I just cannot imagine the All American golden boy Tom Cruise playing Klaus von Stauffenberg who, if I am not mistaken, came from an old Prussian (?) military family. Tom Cruise as a German officer, I don't think so.

Anyone seen it or heard something about it from people or the press?

I would be especially interested in the response from Germany.


plexi

Has this been released in Europe yet?

I'll go see it since I'm a history buff, WWII history particularly, but I'm thinking this is going to be another Hollywood-esque vehicle for Tom Cruise.
I really would like to see a filmmaker tackle this story without an eye for "Oscar gold."

Here's the review from my local paper:




Muddled first half mars otherwise gripping 'Valkyrie'
Posted by Mike Scott, Movie writer, The Times-Picayune December 24, 2008 4:30AM
Categories: Living: Arts and Entertainment, Movie reviews

Tom Cruise stars as Claus Von Stauffenberg, the Nazi officer who hatched a plan to assassinate Adolf @#$%&.
In the capable World War II historical thriller "Valkyrie," Tom Cruise plays a real-life German officer who helped hatch a 1944 conspiracy to assassinate Adolf @#$%& that -- spoiler alert! -- ultimately failed.

And therein lies the challenge for Cruise and superhero director Bryan Singer ("X-Men," "Superman Returns"). How do you generate genuine suspense when everybody knows the ending?

In the hit-and-miss, but ultimately entertaining "Valkyrie," Singer does it with characteristic big-budget flair.

Although his film is marred by a muddled first half -- making it difficult to keep track of which Nazi is which and exactly how their heavily politicized plan is supposed to work -- "Valkyrie" is redeemed by a quickly paced and gripping second hour.

It's there that Singer and company leave all the political plotting behind and get on with the action.


Tom Cruise in Valkyrie.
VALKYRIE
2.5 stars, out of 4

Plot: A Nazi officer spearheads an attempt to assassinate Adolf @#$%& in a story based on real events.

What works: Director Bryan Singer knows how to do action, and when his film quits talking and finally gets around to that, it's fairly gripping.

What doesn't: The first half of the film, as the plan is being hatched, is disappointingly muddled.

Starring: Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Wilkinson, Bill Nighy, Terence Stamp. Director: Singer. Running time: 2 hours. Rating: PG-13 for violence and brief strong language.

RELATED LINKS

• On the Web: Official site for "Valkyrie."
• From the TP: The Times-Picayune's A-to-Z movie review archive.
• From the TP: More movie news and reviews from Times-Picayune movie critic Mike Scott
(And, not to sound like Grandpa Scott -- U.S. Army, Battle of the Bulge, 1945 -- but they also do it with unusual auditory vigor. At an advance screening last week at the AMC Palace 20 Elmwood in Harahan, the big bangs bordered on painful at times.)

"Valkyrie" tells the story of Nazi Col. Claus Von Stauffenberg (played by a firmly-within-his-comfort-zone Cruise), who was part of a sophisticated inside plan to kill @#$%&. (The title of the film comes from an internal Nazi defensive blueprint -- Operation Valkyrie -- that the plotters aimed to exploit in executing their plan.)

As Singer makes clear, Von Stauffenberg and his confederates hatched their plan after realizing that the war was lost for Germany and that @#$%& was a madman. "I am a soldier," Von Stauffenberg says. "I serve my country. But this is not my country."

Killing @#$%& was only one part of a larger plan, however. The plotters also wanted to snatch power from @#$%&'s high command and negotiate a truce with the Allies, thus sparing their country a certain amount of indignity and leaving it with at least a shred of capital at the bargaining table.

Even with its real-life backstory, "Valkyrie" ends up often feeling more popcorny than it does historical. That just happens when you have one Nazi with an American accent, several Nazis with British accents and a few with actual German accents.

Still, with rich production values and Singer's sensibilities, it's a nicely handled story, with a Panzerful of built-in intrigue -- even if the good guys do lose.

Tags: Bryan Singer, Mike Scott, Tom Cruise, Valkyrie

[blog.nola.com]

Has this been released in Europe yet?

Nope, it will be released january 22nd. in Germany.
as "Operation Walküre"

I can't wait to not see it - T.Cruise is a PITA

Yeah this was supposed to be Cruise's big "comeback" effort. After some of his wacky stunts in recent years. I haven't seen it but the reviews haven't been good. Espicially for Tom.

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

Tim, how hard can it be to spell Valkyrie or Valküre.. ?

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timbernardis
I just cannot imagine the All American golden boy Tom Cruise playing Klaus von Stauffenberg who, if I am not mistaken, came from an old Prussian (?) military family.


plexi

Claus. Wurttemberg military family.

How do you make the umlaut with an American keyboard?

