Passion of Tom Cruise

"The official strategy is for the movie to speak for itself," says an insider to LA Weekly.

That's right, mum's the word on the "Munich" set.

Director Steven Spielberg is making sure folks don't boycott his new film "Munich" because of a celebs "nutball behavior" (leave that to the political nuts).

Was it Tom's public "rants" against psychiatry and postpartum drugs when he should have been talking about the making of a great moive? Instead, he was begging, look at me, listen to me, I know more than you.

Or, maybe it was the image of Cruise leapfrogging on Oprah's sofa shouting his love to the world. Why make it all about you, Tom? Talk about the damn movie.

Sound "tacky," huh?

It was "tacky" enough to land him in the number one spot as the "tackiest star of the year" in the Los Angeles Daily News list, (in a reader vote).

But, has Mr.Cruises' Love-me-daddy publicity stunts effected the way movies are now promoted?

Call it the "Cruise effect" -- for people who want people to take their films seriously.

For Mr. Spielberg's "Munich" it was announced that there will "be no press junket,"

"no movie premiere," -- save that red carpet for "Mission Impossible 6"

and following in the foot steps of "Passion of the Christ" --

-- no "Oscar marketing campaign."

A year back Gibson announced that he wouldn't engage in the usual Oscar marketing frenzy for his film and it was overlooked at Academy Awards time even though it was a box-office hit and artistic endeavor. I heard a rumble about a "Jewish Mafia" shutting down those "Oscar" hopes, but that was just a rumor.

The decision to have "no press" -- and definitely no one talk to Tom Cruise -- is said to be the directors decision, alone. There is talk Spielberg might do a "Time Magazine" cover story, but definitely no broadcast interviews -- and definitely no Oprah..

Lesson learned: The official strategy is for the "movie" to do all the speaking (wink, wink).

LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS "TACKIEST STARS" OF THE YEAR:

1. TOM CRUISE (Oprah couch-jumping version sold separately)
2. PARIS HILTON (those 15 minute minutes are almost up)
3. Whtney Houson / Bobby Brown (where's the crack pipe?)
4. Jude Law / Sienna Miller (please no more sexy nannies)
5. Anna Nicole Smith (only "old men"need apply)

By Henry Cruz