Went to see this film the Leeds Bradford Odeon.
IMDB says: Jack Reacher must uncover the truth behind a major government conspiracy in order to clear his name. On the run as a fugitive from the law, Reacher uncovers a potential secret from his past that could change his life forever.
In this Edward Zwick (Glory, Legends of the Fall) directed and screenplay written film, with Richard Wenk (The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven), Marshall Herskovitz (The Last Samurai, Love & Other Drugs), from the novel by Lee Child, Tom Cruise (Top Gun, Jerry McGuire) stars once more as Jack Reacher.
When Reacher travels to Washington to have dinner with Major Susan Turner (Cobie Smulders: Avengers Assemble, How I Met Your Mother), her substitute Colonel Sam Morgan (Holt McCallany: Fight Club, Alien 3) tells him that she has been jailed and accused of espionage. Reacher thinks that she is a scapegoat for a conspiracy and he must find her veteran military lawyer Colonel Bob Moorcroft (Robert Catrini: Let it Bleed, Rizolli and Isles) to get answers. Moorcroft tells him that Turner is accused of the murders of two soldiers in Afghanistan, and that Reacher himself is being sued by a woman for paternity of her 15 year-old daughter Samantha (Danika Yarosh: Heroes Reborn, Shameless). As Reacher begins his own investigation into Turner's case, Moorcroft is murdered and he stands accused of it. Not only has Turner been framed, but so has he, and when he realises that two assassins have been sent to kill her. When he rescues her, they go on the run from hired killer The Hunter (Patrick Heusinger: Black Swan, Sweet Land) to find the truth, with Samantha in tow.
For an action film, there was not much action as it was saved until right at the end. As a fan of the novels, I still struggle with the idea of Tom Cruise being Jack Reacher, a 6 foot 5, 250lb weighing and 50-inch wide-chested character bad-ass. Yes he is a good actor and he doesn't look bad for 53, but at 5 foot 7 and weighing less that 200 lbs, he lacks the physical presence to pull it off.
It was a set piece of a standard thriller and sadly, was predictable and only the interplay between Turner and Reacher seemed to gel. The side plot of the 'is she, isn't she?' daughter began to tire when her character got increasingly more annoying - for a character who was supposed to be street-smart, she would not make so many dumb mistakes.
In conclusion, this is not as good as the first movie, though I am sure the juggernaut of sequels will continue without a change to the lead.
Don't miss the cameo of Lee Child as a TA Agent.
Trivia: Cobie Smulders spent eight weeks training in various martial arts to prepare for her role in this film and performed all her own stunts. The film is based on the eighteenth 'Jack Reacher' series novel by source novelist Lee Child. "One Shot," the basis of the first film Jack Reacher (2012), is the ninth book, which means this movie is not necessarily a direct sequel in terms of the book series.
Tagline: Tom Cruise is Jack Reacher. 6/10
#NeverGoBack #JackReacher #Odeon #TomCruise
