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Storytelling has long been a powerful way of conveying messages.
Stories can be retold for thousands of years, helping to shape a society's values whether for good or ill. Storytelling is so powerful in fact that there's not much difference for our brains between participating in events and learning of them through stories.
Movies are one of the most compelling and immersive forms of storytelling we have, which means they can have a powerful effect on our world-view.
So if you are one of the millions of people who have just seen Edge of Tomorrow, the latest movie starring Tom Cruise, then at some level you have been positioned to view extraterrestrials as evil.
You might think that if aliens ever came to earth they would be coming to destroy humanity. While watching the film you may have even felt you were playing an active part in the war against aliens.
And to make matters worse, you may have absorbed subtle subconscious cues that linked and associated spirituality with "evil" aliens.
Before we start discussing how Edge of Tomorrow might be influencing us to:
...let's first go through a quick breakdown of some important plot points. Warning: spoilers ahead.
Tom Cruise in a fight for his life against "alien invaders" Image source
Edge of Tomorrow starts with a confusing collage of news clips reporting an "alien invasion".
We are told we've "suffered millions of casualties" and that "all of humanity is at stake". This war is apparently taking place in the near future as press conference footage shows an actor who closely resembles Hillary Clinton as the U.S. President.
The story follows Major William Cage who is thrown into battle as part of the NATO-led "United Defense Force" (UDF) sporting a weaponries mechanical suit to fight against alien invaders known as "Mimics". When Cage kills and is doused in the blood of an "Alpha" Mimic he takes on their power to "reset the day" every time that he dies.
At important points related to re-living the same day his eyes turn pitch black.
Cage lives the same day over and over again, developing his skills as a soldier each time. He is trained by Rita Vrataski, who previously had the same power and is the UDF's most decorated soldier due to the number of aliens she has killed.
Together they prepare to destroy the "Omega", which is something like the brain of the aliens. They eventually succeed in destroying it under the Louvre's glass pyramid in France, dying themselves in the process.
After the destruction of the Omega the day resets once more and they live happily ever after - or so we're led to believe...
Someone wants you to think that extraterrestrials are evil
Despite many instances of extraterrestrials (ETs) helping humanity despite our violent attitude towards them and numerous reports of spiritual experiences with ETs, there are many movies that induce fear towards ETs by depicting them as violent world destroyers.
Edge of Tomorrow takes this narrative to another level.
Concept art for one of the "Mimics. They look even scarier on screen. Image source: Fandango
In Edge of Tomorrow the "Mimics" look like a cross between a demon, a piranha and a black-tentacled octopus.
They are fast, merciless and deadly, with one reviewer describing them as "nightmare creatures that look like razor-tentacled squid" (source).
In a Huffington Post review by Dwight Brown the film is compared to a "graphic nightmare" where the ETs are described as "predatory demons" and compared to the devil.
It's a common narrative tool to make the film villain appear to be lacking in human qualities.
Edge of Tomorrow achieves this by contrasting the darkness of the Mimics with the humanity, pain and love of the two main protagonists. Beyond this, Edge of Tomorrow adds a whole new dimension to the demonization of ETs when Cage's eyes turn pitch black when he uses the alien's ability to reset time.
Pitch black eyes? The alien's eyes aren't black in the film, so what would that have to do with resetting the day? Maybe it has more to do with drawing upon other instances of black-eyed beings, and creating a subconscious perception that these features are associated with ETs.
Here are some other movie depictions of black-eyed characters; they are all related to demons or horror in some way.
From left to right we have:
Notice how these depictions all associate pitch-black eyes with evil?
Depictions of movie characters with black eyes - they all somehow relate to evil
Negative entities in nightmares, lucid dreams and out-of-body experiences can often have pitch black eyes
Depictions of black-eyed beings are not uncommon in movies, but we can trace such depictions back to their roots in other dimensions.
If you've ever had a nightmare, a lucid dream or an out of body experience where you've seen a negative entity, often their eyes will have the same pitch black color. These entities are demonic in the most literal sense.
Is that what someone in Hollywood wants us to associate ETs with so that we hate and fear them and do not look to them as a source of spiritual guidance?
The movie ends in a final showdown at the Louvre glass pyramid in France. This pyramid was widely reported as having the 'number of the beast' enumerated in its glass tiles and was said to be dedicated to the demonic Beast from the Book of Revelation.
This myth has now been debunked, but it may be a continual association for many.
Given that pyramids are increasingly associated with the Illuminati and darkness, could the glass pyramid be another narrative technique to further link extraterrestrials with evil?
Aliens vs. a "United Defense Force"
In Edge of Tomorrow we're not just supposed to fear ETs, we're being programmed to actively want to take up arms against them.
We see this as another major theme portrayed through the film's global "United Defense Force". We learn that the U.S. are fighting alongside the Russians and Chinese along with over 70 nations who have joined the battle call.
If this sounds like a familiar storyline, it's not just because you've seen it in another movie before - this kind of depiction of a worldwide defense against an extraterrestrial "threat" has increasingly been gaining popularity in the news media over the last few years.
During the lead up to the 2012 London Olympics the Daily Mail posted an article full of fear mongering towards ETs warning people to be alert against a possible alien threat.
