Tom Cruise Movies List With Pictures
Tom Cruise is one of our greatest living movie stars, plain and simple. While the term "movie star" is used less and less in today's Hollywood landscape, Cruise remains a tremendous entertainer, a larger-than-life performer—an icon of the silver screen, truly. His persona transcends celebrity, and over the last nearly four decades he has delivered memorable performance after memorable performance, proving adept at traversing a variety of genres—some with more success than others. From the boyish 80s protagonist to classic leading man to action hero, Cruise's film career is the epitome of success, and it's a testament to his talent that he can be taken just as seriously in a dark, complex drama from an auteur filmmaker as he can in a major blockbuster franchise.
And while PR troubles led to a sharp left turn into exclusively blockbuster-type material in the mid-2000s, Cruise remains a reliable source of entertainment. Audiences can rest assured that when they see a Tom Cruise movie, the actor is leaving nothing on the table. This is the guy who literally hung off the tallest building in the world for our entertainment. It's this focus on pleasing audiences that exemplifies Cruise's status as "movie star," but it's the actor's talent, ambition, and willingness to venture into uncertain territory that makes him our greatest living movie star.
As such, it felt appropriate to dive back into Cruise's entire filmography, take a closer look at his entire body of work from Taps to Mission: Impossible - Fallout , and rank every single film from worst to best. While at first this seemed like a simple enough task, as I dove deeper into the actor's oeuvre, I came to realize that Cruise has made more genuinely good movies than not. It's one thing to have the kind of longevity that Cruise has enjoyed, but the actor's filmography is consistently solid—even most of the "bad" Tom Cruise films have some sort of redeeming quality.
A couple of notes before we begin: this is a ranking of Tom Cruise films, not performances. As such, the order I've laid out here has to do with the film as a whole, not just Cruise's performance in it. Additionally, I didn't include 1983's Losin' It due to lack of availability, and also left off 1981's Endless Love given Cruise's lack of substantial screentime.
So, without further ado, I present to you every Tom Cruise movie ranked from worst to best.
40. Lions for Lambs
This 2007 Robert Redford drama came on the heels of Cruise's PR issues, and at first glance was seen as a potential comeback for the actor, but in the end would mark Cruise's final foray into straight drama territory. Whether that was a consequence of Cruise's perceived image issues or the film's quality is unclear, but Lions for Lambs is the worst film on the actor's resume. It's the equivalent of a political Facebook meme come to life—a pedantic, hollow "morality play" that goes nowhere and is so ineloquent with the handling of its subject matter that if you're a self-professed liberal, it may have you questioning your political beliefs.
Cruise is fine as a conservative senator trying to sell a new military endeavor in Afghanistan, and the role had promise as Cruise has rarely tackled something so blatantly political, but Redford mishandles the whole thing, with a script by Matthew Michael Carnahan that reads like liberal fan-fiction. The ideas in the film aren't wrong, but they're spun with such smugness and lack of interest in telling some semblance of a story that they come off as groan-worthy. If you can watch this movie without rolling your eyes, you deserve a medal.
39. Legend
It's no coincidence that Tom Cruise has yet to make even the slightest of forays into the fantasy genre since his lead role in Ridley Scott's original dark fantasy adventure Legend . The movie is, frankly, quite bad, with a meandering plotline and thin character motivations, all of which is underscored by a distractingly incongruous synth-heavy score by Tangerine Dream. The only good thing about Legend is the tremendously impressive makeup effects, which transform Tim Curry into a downright unrecognizable Lord of Darkness. As for Cruise, he's clearly uncomfortable in the lead role, given little to work with from William Hjortsberg's script, and his first attempt to make the jump from promising leading man to blockbuster lead was an unsuccessful one—although he recovered quite nicely the same year with a little movie called Top Gun .
38. Taps
Taps is a competently made film about a bunch of dummies. When the entire premise hinges on a group of military academy kids who take over the school at gunpoint in order to prevent its closing, it's hard to root for the "heroes." Their whole plan is what we call flawed logic, and despite the fact that the characters come to realize their mistake as the film wears on, Taps spends far too much time heralding their "honor" and sense of duty. As for Cruise, this was his first major role in a feature film, and it's kind of funny to see him playing the testosterone-fueled, dickish supporting character. It's a personality type that he would toy with a couple other times in his career, but never with as much purity as Cadet Captain David Shawn.
37. Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages is a film in which Tom Cruise sings into Malin Akerman's butt, and yet, somehow Cruise remains pretty much the only good thing about Adam Shankman's musical adaptation. I suppose it shouldn't be so much of a surprise given Cruise's commitment to each and every role, but his consistently delightful performance as Stacee Jaxx is kind of incredible. The rest of the film…well, this is still a movie in which Tom Cruise sings into Malin Akerman's butt. Shankman's staging of the musical sequences is surprisingly lackluster, and the overabundance of autotune distracts from what should be a fun jukebox shuffle. The story is downright silly, and Rock of Ages as a whole stands as proof positive that not every musical is ripe for the feature film treatment.
