Tom Cruise stormed into Hollywood and immediately became a star. Since then, he has been giving back-to-back hits, remaining in tabloids and talk shows with his looks and performance. Tom’s divinely good looks have made him the heartthrob of moviegoers, making him an epitome of a movie star.
We have recently seen “Top Gun: Maverick” in 2022. While the seventh “Mission: Impossible” is about to hit the theatres in 2023. Therefore, it is the right time to review his top movies of all time. Although the list includes some bad teen comedies and overdone action movies, you will find a genius in all of them in the form of the three-time Oscar nominee, Tom Cruise.
Image Courtesy: Paramount Pictures
- Top Gun: Maverick
Year: 2022
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Runtime: 130 minutes
The plot of this latest hit revolves around pilot Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. Tom Cruise plays the main role. He returns to the U.S. Navy to train new Top Gun recruits. In the process, the authorities assign a daunting mission to this team. The mission is to strike a well-protected and hardened nuclear enrichment facility. The enemy country where the facility is located remains unnamed throughout the movie. Cruise, known for his dedication to the role, personally composed a five-month training program for the actors. As a result, the actors have done all the action scenes we see in the movie. Even the real F/A-18 Super Hornet jet is flown by actors playing the Navy fighter pilots.
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- Rain man
Year: 1988
Director: Barry Levinson
Runtime: 133 minutes
Dustin Hoffman plays an autistic servant in the movie and won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance. Tom Cruise plays the unique role of Charlie Babbitt, the servant’s brother. He brings his brother on a country road trip to grab a piece of their father’s fortune. Charlie Babbitt, initially a heartless and arrogant brother, later learns to appreciate family values. A reviewer referred to Charlie (Tom Cruise) as the central character of “Rain Man” in the New York Times.
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- Magnolia
Year: 1999
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Runtime: 188 minutes
“Magnolia” is a movie that enabled Paul Thomas Anderson to win a second Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. The movie also helped Tom Cruise gain a nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Cruise appears as Frank T.J. Mackey in the movie. The plot is set on a rainy day in LA. The sprawling tale of the movie, according to Anderson, is “something very small, quick, and intimate.”
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- Edge of Tomorrow
Year: 2014
Director: Doug Liman
Runtime: 113 minutes
Sometimes films revolving around aliens have overcomplicated storylines. However, Doug Liman has trimmed all the intricacies, making “Edge of Tomorrow” a simple yet thriller flick. The action-packed movie follows Major William Cage (played by Cruise). The circumstances drop Cage into seemingly impossible combat against alien invaders. The movie takes a twist when he dies, only to start over the fight. The movie is a loop game until he wins. Emily Blunt is the female protagonist who helps Cruise to get closer to victory each time. Edge of Tomorrow is one of the best alien-based movies we have ever seen.
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- The Last Samurai
Year: 2003
Director: Edward Zwick
Runtime: 154 minutes
The movie is set in the 19th century. It tells an epic tale of Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise), a Civil War veteran. The Japanese emperor hires him to train his army to finish the last of the samurai. However, the story turns when the captured Nathan falls in love with the samurai traditions and lifestyle. As a result, he starts to believe in the ways of noble warriors’ life. According to many, Cruise deserved an Oscar for his performance in the movie. But unfortunately, he was not even nominated for his role as Algren. However, Japanese actor Ken Watanabe was nominated for his performance as Best Supporting Actor. Watanabe played the samurai leader Katsumoto in the movie.
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- Minority Report
Year: 2002
Director: Steven Spielberg
Runtime: 145 minutes
Minority Report is adapted from Philip K. Dick’s short story. Steven Spielberg beautifully posits a future era when the police have the authority to arrest people for “Precrime.” Tom Cruise plays John Anderton, a detective in the Washington D.C. Precrime unit. He has to lam for survival in 2054 America under heavy surveillance when he is implicated in a future murder of a man he has never met. Spielberg has used Cruise as a key chess piece in the action-packed movie to give a future image of America.
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- Mission Impossible: Fall Out
Year: 2018
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Runtime: 147 minutes
The spy thriller movie takes up when a mission goes haywire. Solomon Lane, played by Sean Harris, is a dangerous anarchist who escapes custody. Tom Cruise has played his usual action role of Ethan Hunt with his Force team. The authorities blame the team when the mission goes haywire. The movie shows action-packed thrills when the team strives to complete the initial assignment and recapture Lane to recover the stolen plutonium.
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- A Few Good Men
Year: 1992
Director: Rob Reiner
Runtime: 138 minutes
Rob Reiner has beautifully directed this military courtroom drama. Aaron Sorkin has debuted as a screenplay writer, delivering complete, sharp, and intelligent dialogues. The movie encompasses delivery of clever dialogues hastily delivered while actors walk from room to room. Finally, Jack Nicholson steals the movie with his unforgettable “You can’t handle the truth!” scene. However, Cruise holds his own ground as the military attorney interrogating the old colonel. Kevin Bacon, Demi Moore, and Kiefer Sutherland play supporting roles in the movie.
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- Collateral
Year: 2004
Director: Michael Mann
Runtime: 120 minutes
Cruise is a hero through and through. But in this stylish thriller, he gives one of the best performances of his career as a wicked contract killer. Jamie Foxx also performs very well as a cabbie. He picks up Cruise and keeps the cab running for a few hundred bucks. Finally, he realizes that his passenger is murdering people, so he must find a way to stop his killing spree. Foxx has proved to be a co-star who is a perfect partner-in-crime for Cruise.
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- Eyes Wide Shut
Year: 1999
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Runtime: 159 minutes
Stanley Kubrick is a legendary director who concluded his career with Eyes Wide Shut. The movie was released four months after his death, telling the story of a New York doctor (Cruise). Cruise gets tangled in a high-class sex cult and its occult rituals when he finds out that his art curator wife (Nicole Kidman) tends to flirt with other men. This erotic thriller is a masterpiece. However, unfortunately, it could never reach the heights of other Kubrick movies.
