LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING VALKYRIE
Pamela Scott Shelton
December 15, 2008
It has been a long time since I have been really excited about a new film release. Valkyrie, starring Tom Cruise, is due to open this Christmas Holiday, and I am buying a ticket in advance. I have known this story for a long time, and for just as long I have wondered why Hollywood did not put it to film. When Cruise announced he was taking on the project, I was delighted – couch jumpingly delighted. The event, the attempted assassination on Adolf Hitler, is a fascinating one of intrigue and danger, and one that has perhaps been overshadowed by the greater breadth of tragedy that is the Holocaust. We are finally at a place where this amazing story, Valkyrie, is about to be told on film. It is exciting because, as everyone knows, the attempt failed – which means there is much bigger story going on here, which is about to be told.
The story is about the man behind the failed attempt on Hitler´s life, a German officer, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg. Knowing the history of this man, I find myself wondering which aspects of von Stauffenberg´s personality and life Cruise will bring to the screen. How, as an actor, will Cruise convey the sense of who this man was to the film´s audience? It is a great story for film. Von Stauffenberg was a complex man, and from a film perspective it will be exciting to watch Cruise overcome the challenges of this intense, yet passionate character.
The spoiler here is not that the attempt on Hitler failed, but the intrigue and the dynamics of the danger surrounding the event. When we frame the intrigue in terms of the question of what brought together a group of German officers in a joint effort to attempt the assassination of Adolf Hitler, then the mystery of the personalities of those men becomes the focus of the story; most notably von Stauffenberg. The plot becomes irresistible to suspense and mystery film fans who like their stories wrapped in the kind of action created by the World War II setting.
Other characters are played by talented acting greats such as Terrence Stamp, as Ludwig Beck; Kenneth Branagh, as Major-General Henning von Tresckow; Christian Berkel, as Colonel Mertz von Quirnheim; Tom Wilkinson, as General Friedrich Fromm; and many more incredible men and actors. Branagh delivered an outstanding past performance in the role of Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich, in the 2001 film Conspiracy. Branagh´s performance in Conspiracy is a teaser for Valkyrie. Watching Branagh take on the role of yet another German officer is a performance I don´t want to miss.
When Hollywood brings together a good story with so many great actors under the direction of Bryan Singer, the expectation is – and should be – high that this is going to be a hugely successful and entertaining film. Can´t wait to see it!
The story is about the man behind the failed attempt on Hitler´s life, a German officer, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg. Knowing the history of this man, I find myself wondering which aspects of von Stauffenberg´s personality and life Cruise will bring to the screen. How, as an actor, will Cruise convey the sense of who this man was to the film´s audience? It is a great story for film. Von Stauffenberg was a complex man, and from a film perspective it will be exciting to watch Cruise overcome the challenges of this intense, yet passionate character.
The spoiler here is not that the attempt on Hitler failed, but the intrigue and the dynamics of the danger surrounding the event. When we frame the intrigue in terms of the question of what brought together a group of German officers in a joint effort to attempt the assassination of Adolf Hitler, then the mystery of the personalities of those men becomes the focus of the story; most notably von Stauffenberg. The plot becomes irresistible to suspense and mystery film fans who like their stories wrapped in the kind of action created by the World War II setting.
Other characters are played by talented acting greats such as Terrence Stamp, as Ludwig Beck; Kenneth Branagh, as Major-General Henning von Tresckow; Christian Berkel, as Colonel Mertz von Quirnheim; Tom Wilkinson, as General Friedrich Fromm; and many more incredible men and actors. Branagh delivered an outstanding past performance in the role of Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich, in the 2001 film Conspiracy. Branagh´s performance in Conspiracy is a teaser for Valkyrie. Watching Branagh take on the role of yet another German officer is a performance I don´t want to miss.
When Hollywood brings together a good story with so many great actors under the direction of Bryan Singer, the expectation is – and should be – high that this is going to be a hugely successful and entertaining film. Can´t wait to see it!