What the hell is wrong with Tom Cruise?

Started by filmcritic, July 22, 2003, 03:34:31 PM

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Chest Rockwell

MGM Teams with Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner to Resurrect United Artists

MGM announced today that United Artists, the classic studio recently thought to be officially defunct, will be reborn once again - with Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner at the helm. According to a statement released by MGM, Cruise and Wagner (who formed the Cruise/Wagner production company in 1993) will drive the re-establishment of the studio, with Wagner as CEO overseeing day-to-day operations and Cruise starring in and producing films for the studio. In addition to setting the production slate, Cruise and Wagner will also hold "substantial ownership" in the studio, which was originally founded 85 years ago by Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford and D.W. Griffith. The original United Artists' vision was to create a studio run by creative talent for creative talent as a way to help foster filmmaking outside the regimented studio system, a sentiment that was echoed in today's press release by all parties involved. Harry E. Sloan, Chairman and CEO of MGM, stated, "Partnering with Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner, we have the ideal creative foundation from which to reintroduce the United Artists brand... United Artists is once again the haven for independent filmmakers and a vital resource in developing quality filmed entertainment consistent with MGM's modern studio model." Cruise and Wagner also expressed their commitment to maintaining United Artists' unique vision, with Cruise stating, "It's our desire to create an environment where filmmakers can thrive and see their visions realized," and Wagner saying, "This is a great opportunity for Tom and me to re-establish the United Artists brand and to work closely with the creative community. As studio partner-operators, we will provide a supportive environment and infrastructure for filmmakers that will allow them to do their best work." The agreement between MGM and Cruise/Wagner, effective immediately, will have the new UA set to produce four films each year (a number that may increase in the future), with marketing and distribution handled by MGM. No new projects have yet been announced.

soixante

First film to get the greenlight:  THE L. RON HUBBARD STORY, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman as the great author and religious leader.  Directed by Oliver Stone.  "After Alexander, I was eager to tackle another biopic," said Stone.
Music is your best entertainment value.

squints

#302
Charlie Chaplin, DW Griffith, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford.........Tom Cruise


One of these things is not like the other....
"The myth by no means finds its adequate objectification in the spoken word. The structure of the scenes and the visible imagery reveal a deeper wisdom than the poet himself is able to put into words and concepts" – Friedrich Nietzsche

matt35mm

Quote from: squints on November 03, 2006, 07:59:46 PM
Charlie Chaplin, DW Griffith, Douglas Faibanks, Mary Pickford.........Tom Cruise


One of these things is not like the other....

Quit being a sexist already.  She did fine.

Pubrick

Quote from: squints on November 03, 2006, 07:59:46 PM
Charlie Chaplin, DW Griffith, Douglas Faibanks, Mary Pickford.........Tom Cruise


One of these things is not like the other....
well then maybe you should check your spelling next time.
under the paving stones.

MacGuffin

UA stalks 'Lions'; Redford, Cruise, Streep topline
Source: Hollywood Reporter

United Artists, which was revived two weeks ago under new bosses Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner, is making its first acquisition: the CAA package "Lions for Lambs."

The fledgling label is in final negotiations to pick up "Lions," a drama set in Afghanistan that will be directed by Robert Redford, who also will star along with Meryl Streep and, in his first acting gig since "Mission: Impossible III," Cruise.

Written by Matthew Michael Carnahan ("The Kingdom"), the multilayered story stars Redford as a professor in the U.S. with two students in Afghanistan. Cruise will play a U.S. senator. "I'm the investigative reporter on (Cruise's) ass," confirmed Streep, who co-starred with Redford in Sydney Pollack's Oscar-winning 1985 epic "Out of Africa."

Andrew Hauptman and Carnahan are producing. The duo first teamed up when Hauptman hired Carnahan to adapt "State of Play," a political drama based on a hit BBC miniseries that is set up at Universal.

Because "Lions" is not a Cruise/Wagner production, Cruise and Wagner will function as supervising executives and will not take producer credits, sources said.

Production is scheduled to begin at the end of January, with an expected release in late 2007. MGM will distribute the movie domestically and handle worldwide rights.

Redford's most recent directorial outing was 2000's "The Legend of Bagger Vance"; he most recently starred in Lasse Hallstrom's "An Unfinished Life." Streep scored kudos as Miranda Preistley in this year's "The Devil Wears Prada."
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

Gold Trumpet

I don't go to this forum enough but I was wondering if Cruise had a film in line for next year. He does and shockingly, I am excited. This is Cruise joining a production instead of just developing one for him to star in. It means the film likely won't be a simple vehicle project in which he has to be in nearly every shot of the film plus play a character who is lifted to falsified heroics. The Cruise saga got particularily ridiculous in '06 when MI3 looked like it had a plot to coinside with the selling of his marriage to Katie Holmes for the public.

Once upon a time, he was an amazing actor. Back to the late 1980s, he came out with Rain Man and Born on the Fourth of July in two years. He was already a star in the making and many saw a great actor in the making as well. There were critics who were even noticing that his rise was coming together the same way it did for Marlon Brando in the 1950s. But, Cruise gave too much of his career to Hollywood to become the elite star around the world. Only a few films here and there since then has capitilized on his talent. I doubt this new project will usher in a trend, but it should be a nice departure. 


MacGuffin

Hardy Boys II Men: Cruise & Stiller at Fox?

