list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Taps on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/Taps/34161/default.aspx Title: Taps
Year: 1981
Director: Harold Becker
Plot: Devery Freeman's novel Father Sky was the inspiration for the far-fetched but convincingly acted and directed Taps. When an exclusive military school is threatened with demolition by a rapacious real-estate company, the students, headed by Timothy Hutton, take drastic action. Utilizing every bit of military know-how at their disposal, the boys take over the school, arm themselves to the teeth, and prepare to do battle against the "invading" developers. General George C. Scott, the head of the academy, tries to quell the rebellion, but soon he too is swept up by the students' to-the-death determination when the Army is called in to rout the boys. Whenever the action of Taps begins to flag, we recommend that you keep an eye on the show-stopping performances of Sean Penn (in his movie debut) and Tom Cruise as two of the cadets. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 7
Number of Lists: 5
Number of blog posts: 2
Number of discussion threads: 2
SpoutRating: 3
]]>Wed, 24 Dec 2008 15:02:49 GMTTaps1981Harold BeckerDevery Freeman's novel Father Sky was the inspiration for the far-fetched but convincingly acted and directed Taps. When an exclusive military school is threatened with demolition by a rapacious real-estate company, the students, headed by <a href="/players/P____34188/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Timothy Hutton</a>, take drastic action. Utilizing every bit of military know-how at their disposal, the boys take over the school, arm themselves to the teeth, and prepare to do battle against the "invading" developers. General George C. Scott, the head of the academy, tries to quell the rebellion, but soon he too is swept up by the students' to-the-death determination when the Army is called in to rout the boys. Whenever the action of Taps begins to flag, we recommend that you keep an eye on the show-stopping performances of <a href="/players/P___106027/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Sean Penn</a> (in his movie debut) and <a href="/players/P____86295/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tom Cruise</a> as two of the cadets. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide7Taggedy Taggged (6-10)5223http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t82428c9h6l.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Taps/34161/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/12/24/38807.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 12/24/2008 10:02:49 AM
Body: We’ve known for months that absolutely nothing was wrong with Valkyrie, and now we’re just a few days away from watching this tiny independent feature storm the box office, redeem United Artists as a production entity and make Tom Cruise a respectable household name again. Of course, there is the slight problem: he’s portraying Nazi Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who may have disagreed with the party politics, but still rocked the swastika and straight salute.  How exactly did Cruise, one of the great symbols of the “Blockbuster Film” and American culture, wind up so perfectly suited as a crippled, over-zealous Nazi embroiled in conspiracy? We’ve excavated evidence from his filmography to track the transformation. Taps As resident wide-eyed reactionary Cadet Captain David Shawn, Cruise is always ready to go out guns blazing. After their coup to keep the Bunker Hill military school, the boy soldiers are dwindling, tired and worn-out after playing pretend guerillas costs a few lives.  As they finally give up when the real Army threatens to come in with a tank, Cadet Captain Cruise gets to showcase his suicidal genius: take on a tank with an M60 Machine Gun from his “fortified bunker” (read: dorm room) after everyone else has surrendered.  Later, he’d still have the right idea (use a suitcase bomb to kill Hitler) but wrong way to do it (placing said suitcase under heavy oak table, killing others but leaving Hitler with a few minor injuries.) Magnolia If there’s one necessity over all others to be a convincing Nazi, it is possessing the ability to brainwash the masses with the most general of terms.  Cruise’s Frank Mackey is slimy, misogynistic and has a loyal cadre of slobs who’d do anything he commands. Why? Because they all have cocks and that means they’re pre-destined to rule their homes/relationships/beds and women must respect them thanks to “Seduce and Destroy.”  