Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie Review

Age of EveryOtherMovieEverMade...except for Edge of Tomorrow.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 26, 2014

Age of Tomorrow really goes full-throttle in its quest to rip-off as many movies as possible, and its filmmakers should be applauded for their ability to cram so many other movies into one little ninety-minute picture. Of course, that's nearly the only thing worth applauding here. While the film has been "named" for the Tom Cruise Sci-Fi Action flick Edge of Tomorrow and the back of its Blu-ray case promises a film that marries Prometheus with Predator, the truth is that it's more representative of a whole lot of other movies. It begins like Armageddon meets Backdraft and moves on to something like Independence Day meets War of the Worlds. Throw in some smaller "homage" scenes like the rah-rah speech from the end of ID4, a meteorite that shakes beneath the feet of a few people standing on its surface (leaving the audience awaiting the arrival of a few Mynocks), a blatant ripoff of the famous scene of the Hobbits hiding in a cut-out under tree roots, a line straight out of Terminator: Salvation that goes something like "if you can hear this, you are the resistance," and a space battle that takes elements from Return of the Jedi, and the stage is set for one of the most complete non-parody rip-off films known to mankind.

The Lord of the Rip-Offs: The Fellowship of the Rip-Off.

When Dr. Gordon (Kelly Hu) warns the military (read: General Magowan, played by Robert Picardo) that a meteor shower impacting Earth is only a lead-up to a larger object that's one-fourth the size of the moon and on a collision course with the planet, Captain James Wheeler (Anthony Marks) is ordered to put together a team that will blast off for the rock's surface and destroy it before it can destroy the world. When he and his team arrive, they learn that the meteor is no space rock but rather a sophisticated alien transport device and the lead-in to an all-out invasion. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, a ragtag group of firefighters and military personnel battle the invading alien spacecraft while searching for loved ones trapped in the destruction.

Age of Tomorrow, for all of the cues it takes from other films, is far from the studio's worst effort. It's superficially fun if not a bit long in the tooth after a lot of largely repetitive action scenes, but it musters up some decent special effects -- far better than the usual garbage with which The Asylum saddles its pictures -- and keeps the action going on two different planes, one modern-day Los Angeles and the other some botanical garden standing in for an alien landscape. The film features a decent cast with performances that range from "acceptable to "amateurish" and "dependable" to "disinterested." Robert Picardo, whom many viewers will recognize as the holographic doctor on Star Trek: Voyager, plays the John Rhys-Davies role in this one as a military officer who, until the end, rarely leaves the comfort of his office desk chair. He gives the movie some weight and a "name" to paste on the box. His performance is at least palatable; he provides some energy and believability into a generically written part, unlike Mitchell Carpenter, who plays his "sidekick" Colonel Mac and delivers one of the flattest, monotone, lifeless performances ever captured on film (or, here, as the case may be, digital). The remainder of the cast is decent, working with the material provided and trying to fill in some muscle and drama by way of sheer willpower over a blandly written script.

So the movie is rolling along, minding its own business, proving halfway entertaining relative to other Asylum features, and then...it begins. Suddenly, it seems like in every sequence there's just something...off...about them. Take, for example, the sequence in which Wheeler introduces his "roughnecks" to General Magowan. It's all well and good until it becomes noticeable that the name tags on the military uniforms were hastily printed off of a label maker. They are little white adhesive strips with black letters printed on them. Magowan's appears crooked. One belonging to another soldier (the redheaded girl with freckles) is actually peeling off her uniform and curled at one end (check out the 11:28 mark, or see screenshot #3 below). Come on, Asylum. There's cheap, and then there's just plain lazy. Next, look at the 24:15 mark. A soldier is holding an M4 rifle with a barrel that's covered in plastic. There's no exit for the bullet. It may as well have had an orange tip on it. Then there's a scene where a ground marker is clearly visible from its backside at the botanical garden filming location, no doubt providing information about the nearby foliage to guests. These are the kinds of things that really drag The Asylum's movies down and separates the studio from other low budget outlets that actually seem to care, a perfect example being Full Moon Entertainment and a movie like Trancers.

Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Age of Tomorrow invades Blu-ray with a solid 1080p transfer framed in the usual Asylum aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The transfer offers bright, well-defined imagery. Clarity is excellent and precision detail is commonplace. Whether complex facial features in close-ups, crisp military uniforms in others, vegetation on the "alien world," or the ability to make out cheap little touches on sets and surfaces, the transfer absolutely sparkles in terms of its detailing. Likewise, colors are bright and cheerful, appearing robustly natural and satisfying whether on the streets of Los Angeles or amongst the multicolored vegetation again on the "alien world." The image does suffer from some light banding, blacks that occasionally push to a bluish tint, and a light sprinkling of noise. Otherwise, this one's good to go and a pleasure to watch from start to finish.

Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Age of Tomorrow features a quality DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The underlying music plays with good vigor and clear, well-defined notes, not to mention a positive, hefty, but not intrusive, low end. The track produces some decent sound effects in terms of alien blast weapons and other action sounds, enjoying nice, room-filling precision and clarity. The track finds some nice subtle ambience in places, particularly as the engines are heard warming up inside the shuttlecraft prior to launch. In that same scene, loudspeaker communication nicely rolls through the listening area. Dialogue is delivered clearly and accurately from the center channel.

Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Age of Tomorrow contains the usual suspect Asylum supplements.

• "Making of" Featurette (1080p, 6:36): Cast and crew share a few insights into the film, including a look at making various scenes and working in al limited range of scope.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 1:19).
• Trailers (1080p): Additional Asylum titles.

Age of Tomorrow Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Age of Tomorrow has a few things going for it, like special effects that are a tick better than Asylum normal and some halfway decent performances (yet still a couple of epic clunkers). Unfortunately, the film borrows heavily from other material and, worse, shows zero attention to detail, exposing error after error through which the audience can practically hear the echoes of filmmakers and studio executives saying "who cares?" There are some talented people at The Asylum, and a few fair actors working for the studio, but it just never seems to come together. Just a little more effort and things might turn around, because Age of Tomorrow isn't awful in the aggregate, major warts and all. The Asylum's Blu-ray release of Age of Tomorrow features near standard Asylum video and audio (read: very good) and a couple of throwaway extras. Rent it and keep score of all the other movies it rips-off and references throughout.