This week: Tommy boy is back. No, not the late Chris Farley; it’s Tom Cruise. Coming off a string of futuristic sci-fi and tech flicks (Minority Report et al.), the Cruiser heads back in time with The Last Samurai, in which he plays a Civil War vet who travels to Japan to train the emperor’s troops. The nifty new trailer is surprising — the pacing seems slow, but it keeps you enthralled. In it, Timex Tom takes a licking and keeps on ticking (or, if you’re into awful puns, you might say he “takes a bruising and keeps on Cruising”), all while learning the “mysterious” ways of the samurai.
Peter Travers picks this years oscar contenders
The Last Samurai
Off and running: December 5th
Tipsheet: Tom Cruise stars as a Civil War vet in 1876 Japan training soldiers for the emperor of Japan. Instead, he learns something life-altering about the code of the samurai.
Key player: Cruise isn’t just the film’s soul, he’s the star presence that allowed director Ed Zwick to play with a $100 million budget.
Oscar chances: Cruise has never won; this epic could be his Gladiator.
Trouble spots: Historical epics can be lofty, long-winded bores. Zwick also directed Legends of the Fall”
If you want my word, don’t hope for any oscars for Samurai 
And here are a lot more pictures of Tom’s stay in Rome on July 31st!
