With the latest installment of the Mission Impossible franchise in cinemas now, we pose the question if Tom Cruise, the enigmatic star of classics like Top Gun (1986), Magnolia (1999), Eyes Wide Shut (1999) and so many others, is singlehandedly trying to save a dying breed of visceral (action) cinema. Is Cruise the last of the genuine movie stars? How do his on and offscreen antics relate to his persona? Does he fit into a long-standing tradition of mavericks like Buster Keaton and other risk-it-all icons of the silver screen? And is he, as he recently claims, really doing it 'for us', the audience? In this episode, we dive deep into his illustrious body of work as well as his infamous image to see what really lies behind the mask of the Cruise. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lab111/message