Looking Out for Wilford Brimley. The Cruise - Holmes Divorce

One of my favorite Tom Cruise movies has to be "The Firm." Tom plays Mitch McDeere; a hardscrabble Harvard Law grad who is courted by the prestigious Bendini, Lambert, & Locke.  Seduced by the promise of piles of money, a home with a white picket fence and a new Mercedes, Mitch jumps at the chance to become a part of the firm. It takes a while for Mitch to see the dark side of his new glamorous life.  He learns that his new employer is associated with the mob. As a result, associates of the firm can never leave. They know too many secrets. Those who try to run wind up dead.  With the help of some friends and some creative legal maneuvering, Mitch decides to make a run for it.  He barely makes it out alive.

With recent news accounts of Katie Holmes "escaping" from Tom Cruise, I couldn't help but think of parallels with the Firm.  I have seen this movie before. The plot is similar.  Of course in this version, we replace our promising law grad with a promising actress and the mob is replaced with Scientology. Like Mitch, Katie is seduced with a new glamorous life. Instead of a Mercedes, the seduction here seems to have been the possibility of A-list status and perhaps a rejuvenated film career.  Soon our young heroine discovers that her dream life is associated with Scientology. Fearing her daughter will be forced to watch John Travolta movies, she decides to make a run for it as Wilford Brimley chases her. (I also imagine she has James Van Der Beek driving a boat full of files that will only come to port if she runs into trouble).

With divorce papers filed in the Big Apple, it appears Holmes is trying some creative legal maneuvering of her own. According to Hollywoodlife.com, she has been seen in New York City an average of 29 times a month over the past year.  She owns property in New York.   By establishing residence in New York and moving the divorce proceedings there, she has a greater chance at gaining sole custody of her daughter.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out.