36. The Mummy
The Mummy is one of the biggest wastes of Tom Cruise's talent in recent memory. His Nick Morton character is wholly devoid of any engaging or unique character traits, and instead we get a blank slate protagonist who simply reacts to plot points and moves the story forward with no grace or agency. His motivations are murky, the audience is given no reason to root for him, and there's a romantic twist that comes out of nowhere and doesn't work at all. Morton is wholly devoid of the charisma, complexity, or darkness that makes Cruise's action heroes so compelling, but it's kind of in keeping with the blandness of the entire movie.
The Mummy wants to be funny and scary and adventurous, but only by going through the motions of comedies, horror movies, and adventure epics without any original ideas of its own. Even when Russell Crowe enters the film as Dr. Jekyll, what should be an exciting new twist on a classic monster has instead been turned into an exposition machine with few unique characteristics. The promise was there in developing a new twist on a classic Universal Monster with the starpower of Tom Cruise, but unfortunately The Mummy falls short in almost every capacity. A complete disappointment.
35. Mission: Impossible II
Mission: Impossible II is the only bad Mission: Impossible movie. Cruise was understandably eager to jump back into franchise mode after a series of intense dramatic roles in the late 1990s, but this action sequel is mostly a pointless chore of a film as director John Woo never comes close to crafting anything resembling a thrilling sequence—action or no—throughout the entire movie's runtime. Add in the fact that the purpose of Thandie Newton's character is to literally distract the villain by having sex with him, and the whole movie really falls apart from the word "go." Luckily, Cruise would recover with subsequent installments in the Mission: Impossible franchise, and while M:I II would eventually prove to be a necessary growing pain to allow for the evolution of this particular film series, it's still a bit of a rough watch.
34. Oblivion
Director Joseph Kosinski's 2013 sci-fi drama Oblivion is an absolutely gorgeous and incredibly boring spectacle. While Cruise characteristically gives this thing his all, the various "twists" are predictable and poorly executed, and the emotionally detached quality of Kosinski's direction makes what should be a sweeping sci-fi drama a dull and overlong chore. Claudio Miranda's cinematography is certainly striking, and M83's original score is epic in its scope, but the film just kind of rolls along like a very pretty, very hollow music video, and not even Cruise's charisma can inject something resembling a pulse into this massively disappointing sci-fi pic.
33. Cocktail
The first 30 minutes or so of Cocktail are actually pretty good. The film has a breezy charm that's typical of so many other 80s Hollywood films, and seeing Cruise begin his career as a bartender is pretty fun. But then the movie gets downright silly and continues to become even sillier as it goes along. This is a profoundly dumb movie in which not a lot really happens, and Cruise's Brian Flanagan is interested in one thing and one thing only: Brian Flanagan. Indeed, the central driving force behind the story is the aim of making money, although this throughline makes sense within the context of the late 80s/early 90s yuppie culture.
Cruise's performance is pitched a tad too high here, with his excitement more off-putting than infectious. But you can see shades of the natural charisma and charm that would be further honed in subsequent films, and Cruise's range was on full display in 1988 as it was the year both Cocktail and Rain Man hit theaters.
32. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
I'm not mad at you, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back . I'm just disappointed. The first Jack Reacher was a surprisingly rich, thrilling, and artful twist on the action hero formula with Cruise delivering a dark and confident turn as the lead character. The sequel, however, feels like what should have been the story for Jack Reacher 3 or 4 , as it introduces a potential daughter into the mix that throws Jack Reacher's life for a loop. We really could've used more time fleshing out the Reacher character first before introducing this "blast from the past" element, and in the hands of director Edward Zwick it mostly falls flat.
The story isn't near as compelling as the first film, and the action lacks a certain oomph that director Christopher McQuarrie brought to the original (he passed on directing the sequel as he was busy with another Cruise vehicle, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation). The film isn't entirely devoid of merit: Cobie Smulders makes a strong case for leading an action franchise of her own, and Cruise delivers another solid performance. It's just a disappointing step down in quality from the pleasant surprise of the first film.
