Intelligent and Engaging Action Blockbuster

Rating: 7/10 (7 January 2013)

Following the massacre of five seemingly random people, a former military sniper named Barr demands to speak to "Jack Reacher". The District Attorney (Richard Jenkins) and the lead Detective (David Oyelowo) meet the mysterious Reacher, a former Military Policeman who has dropped off the grid for the past few years but reappeared on the behest of Barr. Reacher works with private attorney Helen Rodin (Rosamund Pike) to find out the real question: is Barr actually guilty, or the pawn in a much larger game?
"Jack Reacher" is based on an excellent book series by Lee Child. "One Shot", this film's premise, is actually the ninth book in the series, but had one of the most intriguing premises to make a movie on. Tom Cruise produced the film, and under the direction Christopher McQuarrie we have an action blockbuster that doesn't dumb itself down and keeps the audience asking questions as the intelligently-laden suspense slowly provides answers.
Tom Cruise tends to play effectively the same role whenever you see him in a movie, and here he does a great job playing Ethan Hunt's stunt double. Reacher is very smart and uses his military experience to put together realizations no one else would be able to. Cruise is funny and relatable here. It may be one of his best performances yet, especially in an action film.
Rosamund Pike is as gorgeous as she is a good actress. Here she is tasked with making conclusions at the pace of the audience, and looking great opposite Reacher (no question as to either of those abilities). The only problem with her character is the lack of much character development. She is the leading lady and that's sadly the extent of her role.
The supporting cast is a truly eclectic mix of actors you wouldn't expect to see together. The director Werner Herzog plays a murderous mobster Siberian who spent time in the infamous gulags and was forced to earn his name of "the Prisoner". Robert Duvall plays a former Gunnie who befriends Reacher and helps with the investigation. Jenkins isn't in the film much but is as good as he always is.
Problems come through where they typically do in an action movie: the script. The Prisoner's connection with the mystery is never laid out in a clear way; we are forced to make a lot of our own conclusions, none of them it would seem are correct. Barr's connections and the reveal of who is "in on it" don't hang together as well as they should. But none of that really matters.
"Jack Reacher" is an intelligent, comedic, always interesting action movie that kept my attention, and for that I am grateful.