jones and jackson make the movie

Rating: Null/10 (27 March 2002)

The U.S. military has clearly defined rules for firing upon the enemy. You have to clearly state your position and feel that you are under immediate threat of danger. In this courtroom thriller, William Friedkin directs a slate of Oscar winners and nominees all facing the question of; would the U.S. Government try to shaft one man to save face to the world at large?	Samuel L. Jackson plays Colonel Terry Childers. He was in charge of a rescue mission in Yemen that went terribly out of control. It seems the U.S. Embassy in Yemen was facing a `peaceful' demonstration of rock throwing, molatov cocktails, and sniper fire. This directly led to Ambassador Mourain, Ben Kingsley, screaming for an evacuation team, as he feared for his family's lives.	Childers team arrives and sees Mourain and his family to safety. Before leaving the Embassy Colonel Childers orders his team to open fire on the protesters with the result being 83 deadÂ…many of them women and children. Naturally this creates an international incident and Childers is ordered to stand ready for a court-martial.	Bruce Greenwood plays the government official William Sokal who has the one piece of evidence which could exonerate Childers. He has the only tape which survived the demonstration and it shows all the protesters, women and children included, pulling out guns and firing on the embassy, However Sokal feels it would look better to the world to show them crucifying the `evil' American who murdered these innocents. He has Major Mark Biggs, played by Guy Pearce, lead the prosecution.	Childers hires his long time friend, Colonel Hayes Hodges, to defend him. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hodges as a washed up old lawyer with a drinking problem. Years earlier in Vietnam, Hodges and Childers had been leading a team, which came under enemy fire. Because of Childers, Hodges lived but injuries forced him to sit behind a desk, as he was unable to face combat for the rest of his term in the military. Hodges realizes that this is a Kangaroo court designed to convict Childers but begins to feel the fire of combat and dives to Childers defense with gusto.	Overall this was a very good movie. It is hard to find two better actors than Tommy Lee and Samuel L. and these men deliver once again. Childers is the consummate Military man. He has no life outside of the Military and would not be able to survive if forced out. Not only is he facing the outrage of the prosecution but also he is beginning to wonder if everything he has ever done for the Military has been wrong. Hodges on the other hand just wants to retire and learn to fly fish. He has served his 30 years and managed to stay away from major problems during that time. Now he is being forced in front of his biggest opponent and it is up to him to protect the man he quite literally owes his life.	The plot has some wholes however the acting pushes you right through them, Friedkin directs the combat scenes masterfully. The tension builds throughout until the actually blaze of gunfire is almost a relief. The courtroom scenes are almost as tense but we have seen as good if not better in other movies. Would the movie have succeeded as well with other actors in the lead role? Probably not. Jones and Jackson carry this through with their dialogue-devouring prowess.