Why Edge of Tomorrow is of the Greatest Movie About Video Games, Ever
Released on 06/05/2014
(ambient music)
(train horn blowing)
Hello.
The new Tom Cruise movie Edge of Tomorrow
is about time travel.
Well, no wait.
That's not quite right.
(guns firing)
(train horn blowing)
Hi there, the new Nicholas Cage movie Edge of Tomorrow
is about a man stuck in an endlessly repeating time loop.
I said Nicholas Cage.
Okay.
(bombs exploding)
(train horn blowing)
Howdy, the new Tom Cruise movie Edge of Tomorrow
is a total rip-off of Groundhog Day.
(gun firing)
(train horn blowing)
The new Tom Cruise flick Edge of Tomorrow
is the best movie about video games ever made,
even though it isn't about video games.
Cruise plays a clumsy nube of a soldier
killed in battle with hideous aliens.
But then, he somehow wakes up right before the battle,
dies again, and wakes up before the battle again.
It keeps happening, and he gradually gets
more and more adept at combat, lasting longer and longer.
It's based on a Japanese sci-fi novel
by a former engineer and a hard-core gamer.
And the movie does a better job of capturing
the experience of playing a game
than all of these adaptations put together.
You see, most movies about video games
present the protagonist, the character the player controls,
as an unstoppable killing machine.
But if killing bad guys was really that effortless,
it would mean that the game was lousy.
If a game is actually challenging,
then you will die when you play it.
You will die a lot.
Edge of Tomorrow unfolds like a well-designed game.
A game that makes you tackle obstacles over and over again,
honing your technique, memorizing patterns,
and learning by trial and error.
Most movie adaptions of games ignore that,
and focus all their energy on recreating the story.
That's crazy.
The story is the least important part.
You see there are two schools of thought
about what constitutes the fundamental element of a game.
On one side are the narratologists,
who are of the opinion that...
(electronic beeping)
And those are just a few of the titles
that you should peruse if you want to read more about it.
Hey, did you just skip my fascinating lecture
on video game theory like it's some kind of bad cut scene?
Well I guess we'll just have to start over then, won't we?
(electronic beeping)
What moment of your life would you
most like to go back and retry?
Don't say hitting play on this video.
Let me know in the comments,
and subscribe to the Wired Channel.
(ambient music)
Starring: Chris Baker
Bad Ideas from Hollywood: Punctuation in Titles—Age of the Colon
Why is WWE on SyFy?! Cable Networks Straying from Their Original Missions
TV Networks Are Running Out of Original Ideas
What the Bleep is Bumblebee? Indecisive Autobot Keeps Switching his Vehicular Form
Deconstructing LEGO: How a Beloved Toy Sold Out to Cross-Brand Licensing
The Inauthenticity of CG Blood and the Demise of Karo Syrup and Red Food Coloring
The Implausibility of Thor's Physics-Defying Hammer, Mjölnir
The Unraveling of Secret Societies in Pop Cultural References
The Watered-Down Hunger Games Trilogy
Giving Thanks for TV Shows That End Before Their Time
Can Ben Affleck Successfully Suit Up as the Dark Knight?
Chris Baker Responds to YouTubers About Kick-Ass 2 and the Real-Life Superheroes Trend
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and the Evolution of CG Dragons
Chris Baker’s Favorite Christmas Movie of All Time
Riddick and Hollywood's Failed Attempts at Using POV Cameras
The Big Bang Theory’s Shortcomings and Inaccurate Portrayal of Geek Culture
Will Disney Ruin Star Wars?
The Most Famous Female Comic Book Character is a Franchise Flop
The Unnecessary RoboCop Remake
Late Night with Seth Meyers and Stale After-Hours Talk Shows
How to Improve the Academy Awards
Mr. Peabody & Sherman and Today’s Remakes of Classic Cartoons
The Veronica Mars Movie Project and the Pitfalls of Crowdfunding Films
Fox News’ Abundant & Unnecessary Use of Big-Area Touch Screens
Captain America’s Unrealistic Vibranium Shield
The Problem with Game of Thrones
Hasbro, Your "Magic: The Gathering" Movie Is Murdering My Childhood
How Hollywood Can Get Evil Twins Right
Why Exactly Is Parkour Not a Film Genre Yet?
Networks Somehow Find Another Way to Resurrect Old Shows
The Greatest Fictional Characters Ever All in One Show? Sign Me Up
Why the New Godzilla Movie Won’t Suck
The Madness of the Timeline Mashup in the New X-Men
Why Disney Needs to Make More Movies About Classic Villains
Why Edge of Tomorrow is of the Greatest Movie About Video Games, Ever
Is Darth Disney Destroying Star Wars’ Expanded Universe?
Why Clint Eastwood’s “Jersey Boys” is Destined to Crash & Burn on the Big Screen
Death to the Superhero Comic-Book Movie … But Not All Comic-Book Movies
Why Andy Serkis is the Greatest Actor of His Generation
Give Me a Standalone Comic-Book Movie or Give Me Death
Reboots We Need Way More Than "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"
Brett Ratner's Hercules & Pillaging Story Lines for Big-Budget CGI Films