Jack Reacher: Never Go Back

Having read all of the Reacher books, I was one of those who cried "What??!!" when Cruise was cast as Reacher, but I changed my tune when I saw the first Reacher movie. I thought Cruise carried it off well.

So I was really looking forward to this next instalment . . . and what a disappointment.

The difference between the Reacher stories and other so called anti-hero stories is the realism that Lee Child brought to them. For example, none of those long slugging punch ups, Lee Child made it clear that a single punch would suffice and if not delivered correctly, then there was a danger of broken hands etc. And they followed this ethos in the first Reacher movie. But in this latest offering there was just slugging match after slugging match after slugging match, with nothing to show for it other than a cut above Reacher's eye. Where's the bruising and swelling? I'm sure he got smashed on the arm by a pipe, but there's nothing to show for it the next day when he's wearing his t-shirt.

On top of that, there's a hell of a lot of running throughout the movie - I'm surprised they didn't run to the toilet. This, with the camera work and editing had a way of making the movie feel rushed.

Finally, the script had one of the clever wit in the books.

All in all a disappointing follow up. Was it the Director? I think so.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back ought to be bi-lined "Never Go Forward".

This flick is firmly mired in 90's action "corniness". This seems to be a "old" "new" trend. Revisiting past formula's that worked once upon a time, with the hope they will work again, in the 21st century.

Fact is, viewers have, for the most part, become more sophisticated. For me, the new Jack Reacher is an anachronism. Its watchable but it comes across as dated, "silly" and utterly implausible, even by Hollywood standards.

Jack floats around like an avenging wraith, solving crimes for the military, whilst breezily moving in and out of military facilities, as if he has been given a lifetime pass to a weird, uptight, country club. Worse still, the antagonists come across as bumbling and inexplicably foolish. His success is never in doubt.

The result is a film that's "light weight" entertainment at best. Its not bad, as such, its just rather nondescript and not overly engaging. Five out of ten from me.

Former military investigator Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) takes down a smuggling ring run by the local sheriff with the help of his successor Major Susan Turner (Cobie Smulders). He goes to DC to meet her for the first time only to be told that she has been detained for treason. She had sent two investigators to Afganistan who were mysteriously killed. Her military lawyer is killed and Reacher is framed for it. While in detention, Reacher saves Turner from assassins and they escape. Meanwhile, a paternity claim against him has been filed by Candice Dayton for 15-year-old daughter Samantha whom he never met.

The story, the execution, and quite frankly the characters are rather robotic. It's not actually exciting but there is plenty of fight action. There is no mystery or shocking twists or interesting reveals. The big climatic twist is barely a twist. The story unfolds in a string of events that aren't terribly compelling. The bad guys are willing to kill as many people as needed but this is the kind of movie where they always come up a little short ending with a hand-to-hand fight. On the plus side, Smulders delivers a tough character without it all collapsing into a romantic puddle although it threatens to from time to time. This franchise keeps doing the hat thing but it's not filmed well. The point is for the character to disappear. It needs a scene where we lose track of Cruise (or Smulders in this one) in a crowd. That would be movie magic. In the grand scheme of things, this movie punches a lot but the hits rarely hurt. It's an action movie with limited thrills.

25 October 2016 Film of Choice at The Plaza Dorchester This Afternoon - Jack Reacher Never Go Back. Tom Cruise returns in the title role and plays the hero part with aplomb. The film begins, continues and ends with action and intrigue. In this outing Reacher has to uncover a government conspiracy to clear his name and that of a colleague. A complicated plot entwines itself around the characters and it takes a little concentration not to get lost. There is however a rather refreshing chase scene that doesn't involve a single car. Highly watchable but not as good as the first film. Always easy to watch Tom Cruise when he's strutting his stuff, whatever the plot.

Movie Street V.3 # 190

Tom Cruise is back with his new action thriller "Never Go Back". This time he collaborates with the brilliant director Edward Zwick and the gorgeous Cobie Smulders and trailer also gave some high expectations.

Jack Reacher after disbanding a human trafficking operation and he goes back to the headquarters to meet his long time telephone friend Major Susan Turner. But unfortunately she was framed and jailed. Reacher and Susan Turner teams ups to solve the mystery.

Tom Cruise shines all the way. His screen presence was totally impressive and his action performances were top notch. His energy level is Cobie Smulders was equally impressive as Tom Cruise. But all the other characters were actually dull and was nothing.

The storyline was an okay-ish but clichéd in most parts. It was predictable and the narration was pretty weak and slow. Some of the action scenes and car chase was good.

A forgettable Sequel to the great action movie Jack Reacher.

An action thriller which lacks thrills

5.7 on 10

As a TC fan, this one was disappointing.