A gripping thriller

Rating: 9/10 (27 July 2016)

When a sniper kills five apparently random people the police quickly arrest ex-army sniper James Barr; the evidence against him seems conclusive however we know he did not do it! During his interview he says nothing but eventually writes "Get Jack Reacher". The authorities have no idea how to find the former army investigator but he soon finds them and initially he is convinced of Barr's guilt he has done it before in Iraq but got away with it. Reacher isn't keen to get involved but is eventually agrees help Barr's attorney, Helen Rodin, examine the evidence. Things soon convince him that Barr didn't do it; the evidence is just too good, Barr was never that good a shot and most importantly somebody is trying to block his investigation. The more he investigates the more convinced he becomes that somebody in authority is involved possibly the District Attorney who just happens to be Helen's father.
Having not read any of the 'Jack Reacher' books I can't say how close the film character is to the book character but judging solely by the film I found him to be a good protagonist; Tom Cruise did a fine job in the role. He is ably supported by Rosamund Pike as Helen; it was refreshing that their characters' relationship was purely professional and never looked like it might become a cliché romance. There is a good amount of action and a few twists along the way. Surprisingly, given that we see the killer in the opening scene, there is also a sense of mystery why did he do it? Why was Barr so perfectly framed? Who in authority is helping them? The action is nicely varied; we get fights, shootouts and a car chase and the story is interesting. The bad guys are suitably menacing; especially Werner Herzog's 'The Zec' in one scene he tells a failed underling that he will spare his life if he bites off the fingers of his left hand! There are some lighter moments; most notably a laugh out loud moment where too incompetent assailants attack Reacher in a bathroom. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to anybody after a solid thriller with a good plot and obviously to fans of Tom Cruise.