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Tom Cruise’s action-hero persona often overshadows his work in genre films that aren’t built on spectacular stunts. From Edge of Tomorrow to Magnolia, the Mission: Impossible star has occasionally veered into history-based storytelling. One such case arrived in 2008, a year before Brad Pitt led Quentin Tarantino’s bloody alternate history in Inglourious Basterds to assassinate Adolf Hitler.
Cruise, however, took the historical route — playing a German officer’s elaborate scheme to rid the Nazi Chancellor in his World War II thriller. Valkyrie didn’t dominate headlines or box office charts then, but it quietly earned praise, becoming one of the more overlooked yet fascinating entries in Cruise’s filmography.
Unlike Tarantino’s revisionist Inglourious Basterds, Valkyrie follows a real-life incident from 1944. In the aftermath of a war that amputated his arm and eye, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, portrayed by a determined Tom Cruise, takes part in Operation Valkyrie.
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Drawn in by loyalty to Germany rather than its regime, he and a circle of conspirators plan to assassinate Hitler and seize control of the government from the Nazis. The plot revolves around surreptitiously planting a bomb during a military conference, hoping to trigger a coup and halt the atrocities. While we won’t spoil the ending, its fidelity to historical records gives it weight that fictional reimaginings often lack.
Bryan Singer, director of X-Men and Superman Returns, led Valkyrie. Christopher McQuarrie (of Mission: Impossible and Jack Reacher fame) and Nathan Alexander penned the script. Controversy arose over Cruise’s casting, though Stauffenberg’s grandchildren publicly supported the Top Gun star, affirming his commitment to honoring their ancestor’s memory.
Cruise anchors the ensemble, bringing nuanced credibility to the soldier-turned-conspirator who is regarded as a freedom fighter in Germany. The cast also comprises Game of Thrones’ Carice van Houten as Nina von Stauffenberg, Kenneth Branagh and Bill Nighy, each actor bringing a distinct portrayal of resistance within the Nazi hierarchy. David Bamber plays Adolf Hitler in a brief yet significant role, marking the only direct appearance of the dictator in the film.
Released during a rare downturn in Tom Cruise’s otherwise dominant career, Valkyrie arrived between Mission: Impossible III (2006) and Ghost Protocol (2011)—a stretch during which none of his films managed to cross $100 million domestically. Its North American total of $83 million was seen as underwhelming, with American critics pompously scrutinizing the film’s historical liberties.
Internationally, Valkyrie became a critical and commercial hit, particularly in Germany, where the reception was more favorable. It surmounted projections to turn a modest profit, grossing $201.5 million worldwide on a $75 million budget (according to Box Office Mojo).
Valkyrie is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, as well as major rental platforms, including Apple TV, for a one-time fee of ₹129. You can check out a preview of the tense WWII thriller below.
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