Bryan Singer's Valkyrie is a great attempt at showcasing one of the most fascinating chapters of WW2- the assassination attempt on Hitler's life by a brave German named Claus von Stauffenberg, played rather impressively by Tom Cruise. The plot is historically accurate and the setting and production is so good you'd be astonished to know that the locations are all fake (apparently the German authorities refused to let the filming happen on actual locations). The pacing needs a mentioning as it is absolutely amazing- the film literally flows from one scene to the next, which is a given since it follows an event in real time. This is a great watch.

I had seen Valkyrie, the 2008 film by Bryan Singer at the cinema, and I anxiously awaited its DVD release. I was gifted the DVD shortly after release and watched it for a few months straight several times. I added it to my June schedule after realizing I hadn't seen it in nearly 10 years since those months passed just after the DVD release, to see if it held up for me. I was happy to learn that it did, which is not always the case in a film I liked at the time of release after year pass. Valkyrie stars Tom Cruise and Kenneth Branagh in a retelling of the assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler and political coup plotted by renegade German Army officers. Historical films are a tough batch if you're historically inclined and know the outcome of what's being filmed, and Valkyrie managed to sustain suspense despite knowing how the plot turned out. Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) has been severely damaged, like many, by WWII. Losing an eye and an arm in battle, Colonel Stauffenberg along with many others has come to the conclusion that an honorable surrender is the only way out of the war. The problem with the idea of an honorable surrender is the fact that Adolf Hitler would have to be eliminated in order for that to take place. All previous attempts on Hitler's life had failed so Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg has been recruited to head this attempt. In order for this attempt to work, Operation: Valkyrie must be changed to enable the members of the coup to take control of Berlin in the event of Hitler's demise. As the coup members go to work plotting an assassination of Hitler and a military takeover of Berlin, their plan is thwarted by a series of failings and a rout of bad luck.I remember being in the minority on the issue of the switch to English from German at the beginning of the film, and I was still unbothered by the change in language despite being a fan of foreign cinema. Granted, I'm usually on board for inventive methods of storytelling, but the language shift left me equally as unfazed ten years later. the most fulfilling part for me of waiting so long between viewings was being more familiar with the actors in the film. I had never seen a Kenneth Branagh film before the first time I saw Valkyrie, but I had heard about him a great deal; ten years later, however, I am familiar with Branagh and recognized him immediately in Valkyrie. The same can be said with my experience with Eddie Izzard. I had never even heard his name before my first viewing of Valkyrie, Izzard is well known to me now, and it was a treat to see him in such a role. I'm a classic film fan so I don't often get as much experience with contemporary actors as I probably should so this was a fun exercise in recognition that comes with ten years of cinema maturation. The pacing in Valkyrie was perfect building tension through the end of the film beautifully despite one knowing how the film ends. I was also especially stricken by the lighting of the film. Valkyrie was lit in a way that often evoked a dream-like state while simultaneously providing a ripped-from-the- past historical drama feel, as well. Adding to the tension of the well- paced film was the score, filling the audience with a sense of unease at every turn. Valkyrie is a strong war drama, which well utilizes a unique method of storytelling gripping audiences until the final credits roll; I'm glad the film held up.

This film's story is about an unsuccessful attempt to kill Adolf Hitler by members of the high command of the German army. To say that the conspiracy failed is not to spoil because any half-educated person knows Hitler's trajectory very well. The film kept our attention for our curiosity. As much as we already know how it all ended, we want to see how they tried to do it and the movie is quite skilled at making suspense around it. However, it would have gained value if it established a bridge between the conspiracy and the state of the war, putting the plot in the war context. Personally, I missed that background. Tom Cruise played the lead role in a decent and reasonable way, but without giving personality to his character. He was still sounding like himself. The film also has a good cast of supporting actors, sometimes playing much better than the main actor. Finally, a positive word also for the scenarios and costumes.

Over the past couple of years, I have greatly struggled with English and American actors playing Nazis and not speaking German and/or having a German accent. It's just so unrealistic. Especially Tom Cruise. I cannot think of a more American-accented individual that they could have put in the role of Claus von Stauffenberg. The best part of it all is that all of the writing is in German. How curious. Having said that, the plot of this movie is very good (especially cause this did happen in real life). So going into it, I was very excited to see a movie with a lot of action and suspense. And it did have lots of action and suspense.Thus, the main flaw of this film was the acting. I just couldn't get over it. And I know that this is probably a personal thing, but they could have at least tried a German accent. Sigh.