Lou Lumenick

Lou Lumenick

Movies

‘Edge of Tomorrow’ looks like movie of yesterday

The cowardly military officer played by Tom Cruise balks when ordered to film an invasion on the beaches of Normandy in the sci-fi epic “Edge of Tomorrow,’’ opening Friday, the 70th anniversary of D-Day. As it happens, that’s also the main premise of a blackly humorous World War II film released 50 years ago.

Granted, the Normandy invasion is by air and not by sea in “Edge of Tomorrow,’’ set in the near future — when the allied forces, equipped with high-tech gear, are trying to take back Europe from deadly extraterrestrials instead of Nazis.

While the two films go off in very different directions, there are still unmistakable elements in “Edge’’ from “The Americanization of Emily,’’ which stirred controversy for its anti-war stance back in 1964. And none of these elements appears to come from the Japanese graphic novel that was the source for “Edge.’’

Largely forgotten except by admiring critics and hard-core film buffs, “Emily’’ was adapted by Paddy Chayefsky (“Network’’) from a novel by William Bradford Huie. James Garner, in one of his favorite roles, stars as a charming naval lieutenant whose job is to procure steaks and women for his superiors.

As D-Day approaches, the eccentric admiral (Melvyn Douglas) who is Garner’s superior orders him to supervise the filming of the invasion — and to capture the death of the first sailor on film, supposedly to burnish the Navy’s image.

When Garner — who’s never seen combat and believes all war is senseless — balks, believing the assignment will likely get him killed, the admiral threatens to throw him in the brig.

It’s uncannily similar to a scene in “Edge’’ where Cruise’s superior (Brendan Gleeson) orders Cruise, a former publicist who has been managing the allied forces’ p.r. offensive, to personally supervise coverage of the invasion despite his complete lack of combat experience.

(Garner’s background isn’t specified in “Emily,’’ but in the source novel, his character, like Cruise’s, was in public relations as a civilian.)

The main characters in both movies end up as unwilling combatants on the beaches of Normandy. In “Emily,’’ Garner is led ashore at gunpoint by a fellow officer (James Coburn). In “Edge,” Cruise’s character is arrested and shipped out as part of the invasion — where he’s promptly killed, but acquires the ability to come back to life and repeat the same day over and over, “Groundhog Day’’-style.

Cruise’s character eventually becomes a real-life hero, but that’s not the case in the deeply cynical “Emily.’’ Because of a mix-up, Garner ends up being honored as the first casualty of the D-Day invasion in a p.r. blitz, but it turns out he’s a wounded survivor — who threatens to blow the whistle on what he regards as a sham.

That’s where Emily (Julie Andrews) comes in. A British motor pool driver who’s lost her husband and brother in the war, she’s initially appalled by Garner’s cowardice. But after he resurfaces, she promises to marry him if he’ll keep the secret to protect morale.

There’s not much in the way of romance in “Edge of Tomorrow,’’ except when Cruise chastely kisses the film’s heroine, who happens to be played by an actress named Emily (Blunt), near the end.

Her character, Rita, is a legendary soldier who teaches him how to fight in a movie that can’t remotely be described as cynical or critical of war.

Warner Bros., the studio releasing “Edge,’’ has owned “The Americanization of Emily’’ as part of its extensive MGM library since 1996, and recently released it on Blu-ray via the Warner Archive Collection.