JACK REACHER 2 starring Cobie Smulders (10/21/16)

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Reacher Rules of the Road:

#5

#8

#14

#21

#22

The DMV hero!

Minor complaint - I don't much care for them turning him into a professional driver in the movies. Seems too much like every other action hero. In the books he is largely inept behind the wheel because of his size and because he never had to drive a car before because of his career and lifestyle. Which makes sense and is unique to the character.

Minor complaint - I don't much care for them turning him into a professional driver in the movies. Seems too much like every other action hero. In the books he is largely inept behind the wheel because of his size and because he never had to drive a car before because of his career and lifestyle. Which makes sense and is unique to the character.

So is being 6 feet 5 inches tall, and weighing 250 lbs. So is being trained by the

best the Army has, to take out the worst of the worst. A little suspension of

belife will go a long way.

Review: Jack Reacher: Never Go Back

As usual, Tom Cruise goes all-in, doing all of his own stunts and proving once again why he’s arguably the biggest star in the world. There’s no phoning it in for the guy, and the way Zwick and his team shoot and cut the fights, you can tell Cruise is right in the thick of the action. Zwick’s framing of Reacher is interesting here, as he emphasizes Cruise’s compactness, surrounding him with enemies that dwarf him physically, but never stand a chance once he does his stuff.

 

In his mid-fifties, Cruise looks as good as ever. Yet, his age is acknowledged in an interesting way, with him actually getting to play a fatherly role, once he’s confronted by the news that a teenaged delinquent may in fact be his daughter. With her now a target as a way of getting to Reacher, he’s forced to take her under his wing, and their relationship grounds the movie, giving it a different flavor than its predecessor. Danika Yarosh emphasizes her own character’s resourcefulness, making her a good foil for Reacher.

 

As Turner, Cobie Smulders delivers in a big-way, making this a serious action showcase for her, the same way that previous Cruise-starrers, EDGE OF TOMORROW, and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – ROGUE NATION, were from Emily Blunt and Rebecca Ferguson. Expect this to give her a real boost as a heroine. Like Cruise, she does her own stunts, excelling at the hand-to-hand scraps, particularly one with a baton. Imagine a more personable Maria Hill, but tied to reality and in the thick of all the action and you’ve got an idea of what she brings to the film. She’s a hero in her own right, and she never feels like a tacked on love interest.

 

My only problems with JACK REACHER: NEVER GO BACK stem from the fact that Knepper’s main baddie never really gets a chance to assert himself, only emerging from the shadows in the last act. With Reacher and Turner such formidable heroes, Heusinger shouldn’t have been the only real threat. The rest of the mercenaries are mostly faceless enemies for Reacher to kill or maim, but, again, the fights are superb and the pace is solid (as opposed to the overlong first film).

 

If you’re a Tom Cruise fan (and if you’re on this site – you probably are) then JACK REACHER: NEVER GO BACK is a must-see. You can’t go wrong with Cruise, as his vehicles rarely go wrong. They’re always up to a certain standard, and even if this isn’t as staggering as something like ROGUE NATION, it’s still a great little action flick and a good time at the movies.

 

Overall Rating: 7.0/10.0

Go Robin Sparkles!

Looking forward to this next weekend as the first one was surprisingly good, despite the massive character differences from the books.

I'm only ten minutes in this movie and I absolutely love it.

Going to save it for Friday night.

Not surprisingly, the movie couldn't sustain it's threat to the heroes as Reacher methodically dispatched them and some of the plot twists, close calls and dialogue was pretty predictable, but this was a solid enough movie.

I welcomed it's reserve toward children in jeopardy, pointless car chases and gunplay and makes a suitable companion to the first movie.

But, we have been down this road many many times in better thrillers like "A Lonely Place to Die" to "To Catch a Thief."

Recommended, with reservations.

Cobie would be only reason I would watch it.

Ive haven't like a Cruise movie for a long time.

Cobie would be only reason I would watch it.

 

Ive haven't like a Cruise movie for a long time.

 

It feels like she is there just to soften Reacher around the kid and kill bad guys at the right moment, for the plot's endless economy of supporting characters.

In other words, any unknown actress could have played her really and got the same results (see interrogation scene where she should have "commanded.")

I did like it enough though.

I just watched the far superior "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1978) this afternoon and comparisons will be made with pod-people like acted/written movies.

I was surprised by how "meh" this one was.

The first Jack Reacher film was shockingly good. This one was absolutely unmemorable, but for maybe two scenes with the girl (not Cobie -- the actual teen girl).

Exactly.