# "This is Tom Cruise's finest performance." **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 22, 2005, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209 "2005-11-22T05:25:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oslo_Ostragoth)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/1 "2005-11-22T05:25:18Z")
WTF? In case you missed the ads, _ **The War of the Worlds** _ DVD is out, and this quote is read in the ad. I have not seen the movie, and don’t plan to, but I thought the SDMB consensus was that he sucked. Do I remember wrong, or is this ad kinda like most ads, i.e. BS. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/2 "2005-11-22T05:33:38Z")
If I recall, you’re right. A fair number of dopers seemed to dislike this movie - but I didn’t. It’s not on my yearly top ten (I doubt it’d make my top 40) but I was mildly entertained. Tom Cruises finest performance, however? No way. It’s total BS. As far as I’m concerned you could’ve plugged anyone into his character and it wouldn’t have bothered me. He was much better in Born on the Forth of July, Collateral, and Magnolia just to name a few. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/3 "2005-11-22T05:38:03Z")
Oh. I thought he had gone on Oprah again. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/4 "2005-11-22T05:47:16Z")
I think the couch episode was his finest performance. Well, that and convincing everyone he was a normal, healthy, heterosexual male. ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/5 "2005-11-22T05:59:16Z")
> [@Oslo Ostragoth](#): > > WTF? In case you missed the ads, _ **The War of the Worlds** _ DVD is out, and this quote is read in the ad. I have not seen the movie, and don’t plan to, but I thought the SDMB consensus was that he sucked. The film critic they’re wuoting probably didn’t get the memo. We’ll make sure he’s rounded up and sent to Bend Your Opinion to the Consensus reeducation camp. (Cruise was better in _Risky Business_, _Magnolia_, and _Jerry Maguire_.) ---
**Author:** ![Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/6 "2005-11-22T08:46:17Z")
His best performance was in the last South Park. “But I…I’m not _in_ here.” Wow. Just wow. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/7 "2005-11-22T08:54:58Z")
Everyone’s right. He sucked _and_ it was his best performance ever. Meow! ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Doctor\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Who)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/8 "2005-11-22T09:33:34Z")
“Respect the cock!” Nuff said. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/9 "2005-11-22T09:37:58Z")
Well maybe it was. How could you tell? Wouldn’t that be like an Oompa Loompa’s tallest performance? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/10 "2005-11-22T10:16:04Z")
Cruise was good in WOTW, but not (IMHO) his finest performance. If pushed to name his finest performance, I’d have to choose between Interview With the Vampire, Born on the Fourth of July, Magnolia, A Few Good Men, Jerry Maguire, Risky Business…damn, he has done a lot of fine work. I think he’s one of the best actors of my genreation, along with Sean Penn and Jodie Foster. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/11 "2005-11-22T12:33:58Z")
Definitely not his best. Definitely. He’s an excellent actor. Uh oh, fifteen minutes to Judge Wapner. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/12 "2005-11-22T13:08:50Z")
I like him almost half the time, I really, really HATE him half the time, and he’s done a few things I thought were very good. _But you have to overlook his good points._ My son touted me on War of the Worlds (and he’s got extremely good taste in movies). It’s on my list a [BB.com](http://BB.com). ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/13 "2005-11-22T13:36:49Z")
> [@Stark Raven Mad](#): > > His best performance was in the last South Park. > > “But I…I’m not _in_ here.” > > Wow. Just wow. “Daaad, Tom Cruise won’t come out of the closet!” ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/14 "2005-11-22T13:41:21Z")
I liked him in “Rain Man,” but many actors could have done the role. I will never see another Cruise movie ever. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/15 "2005-11-22T13:47:10Z")
Cruise annoys me with his smug smarminess a lot of the time, but I thought he was OK in WOTW. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2005, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/16 "2005-11-22T16:38:12Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Cruise annoys me with his smug smarminess a lot of the time, but I thought he was OK in WOTW. That’s because all he had to do was play a good looking guy with no skills…aka himself. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/17 "2005-11-23T04:32:59Z")
> [@Oslo Ostragoth](#): > > WTF? In case you missed the ads, _ **The War of the Worlds** _ DVD is out, and this quote is read in the ad. I have not seen the movie, and don’t plan to, but I thought the SDMB consensus was that he sucked. But I think the consenus among the critics was that he was good. Or at least the move got good reviews. I wouldn’t call it his best though. ---
**Author:** ![DeadlyAccurate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/18 "2005-11-26T04:22:20Z")
I just saw this movie tonight, and I thought Cruise was fantastic. One of his better performances, in my mind. And Dakota Fanning is far and away one of the best child actors in show business. Her range is amazing. I was expecting her normal, precocious child act, and we got something totally different and believable. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2005, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/19 "2005-11-26T04:51:14Z")
WOTW was a disappointment but it wasn’t Cruise’s fault. The writing was stupid. Cruise’s performance was pretty routine. He didn’t _suck_. There wasn’t anything subpar or inept about it but it wasn’t exactly Brando in _On the Waterfront_ either. Cruise has been better in any number of films, many of which have already been named by other posters. Personally, I think that depsite the Scientology stuff and the Katie Holmes and all the other embarrassing public stiff, the dude is a very capable and versatile actor. I think his performance in _Rainman_ is superb and underrated. He is that whole movie. It’s not about Hoffman, it’s about Cruise _reacting_ to Hoffman and he pulls it off flawlessly. He was also good in _Jerry Maguire, Born On the Fourth of July, Magnolia, Interview With the Vampire, The Color of Money_ and several more. Hell, he was even pretty good in _Risky Business_, I wouldn’t put WOTW in the top ten. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2005, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209/20 "2005-11-26T15:45:08Z")
I try not to worry about whether an actor is a flake in real life. (For instance, I love Errol Flynn’s swashbuckler movies, even though he was apparently a real SOB). Cruise was okay in _War of the Worlds_, although I would have cast somebody with more of an everyman quality (like John C. Reilly). He’s a good actor when he’s got good material and (I think) a firm director. He was outstanding in _Collateral_. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-tom-cruises-finest-performance/332209.md?page=2)