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Home > Blogs > Sir Critic on Cinema > Archives > 2008 > April > 08 > Entry
Help! Save Tom Cruise!
No, he’s not abusing couch springs again, but the latest news about Cruise isn’t exactly good.
His latest movie, Valkyrie, directed by Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects, the first two X-Mens) was originally supposed to come out this summer. Then, it got pushed to the fall.
Now, word has come the that the movie has been pushed back yet again - to February 2009. Granted, the date is on the lucrative President’s Day weekend, but this is not a good sign any way you slice it. When you release in the summer, that means “Hey, we’ve got a fun adventure movie like The Great Escape!” When you release in the fall, that means, “Hey, maybe we can win an Oscar like Schindler’s List” But when you move to February, that’s like saying “Uhhh - well, maybe we’ll have more to offer than Jumper?”
Film bloggers David Poland and Jeffrey Wells proclaim the film all but dead. That might be a little dramatic, as no one’s actually seen the film yet, and with Singer aboard, one suspects the film will be good no matter when it comes out.
Even so, as Anne Thompson of Variety states, “pushing the movie’s release date back twice has made it look like tainted goods.” At the very least, Valkyrie is a “troubled” film - and that’s not where Cruise needs to be at this point- not when he’s still trying to shake off a general perception as a moonbat.
Poland goes so far as to suggest Cruise needs to cue up Mission: Impossible 4, ASAP, with Peter Berg (The Kingdom) or Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend) directing. I’m not so sure about that. MI: 3 did good businesses, but still underperformed - which was too bad, as it was the best of the three.
Others might suggest Cruise needs to take smaller parts in prestige projects, like he did with Magnolia, which earned him an Oscar nomination. Then again, he tried that with Lions for Lambs (out on DVD today) to less than great results, although that had to do more with anti-war movie fatigue than Cruise himself.
So what should Cruise do? Are you anxious to see him playing a Nazi commander who works against the Third Reich? If you grew weary of him, what could he do to get back in your good graces? MI: 4? Or maybe a remake of Top Gun, with Cruise in the Tom Skerritt part?
Permalink | Comments (5) | Post your comment | Categories: Celebrities, Coming Attractions
Comments
By Sir Critic
April 9, 2008 2:50 PM | Link to this
RE “Silence of the Lambs” opening in February - it’s true that February CAN be a place for award-worthy movies, but whether they often are is another matter. The “Silence” example looks more and more like a fluke with each passing year. Heck, “The Life of David Gale” ended up in Feb. and look how THAT turned out. I hold out hope, but I would be less concerned if this weren’t “Valkyrie’s” THIRD release date.By SRCputt
April 8, 2008 3:16 PM | Link to this
No remakes. His road back is good projects with good directors. Don’t worry about box office, worry about quality. I don’t care if he’s a nut, he is still a good actor, and he should go out and prove it. Forget about being a superstar, be an actor. I won’t blame him for Lions for Lambs. I’d have made that move: costarring with Streep, directed by Redford. And working with Singer is another move I would do. If he sticks with quality, and focuses on his acting, he’ll be fine. By the way, I think February is a great place for a big movie with a little quality. It worked well for The Silence of the Lambs.By Kim
April 8, 2008 3:12 PM | Link to this
You’re right, Allie -it really is a shame. I think part of his problem is that he has made his public persona so out loud, in your face and weird, that I am no longer able to “believe” the acting. He can no longer become the character - he is now the nutcase trying to act like someone else. He has pulled a bit of a Michael Jackson, where he has gone so over the top that it’s now difficult to watch him for the enjoyment factor of his talent without thinking about his freak show.By Kim
April 8, 2008 3:01 PM | Link to this
Truthfully - Cruise is already beyond hope for me. I can’t hardly even stand to watch his old stuff that I loved anymore, much less want to see the nut case in anything new. That is one tarnished star right there!By Allie D.
April 8, 2008 2:28 PM | Link to this
Ok, that is a big no on remaking Top Gun. lol But you are right. this is really bad news, and it’s a shame. February?? What is the deal. It’s like saying they have given up trying to take the movie seriously! I think another Mission Impossible might not work either. I would suggest, as you did, taking smaller roles in smaller, quality films. People need to be reminded that in spire of his personal eccentricities, he is a talented guy. Putting more of that on display without being all “in your face” would be the wiser move. He no longer has the luxury of his cockier youth that landed him roles like Top Gun, A Few Good Men, etc.