View Poll Results: Jack Reacher

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  • yay

    30 90.91%
  • nay

    3 9.09%
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Thread: Jack Reacher (Christopher McQuarrie)

  1. #26
    It was okay. Didn't buy Tom Cruise for a second in the lead though - the whole drink your blood out of a boot thing was cringe-worthy, for example - and the plotting at the end just unravels into yet another boring shootout where bad guys miss and good guys hit. But the first half mystery is interesting, and it's quite funny in places.

    Shrug.
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    (2020) 64

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  2. #27
    A Platypus Grouchy's Avatar
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    Great movie. Hollywood just doesn't make brainy thrillers like this anymore. Herzog's villain is awesome even in his very limited screentime. "Always the bullet. I don't understand". I got all giddy with that line.

    For once I agree with trans, though - Cruise was strangely miscast. This guy is supposed to be an Army Sherlock Holmes, and I have a hard time buying that with Tom's face attached. But hell, he produces the movie, he's got to get the main role, of course. This is the finest film he's been in since Collateral.

  3. #28
    The Pan Qrazy's Avatar
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    I liked it up to a point but not sure I was fully on board with the let's fucking kill everyone ending.
    The Princess and the Pilot - B-
    Playtime (rewatch) - A
    The Hobbit - C-
    The Comedy - D+
    Kings of the Road - C+
    The Odd Couple - B
    Red Rock West - C-
    The Hunger Games - D-
    Prometheus - C
    Tangled - C+

  4. #29
    A Platypus Grouchy's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Qrazy (view post)
    I liked it up to a point but not sure I was fully on board with the let's fucking kill everyone ending.
    You mean morally or plot-wise? I thought it made sense plot-wise.

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  5. #30
    The Pan Scar's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Grouchy (view post)
    Great movie. Hollywood just doesn't make brainy thrillers like this anymore. Herzog's villain is awesome even in his very limited screentime. "Always the bullet. I don't understand". I got all giddy with that line.

    For once I agree with trans, though - Cruise was strangely miscast. This guy is supposed to be an Army Sherlock Holmes, and I have a hard time buying that with Tom's face attached. But hell, he produces the movie, he's got to get the main role, of course. This is the finest film he's been in since Collateral.
    Per the books, he's also supposed to be a 6'5 beast, too....
    “What we are dealing with here is a perfect engine, er... an eating machine. It's really a miracle of evolution. All this machine does is swim and eat and make little sharks and that's all.”

  6. #31
    The Pan Qrazy's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Grouchy (view post)
    You mean morally or plot-wise? I thought it made sense plot-wise.

    [
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    I suppose I mean morally for Reacher. I didn't buy he would go from 'that sniper killed people overseas and that was wrong' to killing a bunch of people himself because some girl he didn't like much was killed and another kidnapped. There needed to be more of a progression there like in The Godfather Michael's first kills are psychologically difficult for him and he has a strong motivation. Here Reacher transitions from a relatively moral individual to just killing a ton of guys. I mean sure they fired first but still.
    The Princess and the Pilot - B-
    Playtime (rewatch) - A
    The Hobbit - C-
    The Comedy - D+
    Kings of the Road - C+
    The Odd Couple - B
    Red Rock West - C-
    The Hunger Games - D-
    Prometheus - C
    Tangled - C+

  7. #32
    A Platypus Grouchy's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Qrazy (view post)
    I suppose I mean morally for Reacher. I didn't buy he would go from 'that sniper killed people overseas and that was wrong' to killing a bunch of people himself because some girl he didn't like much was killed and another kidnapped. There needed to be more of a progression there like in The Godfather Michael's first kills are psychologically difficult for him and he has a strong motivation. Here Reacher transitions from a relatively moral individual to just killing a ton of guys. I mean sure they fired first but still.
    I hadn't thought of it like that. It's a valid point, but still, most everyone he killed they drew on him or they had a gun on the girl. The only exception is Herzog's character who basically convinced him that the law was going to exonerate him for lack of evidence.

    One thing that's contradictory is that, if Reacher favors independent justice and retribution over the law, he wouldn't be so pissed at Jack Barr, since the people he killed overseas were as bad as him. But then again, the implication could be that if he got away with it he would do it again.

