VALKYRIE (United Artists)

Directed by Bryan Singer

It’s been said that what happened during World War I and World War II helped shape the planet into what it is today, but if that’s true, then shouldn’t we know each and every story that occurred back then by now? Should there not be anymore conspiracies yet to be solved, or are the ones we do know of not completely told yet? Either way, the fact is, this was a very crucial time for many countries, a time when peace was overtaken by war, and more importantly a time when Germany was supposed to lose some power thanks to the 'Treaty of Versailles.' Unfortunately, that never happened and some 14 years later Adolf Hitler, a.k.a. the Fuhrer, was named leader of Germany and the rest, as they say, is history. And although I won’t go into how Hitler was able to start WWII all by himself, know that not everyone was behind, undoubtedly the most feared leader Germany has ever known. And in 1944 a small group acted out Hitler’s own plan, dubbed Operation Valkyrie, in hopes of disarming the SS (Shield Squadron) and Nazi government, after of course assassinating the most feared man in the country. A plan so complex, yet so simple, lending itself to such an amazing conspiracy story, as told in VALKYRIE, a film that will hold you hostage on the edge of your seat.

As formerly mentioned, this story is based on true events following WWII and the potential fallout of a government power that had frankly become too big. And at the center of it all was Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise), a devoted German officer who couldn’t stand what Hitler had been doing to his country. In fact, he became so disgusted with it all, that he went to his senior command in hopes of overthrowing the fierce dictator. After no avail, while serving in the field, von Stauffenberg and his company were hit, resulting in a mess of injuries and heartache, ultimately leading von Stauffenberg in the direction of ending this reign, once and for all. After joining a secretive anti-Hitler group led by a few highly decorated Nazi officers, the savvy Colonel was able to gather enough supporters to build a team to take down the Fuhrer, using the very plan he created, in the event of his death. The plan, known as Operation Valkyrie, was straight forward with little to no loopholes, thus vaulting the newly formed team into a heightened state, as the most difficult piece to it, would be the assassination of Hitler himself, a task many before them had failed to do. But, as one loyal officer tells von Stauffenberg, nothing ever goes according to plan, resulting in probably the most famous failed assassination attempt any dictator has faced, yet remains one of the only honored piece’s to Germany’s past.

Make no mistake about it, Tom Cruise is my favorite actor and no matter what new film he is behind or in, I probably will be a little bias. That’s just a fact, but having said that, I still view anything he does like anyone else should, with no expectations or preconceived notions. By doing so, I can take in all of what makes Cruise, well, Cruise. And that’s not the guy you see off the screen answering questions about Scientology or some other ludicrous attempt to get inside the head of the most popular actor in the world. The guy I speak of is the one who puts 150% into the role he is playing and the man who has the ability to make any role worth watching. I may alone in this thought, but to me, there’s nothing he can’t do and this role as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg proves that. I’m sorry, but anyone that can pull off this look wearing an eye patch deserves some credit and he did, plus some; virtually commanding every scene he was in, to the point that you had no choice but to sit there in awe.

Surrounding Cruise was a wealth of talent, led by a couple vets in Bill Nighy and Tom Wilkinson. For Wilkinson, this was a “walk in the park,” having throw his talent around for the past 33 years in Hollywood. And what’s great about Wilkinson is, he leads by example so no matter what the role might be, you always know he’s true to the character, allowing the rest of the cast to fall in. Same could be said for his counterpart, Bill Nighy, playing one of von Stauffenberg’s (Cruise) fellow conspirators General Olbricht . And it was good to see Nighy nice and clean, given the last time we saw him, his face was surrounded with moving tentacles in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END. But, possibly the one pleasant surprise to this cast and one I had no clue was a part of this film until seeing him pop up on the big screen, was Eddie Izzard. Here’s a guy that many will not recognize, but should given his talent and comedic resume prior to starring in films like OCEAN’S TWELVE and ACROSS THE UNIVERSE. And even though he might not have been on screen too long here, I remember him which speaks volumes on the job he did overall.

Having missed the special on The History Channel regarding this very story, I had no prior knowledge of how all this went down back in the day, before actually sitting down and experiencing it on the big screen. So, going in, I simply trusted director Bryan Singer (X-MEN, SUPERMAN RETURNS), knowing what he was capable of and how clever he could be behind the camera. After first seeing Singer’s work in USUAL SUSPECTS, I became an instant fan and ever since then, I have been waiting for another gripping film like it. VALKYRIE is that film, but with a lot more intensity and clout, given all the historical attributes attached to it. Two entirely different kinds of films, and yet similar in feel when it comes to the concentrated emotion mixed throughout each of the stories respectively. But, make no mistake about it, VALKYRIE is much better than advertised and I think that credit should go to both Singer and Cruise for studying this story so deeply, ensuring they got it right. No stone was unturned as each and every account built on or around this story was secured when put into extreme motion. And when it was left up to Singer, he made sure to add in just the right action or emotion, given the circumstance, so that everything felt real and true to the times in which the film was built upon. I think that’s important to note, because despite whatever camera tricks Singer used to jack up the thrill level, staying true to the historical aspects of this story was vital and he passed with flying colors.

No matter how hard we try, we can never run away from history, but what we can do is look back and honor stories like the one in VALKYRIE. Given the extraordinary circumstances surrounding this story, combined with a great cast led by Cruise, this film transcends what a thriller is meant to be from start to finish.

A