Apparently, Kevin Federline's recent self-effacing Superbowl stunt has inspired Tom Cruise.

Insiders tell TMZ that Tom Cruise has been talking with Ben Stiller about starring in an updated version of "The Hardy Boys" at Twentieth Century Fox. Tentatively titled "The Hardy Men" -- a comedy that would be directed by Stiller's director on "A Night At the Museum," Shawn Levy ("The Pink Panther," "Cheaper By the Dozen").

"The Hardy Boys" detective novels date back to 1927, though a variety of ghost writers using the pen name of Franklin W. Dixon kept Frank and Joe Hardy perpetual teenagers. "The Hardy Men" would have them finally grown up, but up to their old tricks once more.

While nothing is set in stone, (like, say, that T. Rex skeleton from "Museum") the discussions do reveal a larger, more interesting development stemming from Cruise's L'affaire de sofa d' Oprah: What to do next when your public image has taken a public beating?

For starters: acknowledge the elephant in the room, and make fun of it. People familiar with Cruise's plans say that Cruise met with Stiller about starring in "Tropic Thunder," a farcical action-comedy Stiller has set up at DreamWorks Pictures that paraodies Cruise's work in Paramount's "Mission: Impossible" franchise. It's not clear why Cruise ultimately decided not to "go there" as "Thunder" would have been a way to publically demonstrate that Cruise actually has a sense of humor about his over-the-top antics. Perhaps it seemed simply too risky a financial prospect; in the ten years since its debut, the "Mission: Impossible" franchise has sold $1.4 billion worth of tickets worldwide. That kind of money, even with a franchise at its nadir, is hard to poke fun at when the checks have your name on them.

For now, it appears that Stiller will both play the lead role in and direct "Tropic Thunder." But insiders tell TMZ he hasn't given up on recruiting Cruise into a part that would allow the megastar to poke fun at his super-serious Ethan Hunt alter ego. "The Hardy Men" is primed to go into production come October, and regardless of whether he takes the gig, Cruise clearly sees comedy as a means to redeem both his public persona and the box office crown. Indeed, the fruits of Levy and Stiller's last collaboration are still being savored at Fox, where "A Night at the Museum" is in its seventh week on 3,000 screens, and has grossed $421 million worldwide. Or, put another way, $23 million more than "Mission: Impossible 3."
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

MacGuffin

'Hardy Men': Cruise, Stiller take on 'Boys'
Source: Hollywood Reporter

Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller are teaming up for "Hardy Men," a grown-up take on the teen sleuths known as the Hardy Boys. Shawn Levy is attached to direct the 20th Century Fox buddy action comedy, which would be produced by Stiller and his Red Hour Films partner Stuart Cornfeld.

The long-in-development project sees the Hardy Boys grown up but not speaking to each other, having been estranged for many years. They are forced to overcome sibling rivalry when they reunite to solve a mystery.

Bob Kosberg, who brought the idea to Stiller several years ago, also is producing.

The project is out to writers, and the studio is hoping for a shoot in 2008.

Carla Hacken is overseeing for Fox.

"The Hardy Boys" was a long-running book series that began in 1927 and was written by various ghost writers under the pen name Franklin W. Dixon. The series focused on two teenage brothers, Frank and Joe Hardy, amateur detectives who often assisted their father, a private detective, in solving crimes.

The original series, which ran through 1979, encompassed 58 books, many of which were updated over the years. They also were subsequent book series as well as graphic novels and comic books.

In addition, the two brothers have appeared in several TV incarnations. Tim Considine and Tommy Kirk played the siblings on episodes of "The Mickey Mouse Club" in 1956 and '57. Parker Stevenson and Shaun Cassidy handled the title roles in an ABC primetime series "The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries," which ran from 1977-79.

Stiller and Levy are coming off the giant success of "Night at the Museum," which has grossed more than $230 million at the boxoffice.

Cruise and Stiller teamed up for a behind-the-scenes spoof of "Mission: Impossible II" for the MTV Movie Awards. In it, Stiller portrayed Cruise's eager-to-befriend stunt double.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

Pubrick

under the paving stones.

squints

"The myth by no means finds its adequate objectification in the spoken word. The structure of the scenes and the visible imagery reveal a deeper wisdom than the poet himself is able to put into words and concepts" – Friedrich Nietzsche

soixante

I'll say one thing for Cruise -- he knows how to bounce back.  First, he takes over United Artists.  Then, for prestige he hooks up with Redford and Streep.  Now, he teams up with Ben Stiller, who is arguably hotter than Cruise at the box office.

Music is your best entertainment value.

modage

i'll say this for cruise.  by working with shaun levy or adam shankman (who i can never tell apart) he is making a huge mistake.  meeting with judd apatow was a step in the right direction if he was to try making a comedy.  this will be horrible and thats too bad since he usually puts so much faith in directors.  i wonder what in this guys filmography gave him that confidence?  or is stiller enough?
Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.

pete

I dunno, "bounce back" means that he had to be actually unsuccessful--the terrible PR and the studio feud aren't really signs of unsuccess, but rather, too much success. 
"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

Ravi

Quote from: modage on February 15, 2007, 08:12:54 AM
i'll say this for cruise.  by working with shaun levy or adam shankman (who i can never tell apart) he is making a huge mistake. 

I hear he's doing The Pacifier II.

Hell, even Ratner would be a step up from these two.