THE MOVIES: Valkyrie vs. RocknRolla
THE ANALYSIS: Let it be known that Tom Cruise doesn’t play a Nazi in Valkyrie but the urge to write, report, and talk about Tom Cruise as a Nazi will be waaaaaaay too much for everyone to resist. So this will be known, for better or worse, as the movie Tom Cruise played a Nazi in. Let’s just own that right off the bat. However Bryan Singer is directing, and we can’t keep holding Superman Returns against him. The project will probably end up being a good story, lost in the hype that is everything Cruise.
The competition? The corpse of Guy Ritchie! Yep, that’s right, he’s alive and kicking and evidently freed of his electronic leash that leads right back to Madonna. He’s got 300 fella Gerard Butler, star rapper Ludacris, and cutish Thandie Newton on his side. Sure she played a real shrew in Pursuit of Happyness, but we’re giving her another chance starting today.
EVENTUAL WINNER: This is tough but I’m taking Ritchie and RocknRolla. I think people thirst for the next Snatch or Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels far more than they do Tommy C. Valkyrie will get a ton of coverage, just like Lions for Lambs and Snakes on a Plane – but no one will actually want to see it. Even with far less theaters RocknRolla will prove to be superior counterpramming.
