It's All In The Title

I've been seeing the trailer for Tom Cruise's latest scifi opus for what seems like a year now. It looks OK I suppose, and it's got an interesting, if derivative, premise. But that title…

Edge Of Tomorrow. Egad. That's the title? That's what Warner Bros. has decided to call their $110 million science fiction extravaganza? Jesus, I could come up with a better title by throwing those magnetic word tiles at my refrigerator door and writing down what sticks.

The movie's based on an acclaimed manga (or comic book, as they're known in America) called All You Need Is Kill. Warner Bros. inexplicably decided to ditch that title and substitute the blandest one humanly possible.

I'm not sure what was wrong with All You Need Is Kill as a title. Sure it's semi-nonsensical and probably not grammatically correct, but you've got to admit it's memorable. Plus it sounds like some kind of lost, twisted Beatles song or a James Bond film.

Edge Of Tomorrow is the dullest title they could have possibly come up with. It sounds like a 1970s soap opera. In fact back in the day my mom used to watch a soap called The Edge Of Night. Every time I see the trailer for the Cruise film that's all I can think about.

In addition to being incredibly bland, it tells you absolutely nothing about the film. Which do you think of when you hear Edge Of Tomorrow? A tear jerker in which one or both characters is dying? Or a futuristic action movie about a time-travelling soldier? I know which one I'd pick.

This is reminding me of the whole John Carter debacle from a few years ago. I'm still convinced that the massive box office failure of that film was due to its uninspired and lackluster title. I have a feeling we may see a repeat of that here.

Maybe they could have called it Groundhog Day In Space? Run, Cruise, Run? How about Lather, Rinse, Repeat?