I am not going to call Jack Reacher a great film. I am not even sure it is actually a good film. I do believe it to be an entertaining movie and one that could be worth sitting in a theater for. When I walked out of the theater and was asked my thoughts, I said it was utterly ridiculous and strangely compelling. I stand by those thoughts.
The movie opens with a sequence in near complete silence. We watch the preparations and actions of a sniper as he fires six shots, killing five people on a Pittsburgh riverfront park. The killings are set up to frame an army sniper who, upon being arrested, requests one thing, find Jack Reacher.
Jack Reacher is essentially a superhero without the cape. A highly trained ex-special forces drifter who goes wherever life happens to take him. This tale brings him to Pittsburgh where he learns he has been beckoned by someone he never much cared for. Now, while he may not like the accused, he does see the seeds of a setup and goes about to set things right, no matter what damage is caused.
The movie is surprisingly entertaining. Granted, I was not expecting much from it, but I walked out better for the experience. Cruise proved to be up to the task of the bad ass lead, for the most part. He brought some decent humor and charisma to the role. The film also had a pretty good car chase sequence and even a decent shootout.
I would not call this a memorable movie, but still worth giving a look see on the big screen. Like I said, it is ridiculous, but surprisingly effective.
Mildly Recommended.
2 comments:
Stupid, but still a bunch of fun, especially when it’s Cruise in his top-form. Now, that’s always entertainment. Good review Chris.
You know what happens when a good tailor aspires to create an apparel for the international market, say a fully embroidered long coat, buys the best fabric, best embroidery threads, copies the latest patterns, throws in a couple of his own, but simply cannot get hold of the karigars or workmen, or say cannot guide them enough to fill the entire coat with the international class embroidery, and so leaves gaps in various places! Resultantly, the long coat no doubt gets ready for the international market because whatever workmanship it entails is of the international standard, but the buyers will refrain from buying it because they are used to and they expect complete workmanship. This complete workmanship is what the audience expects from a Tom Cruise movie. As an actor, he has played the character pretty well. To the extent that he has even refrained from flashing his toothy grin and jaw dropping stunts! Depth of character is visible in the Assassin, but not in his Boss. Meaning to say that, strong characters have been created, but not explored. Presentation of the plot could have been made much more interesting. Herein one gets to know the difference between a good director and a brilliant director. Verdict: A fine movie but without any Tom Cruise effect.
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