Tom Cruise is said to be less than believable as a renegade Nazi in the historic thriller Valkyrie, due out this Christmas. Courtney Hazlett at MSNBC’s The Scoop has advance details from a screening attendee who says that Cruise is laughable in the lead and that the film is as difficult to watch as the trailers make it seem.

MGM’s marketing team is working hard to convince audiences that their oft-delayed Tom Cruise vehicle “Valkyrie” is a thriller and not the chatfest “Lions for Lambs” was. But those who’ve gotten an early glimpse say not only is the film nowhere near as exciting as a thriller, but Cruise’s performance elicits uncomfortable and inappropriate laughs.

Among them: A scene where Cruise’s character, Claus Von Stauffenberg, is forced to give the infamous “Heil Hitler” salute. “It’s an unsettling scene but you almost start to laugh,” the source says. “His character is resisting it but you never forget it’s Tom Cruise saying ‘Heil Hitler.’ It’s funny and shocking at the same time.”

Sources also described a scene where Cruise’s character Claus Von Stauffenberg removes a false eye. “It was disgusting,” said one person who saw the film. “It was like watching someone pluck their contacts out.”

“The film just isn’t a thriller at all” said one “Valkyrie” viewer. “It’s a bunch of white guys in Nazi uniforms. It’s too bad. And Tom doesn’t speak with a German accent — though they did add a voiceover of him speaking German to the beginning of the film. Still, it’s as if he could say ‘I complete you’ at any time. This is not his Oscar moment.”

[From MSNBC]

I found it off putting when I first saw the trailers a few weeks ago and noticed that no one was speaking in a German accent. Many of you mentioned that there are plenty of other films where the actors don’t attempt the accents, but to me it’s a lot less authentic. What’s more is that Valkyrie has a mix of British and American accents for the actors trying to play Germans. Every actor has their natural accent, and it just seems sloppy for an historical film.

If this film does come out at Christmas (and we’ll have to see if it’s delayed yet again because the Christmas release was only announced right after Cruise’s partner, Paula Wagner, left United Artists) it will face stiff competition from Marley and Me and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I know which two films I’d rather see, and I doubt I’ll ever catch more than 15 minutes of Valkyrie on DVD. There are just some sacrifices I won’t make for this job.

Photos are stills from Valkyrie including one production photo thanks to Allmoviephoto.