After conquering the cinematic realms of twist-ending crime thrillers and big-budget superhero franchises, director Bryan Singer has managed a new, unexpected feat — he's learned to make boring movies.
The World War II assassination procedural "Valkyrie" follows "Superman Returns" as Singer's descent into windbaggery. The once-exciting director, who crafted "The Usual Suspects" and the first two "X-Men" films, seems to have lost his touch for suspense.
"Valkyrie" is a dry-boned, stiff slog through the events leading up to the July 20, 1944 attempt by high-ranking German officers to kill Adolf Hitler.
Tom Cruise stars as ringleader Col. Claus von Stauffenberg, who lost an eye and hand in a bombing on the African front.
It's remarkable how little personality and energy Cruise puts into the role. It's as if his eye patch masks half of his ability. He's great at pulling off charismatic dynamos such as Jerry Maguire or Frank T.J. Mackey from "Magnolia," but struggles with the slow burn.
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And burns are rarely slower than they are in "Valkyrie."
Most of the problem is the mechanical narrative, which has no more emotion or depth of character than a documentary on History, with twice the standard length.
Singer rounds up an impressive group of actors (Kenneth Branagh, Billy Nighy, Terence Stamp and Tom Wilkinson), wisely letting them use their regular voices rather than coaching them into forced German accents. But he focuses too much on the what and how rather than the why, which included a definite whispering class of brave Germans who were horrified by their country's direction.
There is a certain satisfaction in watching the plot come together. Amazingly it was actually Hitler who signed off on his own potential death warrant by authorizing changes in a contingency plan that set reserve troops into action to suppress a government takeover. Von Stauffenberg and his confederates wanted to use the troops to stifle the SS after Hitler's death.
The assassination attempt itself involved von Stauffenberg maneuvering to get close to Hitler (David Bamber), dropping a briefcase bomb that would kill him and SS chief Heinrich Himmler, demoralizing the remaining true believers and installing a government that would withdraw troops and close concentration camps. The tension pulses when the plan swings into action, but only if you hadn't let the staccato mechanics to that point lull you to sleep.
"Valkyrie" is at its most poignant at the ending subtitles when you learn who was executed and when, and that the Valkyrie op was only one of more than a dozen attempts on Hitler's life.
The movie would have been more interesting had it focused on the groundswell that spawned the assassination attempts rather than the nuts and bolts of one mission.
But like the operation it follows, "Valkyrie" squanders its honorable intentions in ill-conceived execution.
Valkyrie
**
• Rated: PG-13 for violence and brief strong language.
• Cast: Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Terence Stamp, Tom Wilkinson, David Bamber.
• Director: Bryan Singer.
• Family call: Intended for adults.
• Running time: 120 minutes.
