You May Not Know But Tom Cruise’s Underrated Sci-fi Movie Edge of Tomorrow Was Inspired From Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s Novel

SUMMARY

• Tom Cruise starred in Edge of Tomorrow, playing William Cage, which was loosely based on All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazawa.
• Keiji Kiriya, the protagonist of All You Need Is Kill, has almost nothing in common with the more hopeful William Cage.
• The endings of the adaptation and the novel are entirely different from one another but both had interesting takes on the time loop concept.

Edge of Tomorrow is one of the most unique science-fiction films in the modern era, earning its title as one of the best in its genre. Directed by Doug Liman and starring Tom Cruise, it nailed the time loop concept and was filled with exhilarating action that captivated its audience.

What’s less known about the film, however, is that it’s actually loosely based on All You Need Is Kill, a Japanese light novel written by Hiroshi Sakurazaka. Its protagonist, Keiji Kiriya, inspired the creation of William Cage, the protagonist of Edge of Tomorrow.

Tom Cruise as Willam Cage in Edge of Tomorrow. [Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures]

All You Need Is Kill was published in 2004 with a gripping science-fiction narrative set in a world where humanity is locked in a constant battle against an alien race known as the Mimics. As portrayed in Edge of Tomorrow, Keiji Kiriya also relives the same day in the time loop and hones his skills every day to defeat them.

All You Need Is Kill is everything Edge of Tomorrow should’ve been

The manga for All You Need Is Kill. [Credit: Shueisha]

While the Hollywood adaptation maintained respect for the source material, All You Need Is Kill hits harder in every way. Keiji Kiriya and William Cage are pretty similar to each other in terms of personality initially but it seems that Cage went through a lot more years stuck in the time loop as compared to Kiriya.

However, there’s another key difference between the two that makes All You Need Is Kill more thrilling. While William Cage, played by Tom Cruise, was an American soldier who never wanted to join the fight against the Mimics, Keiji Kiriya knew what he was getting into, purposefully joining to stay in it. That makes Kiriya’s actions more dark and intense.

Kiriya was also willing to do anything to gain strength, even killing Rita. There was barely any romance between him and Rita Vrataski until the last few resets. In Edge of Tomorrow, Emily Blunt’s version of Rita was his love interest since the start and a driving force for Cage to get stronger.

The boldness and intensity of All You Need Is Kill are why it is so effective. Although Kiriya is still quite the coward and inexperienced at the beginning of the story, the time loops harden him into the soldier we know to this day. In one of the time loops, he killed enough Mimics to exhaust himself to death. It shows the lengths Sakurazawa went to show how gruesome it is.

Why this cross-culture collaboration is so important

Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in Edge of Tomorrow. [Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures]

The cultural differences between Hollywood and Japanese manga are evident in the differences in their adaptations. While still respecting the source material, Liman had to make Cage’s motivations different from Kiriya’s. An American audience probably wouldn’t have been convinced of a darker perspective.

Edge of Tomorrow’s ending is a lot more hopeful as humanity survives and the Americans celebrate. On the other hand, Kiriya becomes a total monster and a Mimic killer in All You Need Is Kill. Even the titles suggest the very different themes that Sakurazawa and Liman were going for with the same storylines.

Edge of Tomorrow is available on Netflix and All You Need Is Kill is available on VIZ Media.

Written by Bidisha Mitra

Articles Published: 260

Bidisha is an Anime Content Writer at FandomWire with years of experience in writing for all realms. If she's not busy watching reruns of Bungo Stray Dogs for the hundredth time, she is studying Kanji to bring out the best cultural nuances to her anime writing.