31. Valkyrie
Valkyrie is one of the most curious entries in Cruise's resume. On paper, this thing should've been terrific, with Bryan Singer helming a World War II dramatic thriller starring Tom Cruise, written by Christopher McQuarrie. But in execution, the story of the failed plot to assassinate Hitler fails to ever really take off. It's a fascinating film in that it's tough to really pin down exactly why it doesn't work, but a big contributing factor is the simple fact that everyone watching knows exactly how this thing's gonna end, so it's tough to muster enthusiasm or root for this group of individuals whose plan is doomed for failure. Cruise is fine in the role of Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, the supporting cast is fine in capturing the inner workings of the Nazi army, and Singer is fine at stitching the whole story together. But in the end there's little to write home about, and nothing that really makes the film stand out as anything more than a curious—but forgettable—oddity.
30. Days of Thunder
While the prospect of a reteaming of Tom Cruise and his Top Gun director Tony Scott for a film about NASCAR was incredibly promising, the end result left much to be desired. For everything Top Gun got right, Days of Thunder got wrong. There's an engaging movie in there somewhere, but the end result is all flash and no substance, with none of the heart that made Top Gun so endearing. While the rapport between Cruise and Robert Duvall is interesting enough, it can only go so far, and at heart Days of Thunder is a film that's running on fumes.
29. The Color of Money
A controversial ranking I'm sure, but what a disappointing film. Martin Scorsese working with Cruise and Paul Newman should've been reason to celebrate, but The Color of Money —a follow-up to the Newman vehicle The Hustler —is shockingly rote and by-the-numbers, marking one of the most disappointing films on Scorsese's resume. The film came out in 1986, the same year as Top Gun , and it's fascinating to compare Cruise's over-excited and boyish performance here with the assured confidence and complexity with which he tackled Top Gun. Sure the hotshot character of Vince is meant to be more adolescent in nature, but Cruise and Scorsese overshoot and result in something that's more akin to an annoying kid brother than a likable protagonist. The Color of Money just kinda sits there, not terrible but not great, wholly unremarkable and, frankly, boring.
28. All the Right Moves
It's kind of surprising that Cruise managed to avoid so many cliché-filled 80s movies given that he was such a hot item throughout the decade, but 1983's All the Right Moves really stands as unique in that regard. Director Michael Chapman's story of a hot-headed football player in a Pennsylvania town who wants nothing more than to go to college and escape a future working at the local plant is cliché-filled to the max, but Cruise manages to keep things somewhat interesting by bringing a curious intensity to the role, while Lea Thompson's girlfriend character almost manages to manifest into something resembling a real person. In the end, the story goes exactly where you think it's going to go, and there's not much else to make it worthwhile. It's a minor entry on Cruise's resume and his most forgettable film from the 80s, but it's not out-and-out bad per se. Just incredibly familiar.
27. Tropic Thunder
Throughout the 2000s, Cruise had firmly left the comedic days of his early career behind. But following some bad PR and a couple of films that didn't really work, the actor made one of his more ambitious leaps in filling the role of studio executive Les Grossman in Ben Stiller's satirical comedy Tropic Thunder . The result is a somewhat shocking and altogether hilarious turn from Cruise, who's nearly unrecognizable in the part. It's not a terribly substantial role so I considered leaving Tropic Thunder off this list altogether, but the film did mark the beginning of a career turnaround for Cruise, and thus stands as an important landmark on the trajectory of his film career.
The movie itself is a no-holds-barred skewering of self-important actors and the gluttony of Hollywood, and while it's certainly a very funny comedy, the film ends up becoming the exact thing it's making fun of, as Stiller tries to have his cake and eat it too by crafting his own bloated war epic that drones on for too long and loses sight of its central thrust along the way. And yet, it's still really funny, and Cruise caps the whole thing off like a cherry on top of a sundae as Les Grossman's grotesque dancing plays over the closing credits.
26. The Firm
In the late 80s/early 90s, Cruise nearly became pigeonholed as the sort of typical yuppie American businessman, and perhaps his most rote film of this time period was the 1993 John Grisham adaptation The Firm . While director Sydney Pollack's handle on the Wicker Man -esque tome is quite confident and the story is compelling to a point, the film is a bit too long and attempts to cover too much ground. A longform approach would have better suited this particular source material, and it's no surprise that a TV series adaptation was attempted a few years ago. Cruise is fine though, his rapport with Gene Hackman is certainly the bright spot of the film, and the story is constantly engaging. But it's a movie that starts to fade almost immediately after the credits roll. It's the film equivalent of an airplane read—satisfying and disposable.
25. American Made
Post- Valkyrie , Cruise made a concerted effort to shy away from more dramatic material and focus on offering up the very best pieces of entertainment possible. This gave us great films like the Mission: Impossible sequels and Jack Reacher , but the lack of complexity in Cruise's roles has been sorely missing. American Made is the closest Cruise has come to a "morally conflicted" lead since Collateral , and I don't know if it's the refreshing change of pace or Doug Liman's visceral filmmaking, but this thing works. Cruise brings a needed amount of charisma to the role of Barry Seal, a dude who does some very bad stuff; but he also completely delivers as Barry's life spirals out of control.
