Edge of Tomorrow

[DAPUNISHER]

Lol, simple to you maybe. That is a bit convoluted to me. I like the clean, elegant, explanation the ending implies.

 

[Jaepheth]

Groundhog Day meets Starship Troopers.

What's not to like?

 

[Ban Bot]

Lol, simple to you maybe. That is a bit convoluted to me. I like the clean, elegant, explanation the ending implies.

Ok, so question. You said

Spoiler

False dilemma imo. How about he ends up with the Omega's powers, which makes him the Omega. He even has a dead Alpha to trigger the reset, since he killed both of them. It then follows that the reset clock changes when the being possessing the Omega power changes. He killed them both before the events of the battle happen, and the new reset point is tied to him now, not the original Omega.

Then my question is

Spoiler

How is the Omega killed in the new timeline/reset?

I ask because when Cruise lost his Alpha powers he resets 1x more time. Ditto Blundt. When she loses her Alpha by bleeding out she resets one more time and is mortal/cannot reset.

So the Omega who dies, we can only assume, resets too? We can infer this because the Omega's abilities are in its blood, too, which Cruise absorbs.

So why are all the aliens dying before landfall?

I don't think the movie says why. I think there are a number of reasons. I think the "simplest" is a lot has gone on between the last mission and waking on the chopper. That is why he smirks IMO. He is remembering not the last mission but the undisclosed elements that lead up to the news reports.

But I don't know! But the movie, within its rules, lets us consider a number of possibilities.

 

[SP33Demon]

I really liked the movie!



Hint:

Spoiler

He dies on the beach but he killed the "Probe" time creature. Time rolls back 24 hours from the moment he kills the Probe. i.e. He goes back to being thrown into the platoon at base camp.

("Probe" because it isn't the "Brain" time creature. The Brain sends out the Probes; if the Probe does it resets 24 hours from the moment the Probe dies and the Brain can try a new tactic as it now knows what the enemy is doing.)

He does this thousands of times.

So fast forward to the final mission. He has lost his reset ability (bleed out) so the plan is to go BEFORE the beach mission where he keeps dying. So he leaves earlier before the mission.

So in the night BEFORE landfall of the doomed assault he kills the Brain. Key to the death is the Omni Brain leaks its blood and Cruise "steals" the blood and with it the Omni Brain ability. Time is now resetting from this point (Cruise is the Omni Brain, is dying, so it resets 24 hours from here).

Clock resets 24 hours from the point he kills the Omni Brain and absorbs the Omni blood.

The roll back point is now to the helicopter ride BEFORE he gets sent to the front line. And now Cruise is the "Omni Brain" or whatever.

At this point a few things could have happened. A lot of things could have happened with regards to the effect of the Omni Brain timeless creatures death (i.e. it dies in the new Timeline so when Cruise reverses time it is no more because, unlike the Probes, it is not dancing in and out of new timelines but part of the meta-timeline in which it is now dead) but I like to think of it in even simpler terms: Cruise, knowing where the Brain is and in control of time, has near infinite opportunities to coordinate an attack on the Omni Brain's location (he just needs not bleed out). A single missile to that location and the brain dies forever -- because in the past when they nuked, bombed, or attacked even if the Omni Brain or Probes died time rolls back and it only needed to then relocate to avoid such the next day.

Another option is the 24 hour rule doesn't apply to the Omni Brain (just the Probes) and Cruise now has the ability to wind back time as far as he wishes. Because again, it would have only taken 1 successful attack in the past to kill the Omni Brain (it has no more rewinds) and he reverses back to such a point and the subsequent demise of the invaders.

Any way you cut it this part of the ending plays 100% by the rules:

Cruise waking up on the chopper instead of at the pre-invasion barracks.

The real question is

Spoiler

why all the aliens are dying

but that, I think, is left for the viewer to consider the timeline possibilities.

Quite frankly, I think one of the reasons the movie had a lukewarm reception was because the director did NOT force feed the audience the "solution."

Which I liked!

But I think it confused and turned off audiences. I have heard a lot of people complain the movie broke its own rules which I can only fault the director/writers for not being aware of audiences and finding a way to re-emphasize this point

Spoiler

(i.e. "So Tom, if we kill the Brain the aliens cannot reset! Shucks, we cannot reset so this is our only chance... this is a hail marry, but if we get a chance to kill a time beast steal its blood and we can reset from there instead of the beach!)

But that would have been to overt IMO, taken the wind out of what happened, and would not have left the audience sitting there going, "Wait, why is he there and why is everything changing?"

EDIT: Clarification as I forgot the exact words:

Omni Brain = Omega
Probes = Alphas

Good explanation although you forgot to mention that the way Cruise

Spoiler

got the ability to reset was because the Probe/Alpha bled onto him before he died, not just because he killed the Probe

.

 

[Ban Bot]

Good explanation although you forgot to mention that the way Cruise

Spoiler

got the ability to reset was because the Probe/Alpha bled onto him before he died, not just because he killed the Probe

.