The article claims:
Seems like the idea of us vs. an invading force is everywhere. Image source
So ETs should be compared to the atrocities of the Nazi regime and anyone who chooses not to fight against them is a treacherous coward?
As recently as April this year Bill Clinton went on the 'Jimmy Kimmel show' (below video) and spoke about how he thought that an alien threat would unite the people of the earth in response:
The very same message was spread by Ronald Reagan in 1987.
With these repeated messages of threats from outer space, you have to wonder - are we being set up for a false flag alien attack that will boost military funding and enslave humanity in a New World Order?
A hoax alien threat?
It seems that even calling the invading ETs "Mimics" could be significant in this respect.
According to research by UFO investigator Dr Steven Greer, black projects in the military-industrial complex have successfully reverse-engineered extraterrestrial technology for decades, and now they use this technology to conduct cattle mutilations and faked abductions.
They may even be covertly developing space-capable weapons in preparation for a hoaxed alien threat.
The "United Defense Force" concept is making its way into popular culture. Image source: Ebay user ez_design
Is it possible that the "Mimics" in Edge of Tomorrow are representative of sinister humans masquerading as extraterrestrials to embed a false fear of alien invasion, and provide a pretext for the formation of a global military?
Such a world-view would certainly be limiting if an extraterrestrial presence could help us in our physical and spiritual evolution.
Is that why the logo for the United Defense Force looks like an eagle with clipped wings and its head in a cage sporting an upright pentagram on its chest?
Symbolically the upright pentagram represents humanity ascending towards the light in a spiritual sense, and the Eagle represents the highest part of our being, while a bird in a cage is symbol of enslavement and control.
Hence this symbol shows humanity being trapped and its spiritual development suppressed by a giant global cage.
Would our spiritual progress be stifled by a United Defense Force, just as Cage is forced to repeat violent acts day after day in a trap signified even by his own name?
The link between Hollywood and the Military-Industrial Complex
Tweets between Tom Cruise and DARPA.
It would be easy to believe that this is all just science fiction or conspiracies, but history paints a different picture.
Hollywood has a long history of relying on government agencies to support their productions. Government agencies then use their influence to change Hollywood scripts.
In creating the mechanised exo-suits for the production, director Doug Liman looked to real-life prototypes from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Techcrunch reports:
In the lead up to the film, Tom Cruise also managed to promote DARPA to 4.2 million people when he tweeted,
Who would benefit from a boost in budget provided by an alien threat and a global defense force?
Would it possibly be DARPA as the advanced research and development unit for the military-industrial complex?
"The only thing missing is you"
A promo poster for the movie reminiscent of the Uncle Sam 'I want you to join the U.S. Army' posters. Image source
Edge of Tomorrow could practically be seen as a recruitment drive for a global military presence.
As military figures espouse the glory of war and victory we are told, "The only thing missing is you".
The opening sequence includes an advertisement for joining the UDF which includes an almost subliminal representation of qualities we are supposed to associate with fighting against aliens including:
...qualities which I'm sure are attractive to many people.
This is just a movie you might say, it's not really going to affect people's behavior.
And if the movie itself isn't enough to spur you into action, the themes in Edge of Tomorrow are already making their way into popular culture.
Take for instance the paintball location with an authentic UDF branded helicopter, or the Edge of Tomorrow smartphone game where you can spend time practicing killing aliens.
Edge of Tomorrow promotes a confusing view of spirituality
A classic depiction of Ouroboros, signifying eternal return
It's pretty clear the view we are expected to take on aliens, but a more subtle aspect of Edge of Tomorrow is its depiction of spiritual concepts. As Cage relives his day again and again we could essentially be seeing a representation of reincarnation (on a macro scale).
It wouldn't be the first movie to follow this structure:
Can we relate to these movies because we have an innate understanding of the process of reincarnation, which is explained through many spiritual traditions?
In a spiritual sense being born again gives us the opportunity to gain experience from life and to grow from difficulties, correct our errors and become better and more selfless people. This was the theme in Groundhog Day.
In Edge of Tomorrow however reincarnation is associated with evil as Cage's eye turn black in important moments related to resetting the day.
Rather than becoming better people, the ability is used to become more efficient killers.
This may not be the first time spiritual principles have been warped in military circles.
Take for instance the increasing use of mindfulness in military training. While supposedly taught to help soldiers deal with stress, critics fear that mindfulness divorced from its background of non-violence might be used to make better killers.
There are many other references to religion and spirituality in the movie:
By relating reincarnation with spirituality, religion and demonic alien forces at the same time, the viewer receives a confusing message.
Like the negative portrayal of the extraterrestrials, are viewers meant to associate spiritual concepts with evil?
Will you support the agenda?
As of writing this article, Edge of Tomorrow has grossed over $340 million in box office takings worldwide.
With a conservative estimate of $15 per ticket that means the film has been seen over 22 and a half million times in cinemas alone.
Is this the world you want? Image source
One thing is certain: Edge of Tomorrow has definitely added to the overwhelming depiction of extraterrestrials as an enemy that must be guarded against at all costs.
And as the world's forces march on screen again and again to claim a victory for the "entire human race", we are further being programmed to internalize an isolation from our universal brothers and sisters who could otherwise help us make a better world and truly understand our purpose for existence.
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