“Welcome Back to the Army, Major. You’re Under Arrest.”
Since I found both Jack Reacher movies airing on TV back to back, I recorded them both, figuring if I hated the first, I could always delete the second sight unseen. Fortunately, I enjoyed the first one because I enjoyed this sequel, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, as well.
Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) has just wrapped up a particularly nasty case, and he’s been working with army Major Turner (Cobie Smulders). While he and Turner have never met, they’ve developed a great relationship over the phone, and Reacher decides to head to DC to take her to dinner. Only, when he arrives, he discovers that Turner has just been arrested for treason. The evidence is compelling, air tight, and Reacher doesn’t believe a bit of it. Fearing both of their lives are in danger, he takes off with Turner across the country, trying to figure out who is behind the conspiracy. Can he do it?
Like the first movie, this one is a combination of mystery and action. There is more to the plot than a simple action movie usually has, so you have to pay attention. I appreciated how it came together at the end. No, it isn’t the most intricate mystery of all time, but it was good.
Meanwhile, the action was also good. It’s been ramped up a bit since the first movie, but it still serves the plot instead of being the driving force behind the movie.
With the first film, I complained about the overly serious tone. I felt this movie’s tone was better. It still took itself and the events seriously, but it wasn’t so serious that it was distracting. Heck, the lighter moments actually worked to relieve the tension for a few moments before they started ramping up again.
In my mind, the biggest “What were they thinking?” in this movie is Samantha, as played by Danika Yarosh. Samantha is a teen who gets caught up in the story when the bad guys start going after her. She feels shoe horned into the movie, and she’s a typical teen caught up in an action movie trope. Okay, so she’s a little smarter, but she still seemed forced into the story. Having said that, her character leads to a wonderfully tense scene late in the film, and as the character grew, I started to soften toward her.
Let me be clear, the above paragraph has nothing to do with Danika Yarosh’s performance. She did a great job with a thankless role. In fact, I felt all the cast was strong. I know fans of the Jack Reacher novels have issues with Tom Cruise as Reacher since he doesn’t fit the description of the character in the books, but since this is the only way I know the character, I think he’s fine.
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is a good combination of mystery and action that will keep you entertained.
I've been in the mood for a good drama/action movie so may check this one out. Thank you for the recommendation!
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