Views & Reviews From Writer Steve Miller
Formerly Reviews and Stuff at Rotten Tomatoes, 2005 - 2009.

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Friday, July 6, 2007

United Artists vs Germany:
The Bizarre Battle of Bendlerblock

Since the news first broke about parts of the German government refusing to grant permission to Tom Cruise and United Artist to film "Valkyrie" at historic locations because Cruise is a wacky Scientology cultist, I've been saying the Germans were being stupid.

Well, that stupidity just grew to epic proportions. Not only has the refusal to use the disputed site (a war museum in a facility known as Bendlerblock) been fomalized by the department that actually had to sign off on it, but ANOTHER branch of the German government just chipped in the cash to pay for Tom Cruise's salary and Thetan Editing while working on the film.

(The German government is in the habit of giving grants to movies by people they consider national threats? Someone needs to tell al-Qaeda... I understand they're looking for someone to fund their next snuff flick.)

From IMDB....

In an action that appeared politically schizophrenic, the German Federal Film Fund agreed on Thursday (July 5) to contribute $6.5 million to the funding of Tom Cruise's "Valkyrie", just one day after the German Finance Ministry turned down an application by the production company to shoot key scenes of the film at a historic location.

In the movie, Cruise plays Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who headed the so-called Generals' Plot to assassinate Hitler during World War II, but some German politicians -- and the son of von Stauffenberg -- have objected to Cruise portraying von Stauffenberg because of the actor's association with Scientology.

A spokesperson for the film fund said Thursday that it granted the subsidy because "the criteria for the grant were fulfilled."

Production is scheduled to begin in Berlin on July 18.

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