Does Tom Cruise Makes A Comeback?

Rating: 5/10 (14 October 2017)

After the last two movies made by Tom Cruise that somehow placed my own doubts on his mega stardom - "Jack Reacher:Never Go Back" and "The Mummy" - with the former being far less of a money earner - earning only $162 million as compared to the $500+ million that his Mission:Impossible movies make - and the latter being trashed by critics considering it as an unsuccessful and messy reboot of "The Mummy" franchise,the question is:Did he make a successful comeback in "American Made"?
Before going to the review proper, let us discuss what "American Made" is all about.It is a film written by Gary Spinelli and directed by Doug Liman.It stars Cruise together with Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright, Alejandro Edda, Mauricio Mejía, Caleb Landry Jones and Jesse Plemons.The story or screenplay focuses on Barry Seal,who happens to be a former TWA pilot that became a drug smuggler for the Medellin Cartel during the 1980's.In order to avoid getting into prison,Seal decided to cooperate and be an informant for the DEA - Drug Enhancement Board - when he was approached by the U.S. government.
The movie only earned $30 million in the United States and $100 million worldwide despite having a budget of $50 million with Tom Cruise commanding at least $20 million in salary.No question that it did not earn much being a Tom Cruise movie considering his Mission:Impossible movies can earn as much as $500+ million globally.
With regards to his performance,no question that Tom Cruise did better as compared to his Jack Reacher and The Mummy films but I personally found him somewhat of a miscast considering that he has to have somehow a Louisiana-devil-may-care attitude and present himself as the youthful Seals on his 20's despite being 55 years of age.I felt that despite the energy he brought to the character,he wasn't able to provide a good characterization being a limited actor that can only provide life to arrogant and charismatic characters like Maverick in "Top Gun".
While many critics considered it a good film,it could have been a masterpiece and a big earner like "The Godfather" had it been under more talented people particularly a more capable director and a versatile lead actor instead of Doug Liman and Tom Cruise respectively.
So to answer the question "Does Tom Cruise make a comeback?",I would say no he doesn't.His cold streak from "Jack Reacher:Never Go Back", "The Mummy" and "American Made" continues.No question that the presence of Tom Cruise at 55 years-old is no longer enough for his movies to be successful.He definitely has to be in the right role and the right material to continue his success as a Hollywood megastar.