I think a few big scrathes on Cruise's face would make him look better, I still say Mickey Rourke for Angus-but he's getting older and funkier looking by the minute.
Cruise would ruin the dynamics of the movie just being in it. His image is too big for a movie that requires judicious screen time on so many characters. Somebody mentioned the idea of a bunch of no-names...I like that too. Would also lend credibility to its presumably hard-science direction. I guess there's no reason to assume that though huh?
I disagree .. I think Cruise as Nick would work for two reasons ... 1) Cruise is always better when he plays a charming guy will loose/weak morals ... and 2) it would be like ALien or Psycho where you are not expecting the supposed 'main' actor to get killed in a shocking manner. By their presence alone you almost automatically think they will somehow survive...
~...with a floating smile and a light blue sponge...~
I'm reminded of Steven Segal's role in Executive Decision. He has a total of 5 minutes of screen time before he buys it (and he was still a bankable star at that point). Totally shocking and very effective.
"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." - PJ O'Rourke
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"Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas." - Charles Stewart
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"I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations." - James Madison
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Cail wrote:I'm reminded of Steven Segal's role in Executive Decision. He has a total of 5 minutes of screen time before he buys it (and he was still a bankable star at that point). Totally shocking and very effective.
And utterly relieving I cheered myself hoarse!
"I would have gone to the thesaurus for a more erudite word."
-Hashi Lebwohl
Usivius wrote:I disagree .. I think Cruise as Nick would work for two reasons ... 1) Cruise is always better when he plays a charming guy will loose/weak morals ... and 2) it would be like ALien or Psycho where you are not expecting the supposed 'main' actor to get killed in a shocking manner. By their presence alone you almost automatically think they will somehow survive...
Fair enough I guess, but I hate Cruise. He has little man complex. 5'7" and you can never tell on camera by the way they shoot it. He seems to be addicted to doing movies where he is the hero with all the moves, the fighting skills and etc - little man disease.
Don't take my post too seriously here...I'm a short dude too, and we know when of our own is overcompensating.
In the book Nick (to me) is slick, charming, good looking, but radiates lethality, a subtle danger. I can't see that in Cruise.
I enjoyed his acting in Minority Report, but I am not sure it was because of him or the story - somebody else could've worked equally well in the role.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ love is the shadow that ripens the wine
Usivius wrote:I disagree .. I think Cruise as Nick would work for two reasons ... 1) Cruise is always better when he plays a charming guy will loose/weak morals ... and 2) it would be like ALien or Psycho where you are not expecting the supposed 'main' actor to get killed in a shocking manner. By their presence alone you almost automatically think they will somehow survive...
Fair enough I guess, but I hate Cruise. He has little man complex. 5'7" and you can never tell on camera by the way they shoot it. He seems to be addicted to doing movies where he is the hero with all the moves, the fighting skills and etc - little man disease.
Don't take my post too seriously here...I'm a short dude too, and we know when of our own is overcompensating.
... fair enough...
But I disagree with Cruise not being able to emote a lethal quality on film... (i'm not a fan of the 'man' either ... can't stand him as a real person, but his on screen presence cannot be denied) ... check him out in Collateral ... very effectinve in that.
And imagine seeing a Tom Cruise character who starts off all charming and schmarmy and "I am the best", then slowly degrades and becomes a pathetic character before he dies ... that would be something to see on screen and TOALLY effective ...
but knowing how Tom Cruise picks roles (as observed by Paranoia) I doubt if he would take such a role (unless he got many rewrites to make him actually heroic in the end .. grrrr...)
~...with a floating smile and a light blue sponge...~
Usivius wrote:I disagree .. I think Cruise as Nick would work for two reasons ... 1) Cruise is always better when he plays a charming guy will loose/weak morals ... and 2) it would be like ALien or Psycho where you are not expecting the supposed 'main' actor to get killed in a shocking manner. By their presence alone you almost automatically think they will somehow survive...
Fair enough I guess, but I hate Cruise. He has little man complex. 5'7" and you can never tell on camera by the way they shoot it. He seems to be addicted to doing movies where he is the hero with all the moves, the fighting skills and etc - little man disease.
Don't take my post too seriously here...I'm a short dude too, and we know when of our own is overcompensating.
... fair enough...
But I disagree with Cruise not being able to emote a lethal quality on film... (i'm not a fan of the 'man' either ... can't stand him as a real person, but his on screen presence cannot be denied) ... check him out in Collateral ... very effectinve in that.
And imagine seeing a Tom Cruise character who starts off all charming and schmarmy and "I am the best", then slowly degrades and becomes a pathetic character before he dies ... that would be something to see on screen and TOALLY effective ...
but knowing how Tom Cruise picks roles (as observed by Paranoia) I doubt if he would take such a role (unless he got many rewrites to make him actually heroic in the end .. grrrr...)
~...with a floating smile and a light blue sponge...~
Usivius wrote:But I disagree with Cruise not being able to emote a lethal quality on film... (i'm not a fan of the 'man' either ... can't stand him as a real person, but his on screen presence cannot be denied) ... check him out in Collateral ... very effectinve in that.
And imagine seeing a Tom Cruise character who starts off all charming and schmarmy and "I am the best", then slowly degrades and becomes a pathetic character before he dies ... that would be something to see on screen and TOALLY effective ...
but knowing how Tom Cruise picks roles (as observed by Paranoia) I doubt if he would take such a role (unless he got many rewrites to make him actually heroic in the end .. grrrr...)
Which is my main concern. Secondary is the effect of adding the name Cruise to any movie. War of the Worlds was noteworthy in that Cruise's face was not on the promos. It took a director of Spielberg's status to accomplish that. Then comes the DVD release and Tom's on the cover.
His ability to be Nick is not the issue (I almost like the idea of him taking a part that gets killed unexpectedly). Can he take a role that won't keep him center stage? Almost as important, can the studio/producer/director who casts him avoid the temptation that Cruise's popularity brings?
A solution to that is beginning the last Gap movie with the massif 5 escape. Nick dies, and Cruise's audience has already paid for their ticket.
ItisWritten wrote:Then comes the DVD release and Tom's on the cover.
Which, I might add, was not the reality for most countries.
ItisWritten wrote:Can he take a role that won't keep him center stage? Almost as important, can the studio/producer/director who casts him avoid the temptation that Cruise's popularity brings?
It's as though you think it's Cruise's fault. He can't help it if marketing operates that way, but he's been in some movies recenty, such as Collateral, where it's not a 'Cruise-movie'. If the director and producer can manage to bring us a convincing Nick, then all this debating about Cruise is really futile.