Review of A Few Good Men (1992) by Compi24 — 28 Nov 2012

"A Few Good Men" is a 1992 courtroom drama film Directed by Rob Reiner and starring Tom Cruise. The story follows a young lawyer's plight to defend two marines accused of murder. Now I know just about everyone's heard of this film.

If they haven't, they've at least heard of the line, "You can't handle the truth!" That line is just a snippet of the greatness that is weaved into this film. Starting off on a related note, the script is fantastic.

Aaron Sorkin strikes again with his rapier wit and compelling dialogue. The story is a very compelling look at the military definitions of honor and loyalty and how they can sometimes become misinterpreted.

Some of the lines in this film are also spectacularly memorable. However, while the screenplay is decidedly impressive, the most imposing aspect of this film is the performances within it. Every single actor in this film brought their best to the table, and it's because of the unbelievably captivating performance from Jack Nicholson that everyone else raised their bars.

Nicholson's really only in this film for about 10 or 15 minutes, but man does he make those minutes count with his caustic and snide portrayal of Colonel Nathan R. Jessup. Again, it's his performance that caused everyone else in this film to bring their a-games, and holy crap did they.

Tom Cruise, Kevin Pollak, Kevin Bacon, J.T. Walsh, Kiefer Sutherland, Demi Moore, all did unbelievable jobs with their respective characters. Even Wolfgang Bodison, a stagehand who had never acted before in his life, did a really beautiful job with his role.

The aforementioned fact is a real testament to the seemingly limitless talent of Rob Reiner. After watching the special features of the film, you really get a good idea that Reiner forged an effective relationship with his actors and offered some acting tips of his own for their performances.

Because this is such a character driven story, Reiner made a great choice in offering some of his own acting expertise to his cast. Overall, I felt that "A Few Good Men" was a really masterfully directed, beautifully written, unforgettably performed coatroom drama that is sure to impress anyone.