Fridae

Fridae has always championed gay director Bryan Singer. From his early indie hit The Usual Suspects (1994) to his mainstream successes like X-Men (2000) and Superman Returns (2006), he's well-regarded by many queers for being able to navigate the shark-infested waters of Hollywood and negotiate the tricky math of box-office success - while being openly-gay.

His latest film, Valkyrie, is a handsomely-crafted historical thriller starring Tom Cruise. From its opening reels to its final credits, Bryan has spared no detail in perfecting the film. Unfortunately, it's also turned out to be one of his weakest. And the problem may lie less in the execution than in the historical facts itself.

Valkyrie is based on the true story of a righteous Nazi officer named Col Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) who wants to kill Adolf Hitler. Dismayed by Hitler's evil deeds and atrocities, he befriends a group of civilians and soldiers who want to get rid of their leader too. As we all know, the plan failed and Hitler continued his reign of terror long after that.

Now as viewers watching Col von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) plan an assassination which we know will fail, we cannot help but feel a sense of impending disappointment. It's hard to enjoy a film whose ending will be something of an anti-climax. Burdened by this expectation, Valkyrie's numerous scenes depicting the men's meticulous planning of the assassination just feel redundant.

Watch this film for its historical relevance, but don't expect to enjoy it in its entirety.