Stalking around the stage, Cruise perfects the magnetism for converting those of weak minds to do his bidding. Mackey plays brilliantly on inadequacy and makes further strategic choices to disarm those around him (ie: doing press in his underwear, breaking down when he realizes his persona is cracking.) Born on the Fourth of July Of course, when considering ideology, one must also take into account copious baby killing and twisted politics. Ron Kovic (Cruise) starts out a patriot ready to die for his country, but becomes horrified by the haphazard war he’s been thrown into: opening fire on a defenseless village, accidently murdering one of his own in friendly-fire and then being shoved away into a decrepit facility in the Bronx where he may as well be dead.  Kovic drifts into miserable alcoholism and tries to recover from being the victim, but not before this scene with Charlie (Willem Dafoe) as his veneer shatters.   The quiet dread here would lead to Kovic would going forth and fighting for Veterans’ rights, and can be paralleled to von Stauffenberg’s own break-down that lead to leading the insurrection. Minority Report Nothing says “Nazi Training” like teaming up with Steven Spielberg on a film wedding crazed government officials, secret police and Max von Sydow.  As the head of the “Precrime” unit in Washington, D.C., Tom Cruise expertly knows how to find untrustworthy scum and black-market organs—especially when he’s on the run for a crime he didn’t commit (yet.)  Spielberg is a fan of the chase, whether it be by dinosaur or Ralph Fiennes. And you don’t get much more training in “how to run from authority figures” than when they use jetpacks. Of course, later, Cruise would likely ask Bryan Singer if the whole “metaphorical” sense of cat-and-mouse could be replaced with jetpacks.  Bryan Singer probably broke down sobbing at that point. We assume. Endless Love Spinning information may be one of the most important assets to the Nazi Party, but especially if you’re in the middle of high treason and an assassination attempt. Fitting then that Cruise’s first role got him into this right from the start, as a guy in cut-offs named Billy who recommends to David (Martin Hewitt) try out arson.  “I lit a whole pile of newspapers, you ever try to light a whole pile of wet newspapers? Geeze, it smokes like crazy” he shrieks in nasal tones.  “Do you want to hear the wild part? It’s like I’m a hero or something! They thought I saved the whole block! To this day, my mother thinks I’m a hero!” David leaves, inspired to mimic this same act and eventually wind up in a mental institution. Cruise cackles off-screen, having taken the first steps toward Valkyrie. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 24 Dec 2008 15:02:49 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com12/24/2008 10:02:49 AMWe’ve known for months that absolutely nothing was wrong with Valkyrie, and now we’re just a few days away from watching this tiny independent feature storm the box office, redeem United Artists as a production entity and make Tom Cruise a respectable household name again. Of course, there is the slight problem: he’s portraying Nazi Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who may have disagreed with the party politics, but still rocked the swastika and straight salute.  How exactly did Cruise, one of the great symbols of the “Blockbuster Film” and American culture, wind up so perfectly suited as a crippled, over-zealous Nazi embroiled in conspiracy? We’ve excavated evidence from his filmography to track the transformation. Taps As resident wide-eyed reactionary Cadet Captain David Shawn, Cruise is always ready to go out guns blazing. After their coup to keep the Bunker Hill military school, the boy soldiers are dwindling, tired and worn-out after playing pretend guerillas costs a few lives.  As they finally give up when the real Army threatens to come in with a tank, Cadet Captain Cruise gets to showcase his suicidal genius: take on a tank with an M60 Machine Gun from his “fortified bunker” (read: dorm room) after everyone else has surrendered.  Later, he’d still have the right idea (use a suitcase bomb to kill Hitler) but wrong way to do it (placing said suitcase under heavy oak table, killing others but leaving Hitler with a few minor injuries.) Magnolia If there’s one necessity over all others to be a convincing Nazi, it is possessing the ability to brainwash the masses with the most general of terms.  