At the Theater- Jack Reacher- Tom Cruise tries hard, but is simply miscast (it should have been Ray Stevenson in the titular role) in this somewhere between good and very good conspiracy thriller. See it for the lean, no-nonsense direction, competently filmed and choreographed fight scenes, dashes of humor, a better than average car chase and a worthwhile, climactic shootout. I would describe it as a far less brash Punisher, mixed with Edward Woodward's Equalizer.
Cruise displays plenty of charisma, but is unable to fully sell himself as the massive tough-guy of few words that's proven so popular in Author Lee Child's 17 Reacher novels (the character's often described therein as 6'5" and around 250 pounds). Cruise is obviously too short, unimposing and way too much of a pretty boy for the role, but he's also strangely chatty here- it makes one wonder why so many of the other little idiosyncrasies were ignored or outright abandoned. I believe if the filmmakers had stuck to Child's blueprint for the Reacher character, they stood a much better chance of delivering a far more memorable movie hero. As is, Cruise's Reacher can't quite cross over to grace the all time list of Silver Screen bad-asses like Dirty Harry, John Shaft or Martin Riggs because of the actor's inherent nature. Although he can't quite pass for Reacher, he's in fine form as something else- think a more likeable, self-referential Jason Bourne. In short, those who are familiar with the novels will probably be bugged with Cruise's casting, while those who aren't will probably find him entirely acceptable and rather enjoyable here.
Rosamund Pike's constant wide-eyed wonder (it's as if everything that everyone is saying to her comes as a revelation) is a bit of a distraction- then again, so is her cleavage (that last bit isn't necessarily a complaint). Pike is a competent actress who puts in solid work here- don't expect an obligatory love scene.
David Oyelowo is a police Detective while Richard Jenkins portrays the District Attorney- one's an innocent red herring while the other has unsavory motives. Robert Duvall pops up in the film's third act as a gun range owner who chips in to help our hero as a hesitant sidekick. Duvall, as always, is pretty cool here.
Documentary and Mainstream Filmmaker Werner Herzog shows up in a couple of extended cameos as the creepy, one-eyed, two fingered main villain referred to as "The Zec"- he's effective in the role and it's very cool to see him attempt something of this nature.
Jai Courtney (Starz' Spartacus) appears to be the next flavor of the month- he portrays "The Zec's" right hand henchman here while moviegoers will next see him as John McClain's son in A Good Day To Die Hard. Expect to see quite a bit of him in the next few years.
Overall, Jack Reacher comes somewhere between recommended and highly recommended- it's a much better than average effort in the Action/Thriller category, especially given the mundane efforts we've been subjected to over the last few years. It's smart and entertaining, without any of the ridiculously gaudy CG-assisted baggage.
8.0 out of 10
***Of Note*** Some movie-goers might find the opening sniper segment rather disturbing given recent events- I have to admit that the scene, which involves several unsuspecting pedestrians being sought out/pre-selected by roving crosshairs and later slain, to be rather tense and made me a bit uncomfortable.
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