  8. #33
    A Platypus Grouchy's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Scar (view post)
    Per the books, he's also supposed to be a 6'5 beast, too....
    Yeah, I read about that. I don't know what would be perfect casting, then. Dolph Lundgren?

  9. #34
    The Pan Scar's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Grouchy (view post)
    Yeah, I read about that. I don't know what would be perfect casting, then. Dolph Lundgren?
    I honestly liked Tom Cruises representation of the character in the fight sequences. I love Dolph, but, man, I think he would've dropped this movie into B level territory.
    “What we are dealing with here is a perfect engine, er... an eating machine. It's really a miracle of evolution. All this machine does is swim and eat and make little sharks and that's all.”

  10. #35
    The Pan Qrazy's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Grouchy (view post)
    I hadn't thought of it like that. It's a valid point, but still, most everyone he killed they drew on him or they had a gun on the girl. The only exception is Herzog's character who basically convinced him that the law was going to exonerate him for lack of evidence.

    One thing that's contradictory is that, if Reacher favors independent justice and retribution over the law, he wouldn't be so pissed at Jack Barr, since the people he killed overseas were as bad as him. But then again, the implication could be that if he got away with it he would do it again.
    Well it's also tonally a bit inconsistent with the way it treats death. Death is a devastating phenomenon in the first half of the film but when the bad guys get got at the end the attitude is a wink and a nod as the sun comes up over the quarry. Murder is no big deal as long as you're killing a 'bad guy'. This is par for the course in most action films but since this one is a cut above that and the way it treats death initially it's sort of disappointing to see it devolve to that level by the end.
    The Princess and the Pilot - B-
    Playtime (rewatch) - A
    The Hobbit - C-
    The Comedy - D+
    Kings of the Road - C+
    The Odd Couple - B
    Red Rock West - C-
    The Hunger Games - D-
    Prometheus - C
    Tangled - C+

  11. #36
    Crying Enthusiast Sven's Avatar
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    Excellent production. Editing is spectacular, and a terrific sense of place.

  12. #37
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    Surprisingly good. Good thriller with a lame title. I liked how this was a courtroom drama, but without the courtroom.

    Solid little thrillers like this are rare. Agree with everyone else that the chase sequence was outstanding; best I've seen in years. Loved that the villains here, especially Herzog, were actually menacing. I loved the script but couldn't quite buy into Cruise 100% and the ending seemed almost abrupt.

    Agree with Qrazy that the ending is a little weird. The tone is off (funny jokes about the knife & Duvall's accuracy seem at odds with the grimness of the of the finale).

    The endings' setup is typical: Damsel in distress at an industrial park/ quarry/ steam & smoke factory. In a similar movie with a different star, I think the audience would believe the hero was there to rescue the girl and for no other reason. But Cruise has such an oddly asexual screen presence there's just no way to buy into that. There's never any chemistry between the two leads, despite both actors delivering what are supposed to be meaningful looks throughout the movie.

    It's really freaking weird, I dunno. But I agree the tone of the movie at the start is very different than at the end. It almost goes on autopilot, but I think it's saved by Herzog' villain, sitting in the corner doing nothing like some big, ugly spider.

  13. #38
    Cinematographer Mal's Avatar
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    Questionable Cruise casting aside, I enjoyed the hell out of this movie. It had all the pulp elements I adore in a nicely filmed package. I'd like to see another Reacher film with Cruise, but then again I'd also like to see a film where it doesn't require the lead female being slightly attracted to the badass drifter.

  14. #39
    Crying Enthusiast Sven's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Rowland (view post)
    ...but responses from the Slant, Reverse Shot, and Skandies crews have been very negative.
    These reviews read more like disgruntled instances of celebrity schedenfreude than substantive addresses of the film's content. Kind of like reading reviews for early-2000s Ben Affleck films.

  15. #40
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    If anyone is in the Venn Diagram of liking Jack Reacher and always having hated "Westerns" based on the Clint Eastwood and John Wayne ones they show on TBS, I highly recommend your checking out westerns directed by Budd Boetticher w/ Randolph Scott (I started w/ 7 Men From Now) and Anthony Mann w/ James Stewart or his Man of the West which is my favorite.

    When I was loving Jack Reacher, I was loving it how I love those movies.

  16. #41
    Kung Fu Hippie Watashi's Avatar
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    There are bad Clint Eastwood westerns?
    Sure why not?

    STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (Rian Johnson) - 9
    STRONGER (David Gordon Green) - 6
    THE DISASTER ARTIST (James Franco) - 7
    THE FLORIDA PROJECT (Sean Baker) - 9
    LADY BIRD (Greta Gerwig) - 8


    "Hitchcock is really bad at suspense."
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  17. #42
    The Pan Scar's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Watashi (view post)
    There are bad Clint Eastwood westerns?
    Paint Your Wagon?
    “What we are dealing with here is a perfect engine, er... an eating machine. It's really a miracle of evolution. All this machine does is swim and eat and make little sharks and that's all.”

  18. #43
    Kung Fu Hippie Watashi's Avatar
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    Quote Quoting Scar (view post)
    Paint Your Wagon?


    That's a masterpiece.
    Sure why not?

    STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (Rian Johnson) - 9
    STRONGER (David Gordon Green) - 6
    THE DISASTER ARTIST (James Franco) - 7
    THE FLORIDA PROJECT (Sean Baker) - 9
    LADY BIRD (Greta Gerwig) - 8


    "Hitchcock is really bad at suspense."
    - Stay Puft

  19. #44
    Best Boy
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    I don't know if there are bad Clint Eastwood westerns, but there's definitely bad readers responding to my posts

  20. #45
    Kung Fu Hippie Watashi's Avatar
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    When you say "westerns" based on Eastwood or Wayne movies on TBS, no one knows what that means. You should probably clarify instead of being smarmy in your posts.
    Sure why not?

    STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (Rian Johnson) - 9
    STRONGER (David Gordon Green) - 6
    THE DISASTER ARTIST (James Franco) - 7
    THE FLORIDA PROJECT (Sean Baker) - 9
    LADY BIRD (Greta Gerwig) - 8


    "Hitchcock is really bad at suspense."
    - Stay Puft

  21. #46
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    Quote Quoting wigwam (view post)
    I don't know if there are bad Clint Eastwood westerns, but there's definitely bad readers responding to my posts
    I like you.

  22. #47
    To be fair to wigwam, nothing he said was offensive, he was clearly specifying the westerns on TBS, he used a conditional to suggest that not everyone would in fact agree with him, and he then went on to recommend some pretty good movies.

    So, I would lay off a little.
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    Run
    (2020) 64
    The Whistlers
    (2019
    ) 55
    Pawn (2020) 62
    Matilda (1996) 37
    The Town that Dreaded Sundown
    (1976) 61
    Moby Dick (2011) 50

    Soul
    (2020) 64

    Heroic Duo
    (2003) 55
    A Moment of Romance (1990) 61
    As Tears Go By (1988) 65

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  23. #48
    Quote Quoting wigwam (view post)
    I don't know if there are bad Clint Eastwood westerns, but there's definitely bad readers responding to my posts
    To be fair to the respondents, their replies are valid based on a correct reading of your post. You suggest that a certain subset of Eastwood movies are bad (the TBS ones) and they are merely questioning that.

    So, I would lay off a little.
    Last 10 Movies Seen
    (90+ = canonical, 80-89 = brilliant, 70-79 = strongly recommended, 60-69 = good, 50-59 = mixed, 40-49 = below average with some good points, 30-39 = poor, 20-29 = bad, 10-19 = terrible, 0-9 = soul-crushingly inept in every way)

    Run
    (2020) 64
    The Whistlers
    (2019
    ) 55
    Pawn (2020) 62
    Matilda (1996) 37
    The Town that Dreaded Sundown
    (1976) 61
    Moby Dick (2011) 50

    Soul
    (2020) 64

    Heroic Duo
    (2003) 55
    A Moment of Romance (1990) 61
    As Tears Go By (1988) 65

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    Listening Habits at LastFM

  24. #49
    Replacing Luck Since 1984 Dukefrukem's Avatar
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    Loved this btw.
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  25. #50
    The Pan Qrazy's Avatar
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    Transmogrifier thinks you're all idiots who need a basic conversation explained to you, so I would lay on him a little.
    The Princess and the Pilot - B-
    Playtime (rewatch) - A
    The Hobbit - C-
    The Comedy - D+
    Kings of the Road - C+
    The Odd Couple - B
    Red Rock West - C-
    The Hunger Games - D-
    Prometheus - C
    Tangled - C+

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