Thanks, that is what I meant to communicate but I see I left that out in the Probe (Alpha) part. Thanks for pointing that out, I edited my post to make that part more clear as that is VITAL to know to understand the significance of killing the Probe (Alpha) and Omni Brain (Omega) creatures. Killing an Alpha can be bad as the Omega can reset from there.

Which, I guess in a way, tells you the humans got really, really lucky. Killing the

Spoiler

Omega could just reset like the Alphas. I guess they explain it as the Alpha death auto-triggers the Omega to reset and you could argue once the Omega dies so does the ability to reset for the Omega. But maybe not--if the Omega doesn't lose the reset ability the mission is doomed to fail? So if Cruise didn't steal the Omega powers the mission, even though a success, would fail because the Omega would just reset @ death?

But this could also explain why the aliens are dying: Cruise is now the Omega (clear enough). As the Alphas (Probes) attempt a reset he refuses their attempts so they die. But I don't find that likely because in which case the Omega could have refused Cruise and Blundt before him to reset. So it seems something not explained is happening to the alien Alphas (Probes) to prevent them from resetting time at each death.

There is an undisclosed dynamic here about the Alpha/Omega relationship if it is fixed to a specific Omega or any Omega from the same "blood line." And of course if Cruise can make his own Alphas or if that ability has to be taken from the current Alphas?

I don't think the movie answers all these questions but it does leave room to accept the ending and try to figure out what happened. We know why the humans one, but the details after the last mission to the alien demise are all implied as a result of that mission with subsequent consequences/events for us to pontificate.

As another poster noted we ONLY know about the Alpha reset because of Blundt. What other abilities from the Omega are unknown because that never happened before.

Edit: It could be inferred

Spoiler

that once an Alpha has its timeshifting stolen it is removed from all timelines. That is why the Alpha Cruise kills doesn't come back? But that doesn't explain why Blundt and Cruise continue on. Maybe it is because they bleed out but did not have their abilities stolen?/spoiler]

 

[Denly]

I enjoy it way more than any of the Marvel or Transformers movies, like other said it is too bad it don't get more success.

Tommy always have good taste on actresses except Knight/Day, looking forward to Jack Reacher 2

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Hey Ban Bot,

You may be overthinking it. I think they provided us with the explanation during the film. They said to think of it as one organism. The mimics being the talons/weapons, the alphas being like the nervous system, and the Omega the brain. Tom is like a parasite, is my guess. So by killing the Omega he kills the whole organism, but being a parasite lives on. His power is now likely useless. Even if another mimic asteroid came or whatever, he may not be able to link with it.

 

[Ban Bot]

Good point about the single organism.

 

[SP33Demon]

Hey Ban Bot,

You may be overthinking it. I think they provided us with the explanation during the film. They said to think of it as one organism. The mimics being the talons/weapons, the alphas being like the nervous system, and the Omega the brain. Tom is like a parasite, is my guess. So by killing the Omega he kills the whole organism, but being a parasite lives on. His power is now likely useless. Even if another mimic asteroid came or whatever, he may not be able to link with it.

Spoiler

So that could explain why the mimics were dying at the end after Cage resets after his death - i.e. no "brain" now exists since it was erased from all timelines. Cruise is a different organism and hence can only reset (not summon alphas and minions etc).

I still would say this power is useful, i.e. he can always prevent his death because of the reset. In essence he can become impervious to death from unnatural causes, and also become ridiculously rich/famous by being able to predict the future.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Spoiler

So that could explain why the mimics were dying at the end after Cage resets after his death - i.e. no "brain" now exists since it was erased from all timelines. Cruise is a different organism and hence can only reset (not summon alphas and minions etc).

I still would say this power is useful, i.e. he can always prevent his death because of the reset. In essence he can become impervious to death from unnatural causes, and also become ridiculously rich/famous by being able to predict the future.

I doubt we will ever see a sequel. But a Netflix show or the like maybe possible? Would enjoy someone running with the ball. Maybe aliens contacting us for help because they got hit? Him and full metal bitch getting to go as military advisers, and/or him using his powers. Maybe the two characters going from world to world like Space Orkin?

 

[SP33Demon]

I doubt we will ever see a sequel. But a Netflix show or the like maybe possible? Would enjoy someone running with the ball. Maybe aliens contacting us for help because they got hit? Him and full metal bitch getting to go as military advisers, and/or him using his powers. Maybe the two characters going from world to world like Space Orkin?

Yeah that would be pretty cool. He'd have to get the full metal bitch on his side because she knows how to take his power away. It'd be cool to see him become president and win the lottery using his power and reshape the world. And yes, them looking for more mimics!

 

[DigDog]

nobody disputes that the ending sucked. it was as cliche as they come.

yet it could not ruin the rest of the film.

i think .. the movie could lose the "happy ending" entirely, end on him getting the girl, yet being stuck in eternal war, and probably profit from this.

1. it would keep the morale of "keep trying until you get it right"
2. it would be a better love story
3. it wouldn't suck

yes, i think i nailed it.