illumined horizon

I was watching Tom Cruise on Regis and Kelly this morning (I never watch this show I just happened to read in the paper that he was going to be on), and I was surprised by the crowd reaction to Cruise on the show. There was a man who literally broke down into tears in the audience, and also when they introduced Cruise the camera cut to a man who was clapping in a frenzied manner as Cruise made his way onto the stage. The audience in general seemed elated, as were Regis and Kelly of course (Kelly was flirting with him zealously and almost unprofessionally all throughout the show, I'm fairly sure if was shtick but she was throwing herself at him), to be in the presence of Cruise.

Ever since the couch jumping incident I've been trying to tune into any interview of Cruise that I can, even though I don't like him as a person, and I can't think of a good movie he's been in since Minority Report. I'm interested in how he seems to have gone loony tunes, yet can hold it together enough to remain a big time movie star. The power this man has over the masses is astounding. I would have thought with the press he gets his career would have been ruined by now, but just the opposite seems to be true (if anything but his most rabid of fans were in the crowd at the Regis and Kelly program). The only thing I can think of is that others like him (or find him entertaining, as I said I don't like him as a person) for the same reason I do; which is that in today's climate of homogenized public relations and image promotion, with dull soundbite after trite soundbite on the evening and cable news programming, Cruise is a breath of fresh air. Even though Cruise may be as disingenuous as the next guy, he speaks and acts with a wild, undiplomatic, free-wielding, childlike style, that makes you think whatever's wrong with him, at least he's being himself. I think it's his ostensible honesty that endears him to people, his apparent ability to speak from his essence. Whatever it is, all I know is why I find his behavior interesting and entertaining, and I'm amazed at how much others do as well.