what's your problem, kazanski? after headlining over twenty movies, after two decades worth of star turns, this man still gets no respect. that's right, that man is the diminuitive cinema god that is thomas cruise mapother IV. no respect you say? he commands twenty million a movie, he's beyond famous, he dates and faux-dates beautiful women, how is that no respect? well, how many times have you heard this phrase off the tongues of your friends "i love tom cruise, he's such a great actor!" almost never i'd say. and why? because tom cruise is too popular to acknowledge as a good actor? because he's just too tom cruise? i'm not going to argue that tom cruise is the greatest actor of all time, but you have to think that a man with this many hit movies must be doing something right.

check it out. after his debut in 1981's endless love, this is tom cruise's list of movies (in chronological order): taps, outsiders, losin' it, risky business, all the right moves, legend, top gun, color of money, cocktail, rain man, born on the fourth of july, days of thunder, far and away, a few good men, the firm, interview with a vampire, mission: impossibles, jerry maguire, eyes wide shut, magnolia, vanilla sky, minority report, the last samurai, collateral, and the upcoming war of the worlds.

how many of these movies have you seen? how many of these movies have you loved? how many of these movies are deemed "classics?" how many movies on this list do you not recognize? for most people, i'd say there are maybe three movies, max, on this list that they can't place or visualize. three movies out of twenty five or so. that's pretty impressive. you can attribute the success of these movies to marketing drive and promotional power, but that can't explain it all. you can promote an unlikable/untalented actor for a few movies and trick people once or twice, but you keep doing it and their movies will inevitably tank and all the promotional work in the world won't make a hit.

people say that they dislike tom because he always plays the same character. he flashes his pearly whites, he gets angry, he has the patented tom cruise intensity face. people think he's predictable like hulk hogan. you know what i'm talking about. in the old days, when hogan was a good guy and the world still made sense, the hulk would get knocked down, and seemingly out, in every big match. but then the hulkster would raise his twenty four inch python arm to the heavens, get the patented hulk rage, and then proceed to leg drop his opponent into submission -- completing yet another improbable come from behind victory. you knew it was all coming, you'd seen it a billion times before, but it was still awesome. and really, that's what tom's like. you know the tom rage is coming, but it's still effective.

detractors say you see the same thing every time tom cruise is in a movie. who cares? people get oscars for that. you think julia roberts can do anything besides smile? have you seen some of her non-julia roberts vehicles? you think denzel isn't the black tom cruise? he got an oscar for playing the same denzel he always plays, albeit switching it all up as the dark denzel. tom's only beem nominated for an oscar as an actor three times (born on the fourth of july, jerry maguire, magnolia), no wins. his role in the industry is as the oscar good luck charm. many of his co-stars/directors/producers have been nominated or won oscars working alongside him. like shaq, tom cruise makes his teammates better. and like the diesel, tom cruise is underappreciated and always given short shrift by the populace. don't hate on what tom can't do, celebrate what he can -- which is delivering the slam dunk every time.

you could also say that tom's just been "lucky" to be in such great movies. after all, keanu reeves has been in some of the best movies of our generation (point break, speed, matrix), and he's universally recognized as the worst actor ever. but no man is lucky enough to have been in this many hit movies. keanu's movies are good in spite of him, tom's movies are good because well, not always because of him, but he still adds more than he takes away. tom cruise is a good actor. you can't deny it.

sure you never lose sight of the fact that it's tom cruise on the screen, or that it's tom cruise being tom cruise, but outside of fine thespians like edward norton or brad pitt, how many a-list acting stars can get lost behind their role -- without being put behind prosthetic noses, general uglification or mental debilitation. do you ever forget that it's george clooney up on screen? no. does meg ryan ever strike you as anyone other than meg ryan? even tom hanks, the "other tom," has become a parody of himself. few a-list actors can immerse themselves into a chacter enough to make us forget who's behind the mask. most stars have to play to their strengths and that's what tom cruise does. why hate?

now, i'm no tom cruise lover, and i certainly don't stand in line for his movies, but here's what i'm saying: tom cruise movies are enjoyable. tom cruise makes entertaining movies. tom cruise is a good, and criminally underrated, actor. so mr cruise, you can be my wingman anytime.