The film still fits into Cruise's "entertainment" mode as it's a tremendously exciting movie, but it's not as action-heavy as Cruise's other recent films, and that gives the actor a chance to showcase his range far better than in something like The Mummy . While the film probably could have stood to embrace the darkness even more, as it stands it's an exciting and refreshingly different kind of movie, at least for the present day Tom Cruise persona.
24. Vanilla Sky
Vanilla Sky is a weird movie, but I'm not altogether sure it's a great one. Writer/director Cameron Crowe's ambition is admirable, as the film still stands as his biggest departure to date and sees him firmly tackling psychological thriller territory. But in the category of Tom Cruise movies that hinge on trippy dream sequences and leave much open to interpretation, it lags behind Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut .
And yet, there's a certain charm to Vanilla Sky and Cruise's unhinged performance that make it quite watchable, even if Crowe himself seems to be unsure of what, exactly, is really going on. The soundtrack is unsurprisingly on point, and Cameron Diaz proves to be a solid foil for Cruise in their first of two onscreen pairings. While it far from sticks the landing, there's a certain moxie to Vanilla Sky that makes it charming in its own unique way.
23. The Outsiders
Director Francis Ford Coppola's 1983 adaptation of The Outsiders famously had every hot young actor in Hollywood angling for a role, and indeed the ensemble (mostly) reads like a who's who of future megastars. Cruise is among them, and while Steve Randle is a minor character in the scheme of the ensemble, Cruise does enough here to show that he's in this thing called "showbiz" for the long haul. As for the film itself, it's a terrific spin on the coming-of-age genre with a West Side Story twist, and the gaggle of youngsters leading the cast do a tremendous job of capturing life as a hot-headed adolescent in the 1960s. Moreover, Coppola's willingness to cover the darker aspects of the novel elevates the film to a thematically rich and relevant watch. Stay gold, Ponyboy.
22. The Last Samurai
While the combination of the film's title and the giant image of Tom Cruise on the poster rubbed many the wrong way, The Last Samurai is actually a surprisingly thoughtful and sensitive historical epic. Director Edward Zwick's handling of this post-Civil War Japan-set story is deft, resulting in something akin to Dances with Wolves albeit with even more heart. And Cruise is pretty terrific as a regretful, alcoholic solider who finds himself immersed in the world of the samurai—a dying breed. Ultimately The Last Samurai is a story of redemption, and while Zwick's reverence for the subject matter sometimes starts to smother the film (the pacing is somewhat uneven), it's ultimately a refreshingly unique spin on a genre that ruled the 90s. If anything, The Last Samurai is notable for being the only historical epic on Cruise's resume.
21. Jack Reacher
Jack Reacher is the kind of film that looks like a movie you've seen a million times before, and in many ways is exactly the movie you were expecting, but is executed so perfectly that it transcends familiarity to become something altogether special. Writer/director Christopher McQuarrie spins one hell of a yarn in this Lee Child adaptation, and if casting Cruise as Reacher was genius decision number one, then setting Werner Herzog as the emotionless villain was a close second.
Cruise's approach here is so sure-footed and confident that you buy every single move Reacher makes, but this role diverges from many of Cruise's other action hero leads in that Reacher is not overly joyful. You can feel his annoyance every time someone underestimates him or puts another life in danger, and it's that facet of the character that makes him so watchable and, ultimately, a memorable Tom Cruise role. The performer eschews his natural charm and boyish excitability in favor of a much dryer tone, and it suits him well. While the story is, again, nothing you haven't seen before, thanks to skillful execution and a unique turn for Cruise, Jack Reacher is one of Cruise's most watchable films.
Ricky Gervais Joins Tweet-Inspired Comedy Series 'Greenlight — German Genius'
Gervais is set to play a fictionalized version of himself.
Read Next
About The Author 
Adam Chitwood (15946 Articles Published)
Adam Chitwood is the Managing Editor for Collider. He's been working for Collider for over a decade, and in addition to managing content also runs point on crafts interviews, awards coverage, and co-hosts The Collider Podcast with Matt Goldberg (which has been running since 2012). He's the creator and author of Collider's "How the MCU Was Made" series and has interviewed Bill Hader about every single episode of Barry. He lives in Tulsa, OK and likes pasta, 90s thrillers, and spending like 95% of his time with his dog Luna.
More From Adam Chitwood
Tom Cruise Movies List With Pictures
Source: https://collider.com/tom-cruise-movies-ranked-worst-to-best/
0 Response to "Tom Cruise Movies List With Pictures"
Post a Comment