edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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Yesterday Variety's Anne Thompson did some good spade work in uncovering what really happened between Warner Bros., Tom Cruise and The 28th Amendment. Alluded to by L.A. Times reporter Rachel Abramowitz, yes, but not as specifically as Thompson explains. What it all boiled down to was that Cruise wanted to play a beleagured U.S. president fighting a shadow cabal or the reins of power, and WB basically said nope, can't do it, won't fly. As Thompson says at the very end of the piece, "Wow."

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on August 20, 2008 at 2:48 PM

comment #1

115thDreamer says ...

I've actually reached a point where I now feel kind of sorry for Tommy. His part in "Tropic Thunder" (NOT a cameo by the way - it's an actual part...he has 3-4 scenes) should definitely help him - when I saw it in a fairly packed house in lovely Sherman Oaks, CA, people clapped during one of his scenes, and then there was applause again at the end when his name came up in the credits. I think those were the only two times I heard actual clapping during the whole movie. He is really funny in the part and people really seem to be reacting to it. Hey, we forgave Hugh Grant pretty quickly - I think we can forgive the Cruise for being somewhat of a nutter. It's not like we expect our movie stars to be completely sane and rational all the time, anyway - what fun would that be?

Posted by 115thDreamer at August 20, 2008 3:10 PM

comment #2

Zimmergirl says ...

Cruise is wrong for it anyway. It has Will Smith written all over it. Too bad no one is going to make it because I'd love to see it.

Posted by Zimmergirl at August 20, 2008 3:15 PM

comment #3

Terry McCarty says ...

Cruise should be on his Blackberry with Ben Stiller and Shawn Levy getting THE HARDY MEN on the fast track since being a "found comedian" is a better career move than chasing big-budget thrillers.

Posted by Terry McCarty at August 20, 2008 3:43 PM

comment #4

p.Vice says ...

A shitty movie that's not getting made? Best news I've heard in ages.

And I don't know what this "flux" business is all about. Cruise hasn't been in a good movie in roughly a decade. That's textbook consistency, folks.

Posted by p.Vice at August 20, 2008 3:52 PM

comment #5

The Bandsaw Vigilante says ...

"Cruise should be on his Blackberry with Ben Stiller and Shawn Levy getting THE HARDY MEN on the fast track since being a "found comedian" is a better career move than chasing big-budget thrillers."

Hell, it worked for Hackman pretty well...

Posted by The Bandsaw Vigilante at August 20, 2008 5:37 PM

comment #6

Chicago48 says ...

Can anyone believe him as a President....I mean....he's still Dorian Greyish, refuses to age, refuses to let a little gray grow out....he still looks the same as he did 20 years ago...and thereby wouldn't be believable.

I like Tom in Comedies, Tom stay with the comedies.

Posted by Chicago48 at August 20, 2008 5:39 PM

comment #7

BurmaShave says ...

p.Vice, you're a psycho. MAGNOLIA, COLLATERAL, and MINORITY REPORT all fall within your dickbag "decade" scale.

Posted by BurmaShave at August 20, 2008 6:29 PM

comment #8

Mgmax says ...

Gee, if it was Will Smith it'd be even more obvious that this is the plot of Season 2 of 24. (Since it was a black president there too.)

Tom Cruise needs to make a romantic comedy and charm the women of America back into his corner. If I were him I'd be offering Cameron Crowe whatever it took to get him to write me another Jerry Maguire-- a Maserati, OT VIII, whatever.

Posted by Mgmax at August 20, 2008 6:53 PM

comment #9

PastePotPete says ...

Am I the only one who finds his performance in Tropic Thunder ridiculously overrated? It's just Tom Cruise yelling profanities in bad makeup. He still moves like an athletic guy, he speaks in the same cadence as he does in every other role.

It's like people want to find an excuse to like him again. Which is fine. But he's not suddenly a talented comic actor because he spent 5 hours in a makeup chair for a bit part in a Ben Stiller movie.

Posted by PastePotPete at August 20, 2008 9:18 PM

comment #10

Mgmax says ...

I'd agree, McConnaughy is funnier actually, and certainly subtler.

Still, it's the first let-your-hair-down likable thing he's done in a decade or two. He's been getting increasingly grandiose, a little comedy goes a long way to humanizing a star.

Posted by Mgmax at August 20, 2008 10:11 PM

comment #11

ZayTonday says ...

hasn't been in a good film in roughly a decade?? Minority Report, Collateral, Magnolia, MI3 (yes it was good, it just came out during the height of all his off screen hijinks which colored peoples' opinions) and Tropic Thunder were all made in the last decade.

And regardless of the whole "lol Tom Cruise is a Nazi" thing, Valkyrie is testing VERY well and was made by the same writing/directing team as The Usual Suspects.

Posted by ZayTonday at August 20, 2008 11:13 PM

comment #12

D.Z. says ...

Magnolia's great for people who've never read a Salinger book, but boring for everyone else. Minority Report's fine, but it's not exactly a Cruise vehicle as much as a sci-fi Fugitive vehicle with Cruise in it. Haven't seen Collateral, mostly because I have an aversion to DV, but it's probably overrated, as Cruise's best "dark" performance was in Vanilla Sky.

Posted by D.Z. at August 21, 2008 12:02 AM

comment #13

Rothchild says ...

DV?! D.Z., I officially hate you. Collateral has some of the most beautiful cinematography in the history of the medium. It's jaw dropping at times and the most visually stunning movie of Michael Mann's career. Watch it back to back with 28 Days Later then go fuck yourself.

Posted by Rothchild at August 21, 2008 12:21 AM

comment #14

Terry McCarty says ...

D.Z. wrote:
Haven't seen Collateral, mostly because I have an aversion to DV, but it's probably overrated, as Cruise's best "dark" performance was in Vanilla Sky.

Too bad you're prejudging. COLLATERAL's both DV and film and it's well-shot either way. It's one of Cruise's better recent performances--though the film, when it reaches for a conventional third-act, turns him into a more simplistic character than in the early going.

Posted by Terry McCarty at August 21, 2008 12:26 AM

comment #15

PastePotPete says ...

I'm hoping Valkyrie is good. The bad buzz is worrying but the pedigree is too good for me to ignore. The plot sounds right up McQuarrie's alley and the acting talent is top tier.

Also I've never really disliked any of Bryan Singer's movies - even Superman Returns, as wrong-headed as it was, had it's moments imo. It's real flaw for me (besides the unimaginative Donner obeisance) was that James Marsden comes off as more heroic and sympathetic than Superman. He goes off after Lois and son at the end just as quickly as Superman, without the security blanket of being super-strong and impervious to harm.

Collateral truly does look fantastic. It's by far the most accurate visual representation of LA I've ever seen in a film.

Posted by PastePotPete at August 21, 2008 12:41 AM

comment #16

Yves says ...

Did Cruise sign with a new PR agent or is he still using his sister?
The last good movie he made in my opinion was Minority Report. That came out in 2002, when Cruise turned 40.
I think leading men have a lifespan of about 10 years, starting at around 27. I saw the animosity between Tom Cruise and Colin Farrell as a hostile passing of the baton from one leading man to another. Unfortunately, Colin hasn't been able to successfully run with it thus far.

Posted by Yves at August 21, 2008 7:47 AM

comment #17

p.Vice says ...

Burma -- Are you making an implication or just stating fact? I'm happy to report that, yes, you are correct -- all of those movies have been released in the last decade. Congratulations!

Posted by p.Vice at August 21, 2008 8:50 AM

comment #18