Everyone knows Tom Cruise—or at least what he wants us to know. We know that he overcame a difficult childhood to star in an astonishing array of blockbusters: Top Gun, Rain Man, Born on the Fourth of July, A Few Good Men, Interview with the Vampire, Jerry Maguire, three Mission: Impossible movies, War of the Worlds, and more. We know he has taken artistic chances, too, and as a result has earned three Academy Award nominations and three Golden Globes, along with the respect of acting legends like Paul Newman and Dustin Hoffman.
After that, the picture becomes a little less clear. We know that Tom is a Scientologist, but not necessarily what that means in his life. We know that, despite persistent rumors about his sexuality, he has been married to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes. But it was not until the spring of 2005, when he jumped on Oprah’s couch to proclaim his love for Katie and denounced Brooke Shields for turning to the “Nazi science” of psychiatry, that we began to realize how much we didn’t know about the charming, hardworking star.
For two years, award-winning biographer Andrew Morton has been tirelessly seeking out everyone from former teachers and girlfriends to Scientology insiders to friends who have watched a once-bullied, “nothing special” outsider transform himself into an icon Forbes has called the most powerful celebrity in the world Here, with never-seen photos and never-heard revelations, is a riveting, sometimes shocking portrait of the real Tom Cruise—his work, his love life, his marriages, his religion—from a master at uncovering the true story behind the public face of celebrity.
Non-Fiction Book Review: Tom Cruise, An Unauthorized Biography
That Hollywood, boyish smile is what, no doubt, won the hearts of movie-goers and fans across the entire planet. But is there something more elusive and, dare I say it, sinister behind the good looks? Can his real-life persona reflect what we see in his movies? Well, according to Andrew Morton, yes and no.
In my eyes, Tom Cruise came into the limelight (my own) with the 1986 hit, Top Gun. I remember watching it with my cousin who proudly adorned a Tom Cruise poster, fashioned with the aforementioned and presumptuous dreamy smile, which hung just above her bed so that it was the last thing she saw before closing her eyes and falling asleep. To fantasize about Cruise and dream about him was likely an aspiration for any teenager and pre-teen at the time. Heck, I’m sure not much has changed in that regard today. I remember mocking her about this and the way she gushed about him. When the movie ended, I got it. I understood why “Maverick” was the epitome and dream for both girls and boys because, in conclusion, I was gung-ho about joining the U.S. Navy and becoming a fighter pilot. A couple of problems:
A.) I was afraid of the open sea
B.) I was afraid of heights
C.) I was afraid of flying and,
D.) I was six years old!
Ok, ok, I can get over my fears by the time I was eighteen years old to enlist. Nah, that never happened. But, still, Top Gun remained a favorite of mine and Cruise remained a top-notch actor. Then, I remember his interview with Oprah Winfrey. I watched the clips and stared in awe as I tried to make sense of his antics and over-the-top behavior. Up to this point, Tom Cruise was just an actor and lived behind the iron curtain of Hollywood. So to see this behavior was shocking. I dug a little, just a bit below the surface, and read about Scientology and its ideologies. Ok, not my cup of tea but I reserved judgment – to each their own. Still, that behavior on the Oprah show stayed with me but didn’t put too much stock into it.
Aside from headlines in tabloids and the interwebs, I knew nothing of Cruises’ personal life so when I stumbled onto this book in a bookstore, curiosity got the better of me. If we are being honest, the underlining title of the book, “An Unauthorized Biography” is what captured my attention. I recently finished reading, Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story, the autobiography of Arnold Schwarzenegger, and while I enjoyed the book, I could not help but wonder if my overall satisfaction with his story was because Arnold was the one telling the story. A thought came to mind – who, in their right mind, would tell me anything other than their positive accomplishments and demeanors? So, yes, an unauthorized biography, I felt, will give me a better perspective into the “truths” of such a public and protected figure.
“If you really want to make a million, the quickest way is to start your own religion.”
― Andrew Morton, Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography
Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography was, indeed, the complete opposite of Total Recall. Author, Andrew Morton, pulled no punches in telling the tale of Tom Cruise. In a way, it rather confirmed my suspicions of the famed actor. I sometimes wondered if behind that smile was, in reality, a smug and cocky once-upon-a-time frat boy always looking to be the life of the party and always doing no wrong. Now, I’m not saying that every frat alumni behaves in this manner as I have known more than a few that did not emit such behavior. It is this stereotype that we see in movies where, for the most part, the fraternity was the “bad guy.” In fact, Tom Cruise is, indeed, Maverick! The cocky, my shit-don’t stink fighter pilot that questioned and detested authority until it led him into trouble. It was a role that seemed to be written for him even though, he was not the top choice for the role at the time of production, that honor went to 1980s brat pack member, Rob Lowe.
So were my illusions of Tom Cruise shattered? Not at all. If anything, I learned more about his upbringing, his youth, his rise to fame, and a few behind-the-scenes anecdotes of his films (of which I wished there were more) including the fact that the sex scene with Rebecca De Mornay in Risky Business was real! There was also a story of one of Cruise’s high school friends being a victim of 9/11 and how Cruise did not reach out to the family to express his condolences let alone go to the funeral. That was a real scumbag thing to do!
There was his introduction to Scientology, and insight into his love life with actors such as Mimi Rogers, Rebecca De Mornay, Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz, and of course, Katie Holmes. It was a fascinating look in that there was not just an understanding of Tom Cruise but of his lovers as well. Although I seriously doubt that Cruise gave his blessing to the writing of this book, many can take what is written with a grain of salt making this no better than a tabloid. I, however, did not see it as such.
Morton seemed to interview people from his past, including friends and former lovers who were able to shed some insights into the man as a youth. According to Morton, not much has changed as there was very little that was positively depicted in this book. It was almost as if Cruise crossed the author at some point in his life and Morton had it in for him. Or, he simply could be telling the story as he sees fit based on his investigation of Cruise. One thing’s for sure, many hearts will be broken after reading this book. Because of the manner in which the book was written in that it teetered on the edge of biography and tabloid, I did not find myself enjoying this as much as I would have liked. Sure, I had some preconceived notion of Tom Cruise after his fiasco on the Oprah show where he let his lunacy shine bright to the mortified public and the poor couch. Sure, he had some choice words to the crew of Mission Impossible 7 in leaked audio when they failed to meet COVID-19 protocols on the set. But, this is Maverick, the Vampire Lestat, Agent Ethan Hunt, and Jerry Maguire we’re talking about here! The guy can’t be all that bad… can he?