Tom Cruise is a name that brings movie lovers to the theaters in droves, but he also sends them flocking to Netflix. Cruise and Nicole Kidman‘s 1992 Western epic Far and Away is currently a streaming hit on the entertainment juggernaut.
As of today, it’s climbing Netflix’s Top 10 chart on FlixPatrol, where it sits at No. 5. It’s been in the Top 10 for the past two days, per the popularity ranking aggregator. FlixPatrol utilizes a points system, calculating Far and Away‘s total of 190 by adding its Top 10 rankings in several countries across the globe.
About ‘Far and Away’
For the uninitiated, Far and Away follows a young Irish couple who travel to America. However, freedom proves elusive as they struggle to obtain property of their own during the Land Run of 1893.
Cruise and Kidman star as Joseph Donnelly and Shannon Christie, respectively, with Thomas Gibson as Stephen Chase, Robert Prosky as Daniel Christie, and Cyril Cusack as Danty Duff. Ron Howard directed from a screenplay by Bob Dolman, based on a story they co-created. Howard also produced with Brian Grazer under their Imagine Entertainment banner.
Far and Away premiered in theaters on May 22, 1992. It was a commercial success, grossing $137.8 million at the box office on a $60 million budget. However, the movie received mostly negative reviews. Famed film critic Roger Ebert praised its cinematography, though, calling it “astonishing visual splendor” before lambasting the “simple-minded” story. Variety criticized the film’s lack of “dramatic urgency,” while The Washington Post took aim at Howard’s direction.
Far and Away boasts 51% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer and 62% on the Popcornmeter. The critics’ consensus reads thusly: “Handsome and simplistic, Far and Away has the beauty of an American epic without the breadth.” Ouch.
Don’t let the reviews deter you from tuning in to a Cruise and Kidman classic. There’s a reason it’s one of Netflix’s most-watched movies in the world right now.
