Tet.
It's definitely one of my absolute favorite science fiction films.
Oblivion 2 would be so interesting
I've always seen this movie as materialism vs "spirituality", for lack of a better word. The lives of the clones are catered to with every need and want that anyone could ever think of, but from the very beginning it feels empty. Hollow.
Meanwhile what does the film show as Jack truly being FULFILLED? His little cabin on the lake. No electricity. No technology. Nothing but some peace in nature and memories of his family. And that's what the poem that keeps being cited in the movie is, it's the main thesis of the film from the filmmakers. What's really fulfilling to people isn't comfort or material well-being, it's doing something that MATTERS on an interpersonal level. It's better to die in service of some greater truth than live in hollow comfort.
Hey, Dave! Thanks for the reminder, need to rewatch this movie again. I quite like it, and yes, it is hugely underestimated. Or to put more honestly, not for everyone.
WHY CAN'T I LIKE THIS MORE THAN ONCE?
I've never bothered to analyze the story that deeply, but you're right about programs that people call AI lacking real intelligence. So if the Tet was controlled by a computer program, it's possible it was just as malformed as the garbage we have. And being such a program it's conceivable that it could make vast errors in logical thinking.
Great analysis, once again. There's a lot of technobabble in this movie, but the writers were smart enough to not waste time trying to explain processes the audience doesn't need in order to enjoy the story. It's all we need, a ripping good yarn. It would be an interesting scenario, with their little community in the valley being invaded by a new Jack every few weeks showing up ready to reunite with his lady love only to find a stable full of Jacks? lol
Dave, I'm a huge fan. Thanks for everything you do. Good analysis here.
You e
Easked the questions few people asked or wonder about. I think the writers and director would like and appreciate3 that. It’s a strong sign of a good movie when we ask this.
I don't think she was in denial.
I think her programming was too strong for her to go against.
Her programming had fortified her feelings that she already had.
An excellent breakdown of this very underrated movie by you Dave. This was a good Sci-fi movie in my book.
Keep up the good work brother. I look forward to your next one.
that was a very nice to watch and listen to movie analysis, very well done sir
what a great analysis...this movie is way deeper than most movies today...
Thank you Dave.
Oblivion contains many ideas from other SciFi movies, novels etc. Although is a great film as a whole, every single element gives you an impression that you 've seen this before, somewhere.
I like this movie very much, but maybe the above was the reason for its moderate success.
Another interesting plot twist would be for Tet to be an AI who actually tried to save humanity. By destroying it, Jack doomed humanity's last hope.
I like that the movie allowed one of the protagonists to have a dissenting opinion on what was best. Just as you did, many authors and critics deride "the system" so much that almost every "hero's" journey is about bringing it down. Even Victoria is killed off as a fool for wanting to avoid conflict.
Fortunately, she is not written into a villain and she dies as a sympathetic character. At one point she even lies to the Tet to protect Jack. She's the most human character to me. We're not all soldiers and it's unrealistic to expect someone to believe such a wild story as the truth in Oblivion, and take up arms, all in one day.
Furthermore, after realising how dangerous the Tet is, Victoria is right to be cautious: she doesn't take the enemy lightly. Jack has also been acting strange: surprising her with "dangerous" flowers, going off-com, not letting her in on what he's thinking.... she's a great window into the lost souls of humanity. They would have died just like she did: being told there was hope in one hand, that "the informed" know best, yet seeing the insurmountable threat right before their eyes.
I wouldn't be surprised if the Tet offered to spare humanity in return for all but the bare resources for survival, but the influen...tial just had to fight the system... Maybe it was made by man to populate planets using cloning and some people didn't like that, tried to destroy it and... if the Tet can lie, so can Malcolm Beach.
A couple of annoyances: Jack riding the bike to the library when he could fly there. A lifeless machine needing all the natural resources to sustain itself? At the rate it consumes them, there should be megatons of waste or it should have grown somehow. An AI would see that it is "living" unsustainably... maybe it realized it had evil programming and wanted to die, but could not self-terminate.
P.s. Thanks for making me rewatch this great movie and think about the stuff in it.
maybe the tet wanted to bring him up to figure out what was going wrong with that jack in order to make sure no future they could remove that problem from new clones
This film has the quality of old american sci-fi comics from the 50s & 60s.
The remaining Victoria, deprived of "Sally's" supervision, would have to painfully awake to the new reality. Perhaps she could obtain some meaning interacting with some of the remaining humans on Earth. Or perhaps, she would continue to do her daily tasks as an automaton, without meaning, without purpose, until the end of her days. A human condemned to a life of a machine. Very sad.
Never appreciated the contemporary metaphors in this film until now. Great analysis Dave 👍
I'd love to see a prequel to Oblivion, I want to see what happens in that 60 year gap
Andrea Riseborough's performance as Victoria was what I found most compelling when I first saw the movie... followed closely after by Tom Cruise doing some impressive stunt work. The plot actually reminded me a lot of "Logan's Run," which I watched dozens of times as a kid... not that the two are anything like identical, but the story beats just struck me as similar in many ways.
There is a great deal left to be said and explored in the after-story of this film. What happened to the other posts? The other couples? The earth in the subsequent decades? This was a rich, complicated situation and a planet set for a long, slow healing, if not a terraforming. I would love to have known more.
You could feel there was more coming.
i imagine it's like any big post-apoc. they just gotta slowly rebuild. with all the damage the tet did the world will never be the same but at least humanity will go on. there's another morgan freeman movie like that.
EXCELLENT analysis Dave
Tron Legacy and Oblivion, two back to back amazing sci-fi movies by Joseph Kosinski.
I agree, the ending is a bit derivative. It always reminds me of "The 6th Day" where Arnie's clones cooperate in the helicopter.
you forgot to mention how great the soundtrack is
Victoria 52 was in the final scene, I believe. I thought she was with the dude who didn't like Jack
Great analysis, thank you.
An excellent deep dive into Oblivion. Yes, pun intended. Oblivion could also fall into the category of a Garden of Eden story. Two people living in a small but ideal place, with a terrible world outside. Then there's the outsider that causes it all to end.
What a nice treat. I revisited this movie last night and turns out I never really “watched” it. Your content helped me enjoy it even more
imagine waking up to your dream job to find out it's the most horrific job you could ever have ever!
Dave Cullen at his best. Also one of my top 10 movies.
Many thanks