'You think I'm a hero? I'm not a hero. I'm a drifter with nothing to lose.'

Rating: 8/10 (8 May 2013)

There seems to be two camps of response to this film: those who have read the novel 'One Shot' by Lee Child and have trouble with the casting and those who come to the film without knowledge of the 'character Jack Reacher. Not having read the book this viewer found the film intensely engrossing, full of smart dialog form writer/director Christopher McQuarrie, and a finely tuned cast of actors who get the opportunity to strut their stuff in this story that seems far shorter than the 130 minutes of the film. Tom Cruise may be short in stature at 5'7" but at age 50 he is in fine shape, performs all his own car stunts (which are excellent and harrowing), and at least for the novice he does 'become' Jack Reacher.
Briefly, the setting is Pittsburgh, PA and a professional sniper (an exceptionally fine Jai Courtney) shoots dead five seemingly random people. The police quickly capture on James Barr (Joseph Sikora), arrest him, interrogate him (by DA Richard Jenkins and his cohort David Oyelowo and the DA's lawyer daughter Rosamund Pike who seeks to give Barr a fair trial): Barr declares his innocence and his answer to his question of is he guilty is his writing 'Get Jack Reacher'. Barr is beaten unconscious in a van on the way to jail and is comatose. Jack Reacher, ex-military investigator, (Tom Cruise) who despises Jack Barr from their shared military history appears and the action begins. Reacher is only too willing believe that Barr did the crime he's accused of. But when Local criminals try to take out Reacher, he decides to give the case a second look. Soon he's unraveling a much deeper conspiracy.
In addition to the actors mention, there are several excellent cameos by Werner Herzog as a Russian ex-prisoner who knows about survival (he chewed of his own fingers while I prison to ward off gangrene from frost bite), Alexia Fast, Josh Helman, Vladimir Sizov, and Robert Duvall. The story is rich in innuendos, insights into corporate greed and threats form outside sources to take over the country, and some serious chases both by car and on foot. The brilliant cinematography is by Caleb Deschanel and the atmosphere is greatly enhanced by the musical score by Joe Kraemer. But this is a Tom Cruise special and he proves he can still rule the roost as one of the top action heroes in the business. For this genre, this is a fine entertainment.
Grady Harp