Most people in the 21st century do not like Tom Cruise. Ridiculous notion, I know. And please don’t take it as an insult towards the guy on a personal level. But the idea that Tom Cruise alone can sell a movie is laughable. You need a neat plot and some unique characters to create a hit movie (Tom’s upcoming sci-fi flick “Oblivion” will likely succeed due to those traits) not just a famous face. I wish I could tell you “Jack Reacher” has tons of stuff beyond that, but it truly doesn’t.
Five people are killed from a sniper rifle, and all the clues point to James Barr (Joseph Sikora). However, Barr requests the presence of Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise), who smells something fishy in the whole case. It turns out a band of criminals are involved in this murder and they’ll stop at nothing to keep the truth from being revealed.
Tom Cruise gives this role a good try, though I felt it was virtually indistinguishable from any of the past rough-and-tumble roles he’s played. Rosamund Pike barely exists beyond exposition and playing damsel in distress as the film’s female lead. The best actor of the bunch is Werner Herzog, playing the bad guy in a stroke of genius casting. Pity he doesn’t get more screen time since he’s easily the most fascinating part of the movie. I also enjoyed seeing talented actors Richard Jenkins and Robert Duvall in nice roles, even if each get minimal screen time.
I actually liked the direction the movie took at first, a bit of a whodunit adventure. However, it’s revealed much too early who the true murderers are and they’re far from subtle when it comes to figuring out who’s truly good and truly bad. They could’ve also used some good editing during the action sequences, as they go on far too long, especially one car chase that’s only saving grace is the humorous way Reacher escapes the mess he has created.
I also wish there was more to Reacher than him just being some guy who cares about justice and is good in a fight. Sure he says some funny one-liners and does well in violent situations, but what else can he do? Why is he the way he is? The movie as a whole acts like it’s more complex than it truly is, wanting to delve in complex characters and situations but settling for the cliche and trite.
It isn’t terrible, but Jack Reacher is amazingly mediocre. There’s the potential for brilliance here, but it never goes the extra mile and becomes the kind of great action flick it’s aspiring to. Tom Cruise is a fine guy, but he should choose better, less bland projects to be in. Oh well, there’s always Mission Impossible 5.
