I was fascinated by the conspiracy in Valkyrie: Cruise

Los Angeles, Feb 20: Actor Tom Cruise, who plays Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg in Nazi drama "Valkyrie" says he was fascinated with the plot of the film that revolves around a true life incident. The film is based on a real-life story about Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who had plotted to kill Hitler and end the Nazi government`s rule.

"I was fascinated by the conspiracy. It was dynamic and suspenseful from the opening to the end. Then finding out it was based on a true story – it`s even more mind-blowing. That combination made it very interesting for me," the `Mission Impossible` star said in a statement issued here. The film is releasing in India today. The actor said he always wanted to work with director Bryan Singer. "Bryan is someone I`ve always wanted to work with. I think he`s an extraordinary filmmaker. Bryan is someone who even as a kid was making World War II movies," he said. "He had an obvious fascination with this time period, and with that kind of interest and dedication you could feel all of us (cast and crew of `Valkyrie`) coming together and saying, `Okay, let`s make this`". Stauffenberg was the leading officers of the failed 20 July plot of 1944 to kill Adolf Hitler and remove the Nazi Party from power in Germany. The actor said Stauffenberg`s heroism hit home in a personal way. "You think, `How would I handle that?`, and that`s what makes it very powerful. It`s a timeless movie because it deals with things that are timeless: integrity, heroism, cowardice, compromise. What are you willing to stand up for or not do anything about?" Although, Stauffenberg is regarded as a hero, Cruise said, "Ultimately, I don`t think he saw himself as a hero." "He saw it as the correct thing to do, to try to end the war and spare human lives. He was one of the few that had the courage to stand up to Hitler and even be willing to sacrifice his own life to try and get that done." To play Stauffenberg, one of the challenges Cruise had to face was Stauffenberg`s physical scarring from his injuries in North Africa, including wearing an eye patch. "The eye patch was very difficult," he said. "At first it threw my balance off, and I would imagine the kind of physical discomfort he had to live with. It was also challenging from a performance point of view, how to communicate as an actor with part of your face gone." Bureau Report