Cruise’s Frank Mackey is slimy, misogynistic and has a loyal cadre of slobs who’d do anything he commands. Why? Because they all have cocks and that means they’re pre-destined to rule their homes/relationships/beds and women must respect them thanks to “Seduce and Destroy.”  Stalking around the stage, Cruise perfects the magnetism for converting those of weak minds to do his bidding. Mackey plays brilliantly on inadequacy and makes further strategic choices to disarm those around him (ie: doing press in his underwear, breaking down when he realizes his persona is cracking.) Born on the Fourth of July Of course, when considering ideology, one must also take into account copious baby killing and twisted politics. Ron Kovic (Cruise) starts out a patriot ready to die for his country, but becomes horrified by the haphazard war he’s been thrown into: opening fire on a defenseless village, accidently murdering one of his own in friendly-fire and then being shoved away into a decrepit facility in the Bronx where he may as well be dead.  Kovic drifts into miserable alcoholism and tries to recover from being the victim, but not before this scene with Charlie (Willem Dafoe) as his veneer shatters.   The quiet dread here would lead to Kovic would going forth and fighting for Veterans’ rights, and can be paralleled to von Stauffenberg’s own break-down that lead to leading the insurrection. Minority Report Nothing says “Nazi Training” like teaming up with Steven Spielberg on a film wedding crazed government officials, secret police and Max von Sydow.  As the head of the “Precrime” unit in Washington, D.C., Tom Cruise expertly knows how to find untrustworthy scum and black-market organs—especially when he’s on the run for a crime he didn’t commit (yet.)  Spielberg is a fan of the chase, whether it be by dinosaur or Ralph Fiennes. And you don’t get much more training in “how to run from authority figures” than when they use jetpacks. Of course, later, Cruise would likely ask Bryan Singer if the whole “metaphorical” sense of cat-and-mouse could be replaced with jetpacks.  Bryan Singer probably broke down sobbing at that point. We assume. Endless Love Spinning information may be one of the most important assets to the Nazi Party, but especially if you’re in the middle of high treason and an assassination attempt. Fitting then that Cruise’s first role got him into this right from the start, as a guy in cut-offs named Billy who recommends to David (Martin Hewitt) try out arson.  “I lit a whole pile of newspapers, you ever try to light a whole pile of wet newspapers? Geeze, it smokes like crazy” he shrieks in nasal tones.  “Do you want to hear the wild part? It’s like I’m a hero or something! They thought I saved the whole block! To this day, my mother thinks I’m a hero!” David leaves, inspired to mimic this same act and eventually wind up in a mental institution. Cruise cackles off-screen, having taken the first steps toward Valkyrie. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2007/11/9/21548.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 11/9/2007 8:00:54 AM
Body: Tom Cruise’s tabloid covers have lined a lot of bird cages, however we saw something fascinating behind his orthodontic masterpiece smile. Once a Hollywood boy-wonder, in recent years he has deconstructed his all-american persona. Now, with the release of the political thriller Lions for Lambs, Cruise tries his hand as studio mogul, heading United Artists. Will it work? What does the future hold for Cruise? Most interesting: What does a deep look into Cruise reveal about our culture’s progress or lack there of? FilmCouch 45 Movies mentioned: Risky Business, Taps, Legend, Eyes Wide Shut, Magnolia, Vanilla Sky Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Fri, 09 Nov 2007 13:00:54 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com11/9/2007 8:00:54 AMTom Cruise’s tabloid covers have lined a lot of bird cages, however we saw something fascinating behind his orthodontic masterpiece smile. Once a Hollywood boy-wonder, in recent years he has deconstructed his all-american persona. Now, with the release of the political thriller Lions for Lambs, Cruise tries his hand as studio mogul, heading United Artists. Will it work? What does the future hold for Cruise? Most interesting: What does a deep look into Cruise reveal about our culture’s progress or lack there of? FilmCouch 45 Movies mentioned: Risky Business, Taps, Legend, Eyes Wide Shut, Magnolia, Vanilla Sky Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/groups/FilmCouch/FilmCouch_45_Tom_Cruise/302/21537/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: paul
