FRANCE: Robert Redford and Tom Cruise attend French premiere of "Lions for Lambs."

Tom Cruise delighted fans at the Paris premiere on Thursday (October 25) evening of his latest film, Lions for Lambs, Hollywood's most recent take on U.S. foreign policy and the military fallout from the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. The film weaves together what at first seems three disparate story lines, with a view to taking a more critical look at the sacrifice of U.S. soldiers, the relationship between politics and the media, and the need for young Americans to take a stand. Cruise plays an up-and-coming Republican senator trying to sell an "exclusive" about Washington's new strategy in the war in Afghanistan to a television journalist, played by Meryl Streep. Meanwhile in California, Robert Redford, who directed the film, is a university professor confronting a gifted but lazy student to shake him out of political apathy. Thousands of miles away, in Afghanistan, two U.S. soldiers who used to be Redford's students are part of a small advance group sent out into the mountains to fight the Taliban. Cruise said that the film broke new ground with the way it approached the sensitive subject matter. "I don't think we have seen one (a film) that's based on this subject that 'Lions for Lambs' is tackling, quite honestly. I really have not seen something that is dealing with it in this capacity. I think that when people see those other films and when you look at this, its truly not that. It's something that looks at journalism, politics, education...societal change, obsessions and I think it's very current," he said. He added that it would be interesting to see how the film is perceived years from now, as he believes it will only become more pertinent, as has been the case with other Redford films. "I'd be interested to look at this film five years from now, because looking at Redford's career, you look at The Candidate, that's actually even more relevant today than it was when he made it, for All The Presidents Men, these films have a longevity and I think that any film that - on any level - that can engage audiences are... its been very interesting and exciting hearing the dialogue after seeing this film," said Cruise. Early reviews praised Cruise's performance as the politician mixing personal ambition with a real belief in America's role as a force for good. Cruise, who showed up more than an hour early on the red carpet later on Tuesday to sign autographs and speak with the press, is also an executive producer of the film after having taken over Universal Artists. Redford, who famously played alongside Dustin Hoffman as one of the two journalists who uncovered the Watergate scandal, made only a fleeting appearance and posed for few photographs before quickly disappearing inside. 'Lions for Lambs' is one of two films in a string of Hollywood productions tackling the broad military fallout from the September 11 attacks, a theme that has made U.S. cinema popular at European festivals, even if box office returns have been mixed. The film is due to open in U.S. cinemas on November 9.

ITN Source | October 31, 2007

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