The Tomorrow War (2021)

By: Mike Ward on Thursday, July 01

PG-13 Running Time: 139 mins

SHOULD I SEE IT?

YES

  • Chris Pratt fans get a nice surprise for the July 2, 2021 three-day weekend…The Tomorrow War free for Amazon Prime customers!

  • Fans of alien invasion/science-fiction thrillers will see qualities of The Tomorrow War they really like, as a compelling first hour may stick with viewers enough to carry them through all 140 minutes.

  • The alien creatures in the film are nasty and frightening and intense, some of the most jarring creations in a PG-13 movie in quite some time.

NO

  • Is this an alien invasion action movie or a domestic family melodrama? Why not both? And that’s the problem. Eventually, everything grows increasingly silly and so on-the-nose, the movie cannot sustain itself.

  • Millions had to die so one family could hug it out. Cool.

  • A warning for Prime customers and younger viewers: The Tomorrow War is a very intense PG-13 film and the creatures the main characters fight against are frightening, unpredictable, and jump scares and violence abound. Since the film is streaming on Amazon Prime, essentially one click away for anyone, this film may not be suitable for the youngest of those among us.


OUR REVIEW

The Tomorrow War, in a non-pandemic year, would simply be the next blockbuster up in the carousel of big-budget, summer movies. Starring Chris Pratt, this science-fiction/creature feature, with a time-twisting narrative, family focus, and moments of genuine intensity, would probably draw a big opening weekend and make hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide. However, as we remain in that pandemic, just starting to truly emerge from isolation and return to some sense of normalcy, movie releases remain scattered all over the place.

A casualty of COVID-19 delays, Amazon Studios was able to swoop in and throw down $200 million to wrest this away from Paramount Pictures. This could be a regrettable choice inasmuch as The Tomorrow War is clearly meant for a large screen and a rather boomin’ sound system. When the scope becomes small, the flaws and frustrations start to envelop the film like an attack by the rapidly moving, unpredictable, bloodthirsty beasts who lie at the heart of the film.

Carried by a strong first hour or so, though somewhat dense with world building and exposition, The Tomorrow War feels like it has potential. When we first encounter the alien monsters, known as “White Spikes,” director Chris McKay has crafted an effective and unnerving build up and reveal, shocking us when we finally see what awaits Pratt and the all-civilian army tasked with trying to save human beings from complete eradication. Unfortunately, the movie peaks at about that point and there’s still another 100 minutes or so to go.

As Dan Forester, a high school science teacher who wants more in life, Pratt is a devoted husband to Emmy (Betty Gilpin) and father to young daughter Muri (Ryan Kiera Armstrong). At Christmas time in December 2022, the Foresters sit down and watch a soccer match only to have the game inexplicably interrupted by a group of soldiers who appear in the middle of the pitch. Dumped onto the turf from a purple-hued vortex, the group’s leader, Lt. Hunt (Jasmine Matthews), shares that they have returned from the year 2051. The purpose of their visit is to inform the world that a deadly alien species is destroying all of humankind. Decimated by loss, Hunt calls for a global effort to create a civilian military force as a last-ditch effort to save humanity.

Approximately one year later, a worldwide draft is now complete. Forester is drafted and, despite his wife and daughter’s protests, he leaves to go on a 7-day trip into the future for battle. Once arriving in 2051, he forges an alliance with military commander Romeo Command (Yvonne Strahovski) and, for awhile, The Tomorrow War feels like it could become a pretty fun thrill ride. The workmanlike Forester is joined by wisecracking Charlie (Sam Richardson) and the stoic, intense Dorian (Edwin Hodge), among others. Forester becomes the de facto leader of the group, as we begin to see just how deadly and vicious these White Spikes truly turn out to be.

McKay, making his live-action directorial debut after previously directing The LEGO Batman Movie, lets the movie slip away from him. Largely, the problems stem from Zach Dean’s screenplay, which slides into unintentional absurdity with a hyper-focus on making sure the Foresters work through a range of family issues while mankind’s very existence hangs in the balance. The Tomorrow War wants to be a gritty, violent, jaw-dropping humans vs. aliens thriller. The movie also really, really wants to be a family story of love, loss, redemption, and making amends.

In this sense, I suppose The Tomorrow War is no different than most male-led science-fiction/action movies: The dedicated family man takes on a fight bigger than himself and millions must die so one man can repair his family. Neat!

Abandoning some interesting ideas, this merely becomes a story about how one man and his family continuously hold the fate of the world in their hands. And so, we get to see melodramatic exchanges between family members airing out grievances and hurt feelings while being forced into moments where they must make foolproof decisions. J.K. Simmons joins the fray as a ripped, arrogant, absentee father who worms his way into the proceedings in an effort to make things right with Forester, his estranged son. 

Impressive creature design work notwithstanding, McKay’s film has no true sense of what kind of movie it wants to be. As aliens ravage humans left and right, Forester is willing to fight them, but also wants to make sure he’s good with those really close to him. This back-and-forth, tug-of-war of tone and purpose proves to increasingly be a strategic failure.

Turns out, The Tomorrow War is helpless in fighting the one nemesis it can never overcome…Itself.

CAST & CREW

Starring: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, JK Simmons, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson, Jasmine Matthews, Edwin Hodge, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Keith Powers, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Mike Mitchell, Jared Shaw, Alexis Louder, Seychelle Gabriel, Seth Schenall

Director: Chris McKay
Written by: Zach Dean
Release Date: July 2, 2021
Amazon Studios/Amazon Prime