Valkyrie is a historical thriller/drama based on the plot to take over the Nazi controlled government called "operation: Valkyrie". The main aim of the operation was to remove Nazi control and make a truce with the Allies, to prevent the destruction of Europe. To do this, the (German) resistance went about trying to convince the army/goverment that the SS (German Secret Service, controlled by Hitler) were trying to stage a coup, thus giving permission to the resistance to lock down the goverment in Berlin using a reserve army, and by doing that, liberating Nazi controlled Germany. The main issue was that Valkyrie could only be implemented if Hitler was dead. The irony was that they got Hitler to sign the amended version of Valkyrie, in effect, signing his own death warrant. It was up to the main character, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) to actually kill Hitler, which he chose to do by bombing a conference. Unfortunately the attempt failed.
It's interesting to think about how the war, and following wars such as the Cold War could have been so very different if this operation had succeeded. It's also nice to see a film that takes into account that not all Germans had the Nazi mentality at the time, and some were actually actively fighting back.
I went to see Valkyrie without really knowing what to expect, I knew it had Tom Cruise in it and lots of guns and stuff, so it fitted into my catagory of "movies that will probably be vaguely good". It turns out that it didn't have as much violence as I originally thought, but I wasn't dissapointed as it makes up for it with an excellent plot, well thought out actors, effects and good directing.
I was quite surprised at the amount of A-list actors that were in it, I knew that it had Tom Cruise, but I was pleasently surprised by the appearences of Bill Nighy, Eddie Izzard, kenneth Branagh, Tom Wilkinson and Terence Stamp, who all played convincing roles considering they were playing Germans. I think Tom Cruise did especially well, as it is always hard to make the viewer relate with the character when the actor is so well known.
Although no attempt was made at speaking German or even speaking with a German accent, all of the actors played their given roles convincingly and passionately, which really drew me into the movie, and actually made me feel for the characters. The guy who played Hitler was probably the least convincing, but he didn't show up much, so it didn't really matter.
There was a good mix of action and plot. The story was quite deep and involved, and kept me gripped all the way through to the end.
This movie is very crisp and good-looking. All of the props seem very authentic, the effects are not over-done and none of the acting is sloppy or poor. It all works together to immerse you in the plot. At no point did I think "hmm, that was a bit surreal". Except maybe how Tom Cruise's glass eye magically moved in the same direction as his fully functioning one. Oh, and the fact that a bomb going off directly under Hitler's feet didn't so much as break his fingernail.
To wrap this up, I think that you shouldn't go out of your way to see this movie, as it isn't really doing anything that we haven't seen before, but if you are near a cinema and have a few hours to kill, I think you could do much worse than watching this. I mean, you could go and see Twilight :|
Interesting fact: The display of Swastikas is illegal in Germany and some of the filming locations were charged by the authorities. Bet they were gutted.
(I welcome any comments on where I can improve this, don't feel guilty about calling it crap
)
It's interesting to think about how the war, and following wars such as the Cold War could have been so very different if this operation had succeeded. It's also nice to see a film that takes into account that not all Germans had the Nazi mentality at the time, and some were actually actively fighting back.
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I went to see Valkyrie without really knowing what to expect, I knew it had Tom Cruise in it and lots of guns and stuff, so it fitted into my catagory of "movies that will probably be vaguely good". It turns out that it didn't have as much violence as I originally thought, but I wasn't dissapointed as it makes up for it with an excellent plot, well thought out actors, effects and good directing.
I was quite surprised at the amount of A-list actors that were in it, I knew that it had Tom Cruise, but I was pleasently surprised by the appearences of Bill Nighy, Eddie Izzard, kenneth Branagh, Tom Wilkinson and Terence Stamp, who all played convincing roles considering they were playing Germans. I think Tom Cruise did especially well, as it is always hard to make the viewer relate with the character when the actor is so well known.
Some of the main cast
Although no attempt was made at speaking German or even speaking with a German accent, all of the actors played their given roles convincingly and passionately, which really drew me into the movie, and actually made me feel for the characters. The guy who played Hitler was probably the least convincing, but he didn't show up much, so it didn't really matter.
Nice Ass
There was a good mix of action and plot. The story was quite deep and involved, and kept me gripped all the way through to the end.
This movie is very crisp and good-looking. All of the props seem very authentic, the effects are not over-done and none of the acting is sloppy or poor. It all works together to immerse you in the plot. At no point did I think "hmm, that was a bit surreal". Except maybe how Tom Cruise's glass eye magically moved in the same direction as his fully functioning one. Oh, and the fact that a bomb going off directly under Hitler's feet didn't so much as break his fingernail.
the actual aftermath of the bomb
To wrap this up, I think that you shouldn't go out of your way to see this movie, as it isn't really doing anything that we haven't seen before, but if you are near a cinema and have a few hours to kill, I think you could do much worse than watching this. I mean, you could go and see Twilight :|
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Interesting fact: The display of Swastikas is illegal in Germany and some of the filming locations were charged by the authorities. Bet they were gutted.
(I welcome any comments on where I can improve this, don't feel guilty about calling it crap
)
