Tom Cruise Is Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg - Good performance, almost!
Actor Tom Cruise accepted an uncanny look alike roll when he agreed to star as a German army officer in the excellent war movie, "Valkyrie".
Cruise is a good looking guy, who very much resembles the truly heroic martyred character, Claus Philipp Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944).
Stauffenberg was a German army officer and Roman Catholic aristocrat who was one of the leading officers of the failed 20 July plot of 1944 to kill German dictator Adolf Hitler and remove the Nazi Party from power in World War II. He was one of the central figures of the German Resistance movement. - the man who led the failed conspiracy attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler on July 20, 1944. (Wikepedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claus_von_Stauffenberg)
Valkyrie was the name of the German army reserve operation whereby Stauffenberg and his conspirators planned to take control of Germany following Hitler's murder.
My husband and I saw this movie on New Year's Eve, during the day, in Brunswick, Maine. Unfortunately, there were less than 20 people in the theater. Even the drawing power of star Cruise doesn't appear to bring out movie goers for this film. Nearly all of the small audience members were old enough to understand the significance of the amazing act of treason portrayed in this excellent World War II period movie. Maybe young people will rent this movie on DVD - I hope so because it is worth a history lesson. Some Germans, like Stauffenberg and probably Oskar Schindler, tried to make a difference, while the Third Reich terrorized the world.
Aside from the assassination, which everyone knows failed, the film is wonderful for the German war period, set design, created to entertain the senses while the characters lead us to their inevitable end.
Cruise gives an impressively convincing performance, although he seemed a little monolithic at times. In fact, Cruise's expression seldom changes in this film, even when he is protecting his lovely wife and children.
Nevertheless, I wanted to know more about Stauffenberg as a result of seeing this movie.
Outside of the convincing Cruise performance, David Bamber as Adolf Hitler is worth the price of admission to see "Valkyrie".
Indeed, Bamber's performance creates a highly believable Fuhrer, who borders on being a sympathetic paranoiac. I suspect Bamber's demeanor as the failing Fuhrer is as close to depicting this small tyrant dictator as anything in modern theater, or movies.
As much as we enjoyed this movie, there is one exception to the otherwise superb cinematography and screenplay in "Valkyrie". It has to do with religion.
I learned, in the movie, about how righteous a person Stauffenberg was. He wore a gold cross around his neck and a gold wedding ring.
In the movie, Stauffenberg is portrayed as a religious man through symbolism. Therefore, in one brief scene, when Stauffenberg is seated in a Roman Catholic Church collaborating with other army officers, the film's director misses an insightful opportunity. In my mind, director Bryan Singer should have pushed this particular scene into a prayer. I picked this oversight out of the screenplay, prior to knowing anything about Stauffenberg as a Roman Catholic. Meanwhile, I learned there was a buzz about Cruise being a Scientologist, and how this might have influenced this film. I sure hope Scientology didn't ruin this particular scene. Obviously, this is only my opinion.
Certainly, Cruise is a movie icon who is to be thanked for bringing the brave Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg back to life - because, he is a mirror look alike image of the real man.
"Valkyrie" is recommended for it's historical perspective, for the excellent cinemotography and the characterizations portrayed by Cruise and Bamber.
Cruise is a good looking guy, who very much resembles the truly heroic martyred character, Claus Philipp Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944).
Stauffenberg was a German army officer and Roman Catholic aristocrat who was one of the leading officers of the failed 20 July plot of 1944 to kill German dictator Adolf Hitler and remove the Nazi Party from power in World War II. He was one of the central figures of the German Resistance movement. - the man who led the failed conspiracy attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler on July 20, 1944. (Wikepedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claus_von_Stauffenberg)
Valkyrie was the name of the German army reserve operation whereby Stauffenberg and his conspirators planned to take control of Germany following Hitler's murder.
My husband and I saw this movie on New Year's Eve, during the day, in Brunswick, Maine. Unfortunately, there were less than 20 people in the theater. Even the drawing power of star Cruise doesn't appear to bring out movie goers for this film. Nearly all of the small audience members were old enough to understand the significance of the amazing act of treason portrayed in this excellent World War II period movie. Maybe young people will rent this movie on DVD - I hope so because it is worth a history lesson. Some Germans, like Stauffenberg and probably Oskar Schindler, tried to make a difference, while the Third Reich terrorized the world.
Aside from the assassination, which everyone knows failed, the film is wonderful for the German war period, set design, created to entertain the senses while the characters lead us to their inevitable end.
Cruise gives an impressively convincing performance, although he seemed a little monolithic at times. In fact, Cruise's expression seldom changes in this film, even when he is protecting his lovely wife and children.
Nevertheless, I wanted to know more about Stauffenberg as a result of seeing this movie.
Outside of the convincing Cruise performance, David Bamber as Adolf Hitler is worth the price of admission to see "Valkyrie".
Indeed, Bamber's performance creates a highly believable Fuhrer, who borders on being a sympathetic paranoiac. I suspect Bamber's demeanor as the failing Fuhrer is as close to depicting this small tyrant dictator as anything in modern theater, or movies.
As much as we enjoyed this movie, there is one exception to the otherwise superb cinematography and screenplay in "Valkyrie". It has to do with religion.
I learned, in the movie, about how righteous a person Stauffenberg was. He wore a gold cross around his neck and a gold wedding ring.
In the movie, Stauffenberg is portrayed as a religious man through symbolism. Therefore, in one brief scene, when Stauffenberg is seated in a Roman Catholic Church collaborating with other army officers, the film's director misses an insightful opportunity. In my mind, director Bryan Singer should have pushed this particular scene into a prayer. I picked this oversight out of the screenplay, prior to knowing anything about Stauffenberg as a Roman Catholic. Meanwhile, I learned there was a buzz about Cruise being a Scientologist, and how this might have influenced this film. I sure hope Scientology didn't ruin this particular scene. Obviously, this is only my opinion.
Certainly, Cruise is a movie icon who is to be thanked for bringing the brave Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg back to life - because, he is a mirror look alike image of the real man.
"Valkyrie" is recommended for it's historical perspective, for the excellent cinemotography and the characterizations portrayed by Cruise and Bamber.
posted by Juliana L'Heureux at 5:17 PM
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