So dont ya have a separate ¨-key over there?
Thing is Tim spelled it Valykrie in the headline

A funny thing speakin' of computer or typewriter keyboards,
is that in Hungary the "at" () is called kakukk = cuckoo ><

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Edith Grove
How do you make the umlaut with an American keyboard?

I can give you a few

ÄÄÄÄÄÄäääää ÜÜÜÜÜüüü ÖÖÖÖÖöööö - tell me if you need some more

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Edith Grove
How do you make the umlaut with an American keyboard?

Very carefully evidently

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

Hey kids, speaking about Christmas films, anything good come out AT ALL this last week or so? How about that Leo DeCaprio one? I loved him in Blood Diamond, the dude was spot on - great actor !!

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Baboon Bro
So dont ya have a separate ¨-key over there?

Not sure, or maybe I just don't know how to use it. Old girlfriend said the same thing once

Here's the American website: [valkyrie.unitedartists.com]

And the German site: [www.walkuere-derfilm.de]

Dunno if it works, but try:
AltGr + U

First, Tom saved Meiji era Japan from itself in the extremely apochraphyl "The Last Samurai" Now, can he do the same for Germany in "Operation Walküre" ? One can only hope they get the history more correct than they did in our Tom's last historical epic, Yare yare!

I go to a lot of movies. This one is not high on my priority list, besides, I know how it ends.

I haven't seen this latest film (and I don't like Tom Cruise, so I probably won't), but another movie about the anti-Nazi resistance "Sophie Scholl - Die letzten Tage" from 2005 was quite good and worth checking out.

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open-g
Has this been released in Europe yet?

Nope, it will be released january 22nd. in Germany.
as "Operation Walküre"

I can't wait to not see it - T.Cruise is a PITA

PITA ????

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therollingmanu

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timbernardis
I just cannot imagine the All American golden boy Tom Cruise playing Klaus von Stauffenberg who, if I am not mistaken, came from an old Prussian (?) military family.


plexi

Claus. Wurttemberg military family.

seems strange for a German, why would it not be Klaus?

Wurttemberg -- is that along the Romantische Road, or am I thinking of another?


p

Sounds like a fantastic film.

A mate of mine recently discovered and SS officers ceremonial knife in his attic.

fantastic film + Tom Cruise doesn't equate.

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timbernardis
I just cannot imagine the All American golden boy Tom Cruise playing Klaus von Stauffenberg who, if I am not mistaken, came from an old Prussian (?) military family. Tom Cruise as a German officer, I don't think so.

Anyone seen it or heard something about it from people or the press?

I would be especially interested in the response from Germany.


plexi

I'll wait for it on regular TV but I've read it has all the cinematic oomph of a History Channel reenactment.

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timbernardis
Wurttemberg -- is that along the Romantische Road, or am I thinking of another?

You're thinking of Würzburg. Württemberg is the name of a region in south-west Germany.

What I would be interested in: Is this story about Stauffenberg known in other countries? Europe/America? Here in Germany it's very well known and also taught in school, so the announcement of the film has not been too surprising for Germans, although there was some confusion as to Tom Cruise playing the role.

I'm not sure if I will see the movie, it looks a bit like a "second world war by numbers" movie. I don't know about how the film treats historical facts but it probably will be entertaining though.

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timbernardis

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therollingmanu

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timbernardis
I just cannot imagine the All American golden boy Tom Cruise playing Klaus von Stauffenberg who, if I am not mistaken, came from an old Prussian (?) military family.


plexi

Claus. Wurttemberg military family.

seems strange for a German, why would it not be Klaus?

Wurttemberg -- is that along the Romantische Road, or am I thinking of another?


p

Sorry tim, didn't want to be the smartass here. I', german and I'm NOT going to watch that film.
What bothers me about the whole stauffenberg thing is the way, he is uncritically gloryfied. Yes, he did try to kill @#$%&, but: had he carried out his coup, Germany would have become a kind of corporative state, run only by a small number of noblemen. Stauffenberg did not plan to turn Germany into a democracy.

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timbernardis

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open-g
Has this been released in Europe yet?

Nope, it will be released january 22nd. in Germany.
as "Operation Walküre"

I can't wait to not see it - T.Cruise is a PITA

PITA ????

Pain in the ass...I'm guessing.

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

I'm VERY far from being a Tom Cruise super fan nut but if you guys think he's a mediocre one trick pony check out a film called COLLATERAL by Michael Mann (Director of "HEAT" with DeNiro/Pacino) with Jamie Foxx. This ain't the couch jumpin' crazy Tommy Boy, he's one hard core MFer in COLLATERAL.... I think MISSION IMPOSSIBLE III is not bad either (#2 Sucks big time IMHO, #1 is also a really good, as good as #3)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2008-12-29 23:36 by HelterSkelter.

I differ as often & I have nuthin much to oppose to Cruise as an actor.