Tom Cruise is a strange entity at the moment within Hollywood, with a strange personal life and films of the last few years not quite hitting the mark. Here you have his latest offering – which is, put simply, a return to form for him.
The film is based on the series of
novels by British writer Lee Child. This first film is actually based
on the novel One Shot, which is not the first novel in the series! The
story is about an expert sniper framed for a killing spree of five innocent people, Jack Reacher comes to the city to investigate when
he recognises the accused on a news report – he recognises the man
from his past.
The film could have easily been a slick
thriller, with a by-the-numbers plot. What we get instead is a
surprisingly slick film. The tone of the film reminds me of
films like Bullitt or The French Connection: gritty, realistic and a
splash of noir.
Cruise gives a sterling performance as Reacher – a enigma of a man, military trained, an ex Military Police officer, a man who is trained to bring trained killers to justice. The character is a mix between Sherlock Holmes and Rambo – a very interesting mix. Cruise brings one of his best performances in years to this action thriller and it's brilliant to see him at his best again.
Cruise is backed up by a great cast: Rosamund Pike brings a surprisingly good turn as the lead female, which is not a typical damsel-in-distress but a highly motivated, intelligent woman who equals Reacher, Richard Jenkins as the DA, David Oyelowo as the investigating Police Officer and Jai Courtney (soon to be seen in Die Hard 5) as a villainous sniper henchman.
Cruise gives a sterling performance as Reacher – a enigma of a man, military trained, an ex Military Police officer, a man who is trained to bring trained killers to justice. The character is a mix between Sherlock Holmes and Rambo – a very interesting mix. Cruise brings one of his best performances in years to this action thriller and it's brilliant to see him at his best again.
Cruise is backed up by a great cast: Rosamund Pike brings a surprisingly good turn as the lead female, which is not a typical damsel-in-distress but a highly motivated, intelligent woman who equals Reacher, Richard Jenkins as the DA, David Oyelowo as the investigating Police Officer and Jai Courtney (soon to be seen in Die Hard 5) as a villainous sniper henchman.
All in all, a fun night at the cinema
and I would recommend this to anyone who likes an action film that
makes them think.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Rhys
Rating: 4 out of 5
Rhys
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