Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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55 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Taut and compact thriller - very much a movie rather than a historical study, 8 Mar 2009
Tom Cruise stars as Colonel Von Staffenberg in this semi-factual account of the most notorious of all wartime plots to assassinate Adolf Hitler and end WWII. Cruise portrays Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, a wealthy aristocrat who lost an eye and a hand while fighting for Germany during World War II. Stauffenberg became the key man in a large-scale conspiracy that set out to assassinate the Nazi leader and seize control of the German government. The film's main event is the assassination attempt that took place on July 20, 1944, at the Wolf's Lair; Hitler's Eastern Front military headquarters located in what is now Poland. The film examines the preparation for the assassination, its implementation and the attempted coup that followed. The interest isn't in the final results -- it's the details of what happens along the way that matter.
Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects) directs with his trademark economical flair; there is no fat on this movie and the predominantly British cast all acquit themselves well. Tom Wilkinson, Kenneth Cranham, Terence Stamp and the ubiquitous Bill Nighy are just some of the accomplished cast, which also features comedian Eddie Izzard in an unusual but inspired piece of casting. The action is sparing but consequently the film's intensity is maintained throughout, as the band of disillusioned conspirators gradually move towards their goal.
Much has been made of Cruise's willingness to participate in this relatively low-key project, and of the director's decision that the actor were to speak in their own accents during the movie. However, I didn't feel that the latter detracted from the power of the performances nor did Cruise seem out of place as the mutilated and enigmatic Staffenburg; in my humble opinion. I was also disturbed but intrigued by the film's historical aspects, as I had little knowledge of the Staffenburg plot or any of its participants prior to watching this film. Critical reception seems to have been mixed, but all I can say is that I would recommend this as an edgy historical thriller, with a decent cast and high production values.
DVD extras include The Valkyrie Legacy', a fairly lengthy documentary from The History Channel. Historians and spokesmen for the German Resistance Memorial Centre talk about the events dramatized in the film. we even hear from two of Von Stauffenberg's children, one of whom was born in a concentration camp.
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22 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I unexpectedly enjoyed it,, 31 May 2009
I was a little hesitant to see this movie since it's an historical story & also because of the mediocre reviews, I expected to be bored, but my husband wanted to see it & I thought that I would fall asleep watching, as usual, but I was wrong. The movie engaged me from the beginning & even though I knew the ending, the movie was quite captivating & kept me up waiting to see what will happen. A very nice surprise. Also Tom Cruise was great even though I don't care for him much lately he really gave this movie a soul. Well done.
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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Straightforward but suspenseful retelling of the plot to kill Hitler, 8 Jul 2009
A straightforward telling of the true life story of the last known assassination attempt on Hitler, in 1944, what this movie lacks in surprises it makes up with more than a dash of style.
A stellar cast come together, in a movie with a very traditional feel about it - non showy direction, just telling the story as it was. Tom Cruise is fine as Stauffenberg, with just enough depth to portray the level of charisma the man must surely have had to get as far as he did, and the boldness he must have had to start the whole process with as much confidence as he seems to have had. The rest of the cast is like a who's who of British cinema, reminding the viewer of the classic war movies of old. And the movie really does seem to share a gene pool with those epic war movies recreating real life movies, with the same pros and cons they had. On the plus side, the movie convinces on authenticity. Events appear close to the known facts, without too much embroidering for effect. The budget, though not overblown by today's standards, and fairly small by Cruise' standards, has enough to create some terrific set design - the planes, the settings, the real life locations, and the recreation of the wolf's lair - all help to immerse you in the story. On the minus side, the cast are all worthy, but never outstanding. It's as if they are playing their roles with kid gloves, to be as reverential as possible to people who actually existed. Perhaps with one exception - Bill Nighy portrays the films more ambiguous character, in a role which starts to flesh out some of the anguish that must have been felt building up to what amounted to High Treason. It's a performance which manages to scratch a little beneath the surface of how it would have felt, rather than the bare facts - and yet still treats the character with respect. Other than that, although well told, the movie sticks to facts and avoids any depth.
Kudos to director Bryan Singer then - he has taken a moribund genre (WW II thriller), with a story we know the ending to, and still managed to make something relatively nail biting, and certainly visually satisfying. It's just not got enough depth or originality to join the ranks of the classics.
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