Post To: FilmCouch
Post Date: 11/8/2007 7:12:36 PM
Body: Tom Cruise's tabloid covers have lined a lot of bird cages, however we saw something fascinating behind his orthodontic masterpiece smile. Once a Hollywood boy-wonder, in recent years he has deconstructed his all-american persona. Now, with the release of the political thriller Lions for Lambs, Cruise tries his hand as studio mogul, heading United Artists. Will it work? What does the future hold for Cruise? Most interesting: What does a deep look into Cruise reveal about our culture? FilmCouch 45 Movies mentioned: Risky Business, Taps, Legend, Eyes Wide Shut, Magnolia, Vanilla Sky
]]>Fri, 09 Nov 2007 00:12:36 GMTpaulFilmCouch11/8/2007 7:12:36 PMTom Cruise&#39;s tabloid covers have lined a lot of bird cages, however we saw something fascinating behind his orthodontic masterpiece smile. Once a Hollywood boy-wonder, in recent years he has deconstructed his all-american persona. Now, with the release of the political thriller Lions for Lambs, Cruise tries his hand as studio mogul, heading United Artists. Will it work? What does the future hold for Cruise? Most interesting: What does a deep look into Cruise reveal about our culture? FilmCouch 45 Movies mentioned: Risky Business, Taps, Legend, Eyes Wide Shut, Magnolia, Vanilla Sky http://www.spout.com/groups/Grew_up_in_the_80_s/Re_great_inthe_80_s_and_still_doing_great_today/38/10569/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: lukasblu
Post To: Grew up in the 80's
Post Date: 6/9/2007 9:30:59 PM
Body: brooke shields,i believe she does mostly tv shows and guest tv appearances lately;and a few indie movies in the late 90s;I liked her in suddenly susan (sitcom), freeway, and black and white;She's played varied indie role that show her different acting ability and those are some good choices;Unlike melissa gilbert which i discussed in the other 80s discussion..mel gibson,also a great director and producer(braveheart,apocalypto),and a writer too of apocalypto;i just rented apocalypto,i have yet to see it ; and see for myself ,if i like it.tom cruise,never realized endless love for his first movie,he played billy,did he play a big role or a small part;probably have to watch the movie again since it was so long ago;i remember him in the movie that made him more well known risky business ;also taps (1981),that was a pretty good movie that also starred a fave actor of mine back then, timothy hutton(ordinary people,the falcon and the snowman,turk182 was some of my faves back then)I believe tom cruise is better looking now cause its a more mature handsome look,not those boyish looks of yesterday.Although i find it weird with that quick engagement and marriage to katie holmes.Anyway, cruise had played a variety of roles since his boyish 80s and gotten better through time;among my faves are jerry maguire(ultimate girl power,love story),and minority report
]]>Sun, 10 Jun 2007 01:30:59 GMTlukasbluGrew up in the 80's6/9/2007 9:30:59 PMbrooke shields,i believe she does mostly tv shows and guest tv appearances lately;and a few indie movies in the late 90s;I liked her in suddenly susan (sitcom), freeway, and black and white;She&#39;s played varied indie role that show her different acting ability and those are some good choices;Unlike melissa gilbert which i discussed in the other 80s discussion..mel gibson,also a great director and producer(braveheart,apocalypto),and a writer too of apocalypto;i just rented apocalypto,i have yet to see it ; and see for myself ,if i like it.tom cruise,never realized endless love for his first movie,he played billy,did he play a big role or a small part;probably have to watch the movie again since it was so long ago;i remember him in the movie that made him more well known risky business ;also taps (1981),that was a pretty good movie that also starred a fave actor of mine back then, timothy hutton(ordinary people,the falcon and the snowman,turk182 was some of my faves back then)I believe tom cruise is better looking now cause its a more mature handsome look,not those boyish looks of yesterday.Although i find it weird with that quick engagement and marriage to katie holmes.Anyway, cruise had played a variety of roles since his boyish 80s and gotten better through time;among my faves are jerry maguire(ultimate girl power,love story),and minority report http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/teenagers/MemberTagFilms.aspxteenagers
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