Favorite Tom Cruise Movie

Sure, so he's totally batshit insane and totally sucks the life out of everything he does these days, but dude made some really fun movies back in the day. And everyone's got a favorite, right?

So which one is yours?

Oohh thats a tough one...I really liked him in Legend.

Back in the day...Cocktail.

Although Magnolia is the best he will ever get from here on out.

A Few Good Men or Magnolia.

magnolia and losin it

Correct!

Last Samurai.... but not because of Tom...

Yeah. . .I could never really stand him. And legend probably the only role he's had that I can think of where he was actually the character in the movie and not just tom cruise in a costume. Probably since he didn't really talk all that much.

Rain Man.

Before Tom Cruise went publicly batshit, and before Mission Impossible there was an essay called the Tom Cruise formula. I just surfed the web and couldnt find it, but basically it went something like this...

all Tom Cruise Movies (80s - Early 90s) have the same formula.

Tom Cruise plays a character who has the drive, but not the means to succeed.
He has a father figure that is usually a coach, boss or other.
He has a love interest that usually begins as an antagonist.
He has an antagonist that creates competetive drive.
At the pinnacle of the movie, his father figure in some way betrays him.
This motivates his competetive drive and brings the love interest in as not only a catalyst but helper. His gains respect from his adversary and together they compete against the father figure, still in some competetive roll wiht each other, where somewhere in the action scene they align interests.
At the end he wins, reconciles with the father figure, gets a high five from the adversary, and generally does not keep the girl, who parts with a smile on her face.

This is true for Taps, The Outsiders, Losin It (although he wasnt the leads), Risky Business, All the Right Moves, Days of Thunder, Cocktail, Color of Money, Rain Man, A Few Good Men, Jerry MaGuire (although he stays with the girl), even the Firm.

Of all his movies - Losin It is classic! Shelly Long, the kid from Bad New Bears that just was nominated for an Oscar and a bunch of horny boys in tijuana!

I'll admit it: I'm a huge fan of Vanilla Sky.

Do you want answers?

I think I'm entitled to answers!

you want answers?

I want the TRUTH!

YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!

I am implying simply that, at present, Colonel Markinson is not alive.

Grave danger?

Is there another kind?

Don't call me "son". I'm a lawyer and an officer in the United States Navy. And you're under arrest, you son of a bitch.

The witness is excused.

I'm going to rip out your eyes and piss in your dead skull!

Walk softy and carry an armored tank division, I always say.

This formula utterly fails for Top Gun, also his best movie.

I like the one where he doesn't make a zombie out of the lovely Katie Holmes.

Fucker.