Through his writing, McQuarrie is able to show usually unseen sides of the law and evoke emotion from different perspectives through the character of Helen, who in the film must defend an impossibly guilty man against her father who happens to be the D.A., but Jack Reacher forces her to see a different side of the case instead of just evidence and statistics. When I compare Jack Reacher to similar genre lore with a manly main character and some evil plot at hand, I rather like how Christopher McQuarrie deals with the source material from both a scripting and directing point of view.
#Are more jack reacher films in production full#
Rosamund Pike’s character Helen benefits greatly from this situation, evolving from a stereotypical female counterpart to a full fledged and independent partner for Jack to work with, and an intriguing character in her own right.
Without revealing anything spoilery, I can say Tom and Rosamund display fantastic chemistry, working together for a common goal, and any little hints at something larger than a work partnership are handled rather impressively by writer/director Christopher McQuarrie. Of course with two big name co-ed stars working together and sharing numerous scenes, some type of hokey “office romance” is almost undoubtedly destined to stink up our screenplay. Honestly, after actually experiencing Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher, I’m not sure anyone else could have pulled it off with such ease.Īnother point of worry among Jack Reacher for my viewing pleasure was his relationship with a flustered lawyer played by Rosamund Pike, his sidekick of sorts. I look at his phone conversation with one of Werner Herzog’s henchmen as that stand-out moment where Cruise crosses the boundary from action hero to definitive character.
He’s a smaller dude, I know, and some might have a hard time seeing him as an action star capable of squashing Thug #2 and Criminal #5 like measly bugs, but I can assure you Cruise absolutely nails the character in terms of delivery. Cruise also brings charismatic intensity to Reacher that actually makes him seem exorbitantly more manly and macho than a lumbering giant would, using verbal cockiness and that sly, devilish smile which spoke volumes. You don’t need sky blue eyes and wavy golden locks to do so.Ĭruise brings a big screen personality and a very stern, business oriented vibe to Jack Reacher, one that perfectly compliments his brilliantly tactical brain and confidently persuasive demeanor. Throw away the blonde hair, the blue eyes, the bulging muscles, and what are you left with? A super sleuth investigator with a knack for deductive problem solving and an intimidation factor based on years of military training. Yes, the 5′ 7” Cruise doesn’t exactly fit Child’s version of Jack Reacher, but there’s more to a character than his simple physical appearance. Tom Cruise on the other hand, well, he cannot. Reacher could walk into a bar and intimidate even the hardest thugs just based on a dominating physical stature according to Child’s description. According to Child’s work, Jack Reacher stands 6′ 5” and weighs between 210-250, being a blonde haired, blue eyed Aryan barbarian powered by a scarily muscular build. I mean, just listen to his description if you don’t believe me. The novel Killing Floor introduced readers to our blues loving protagonist, as he stumbled onto a southern counterfeiting ring which sets off a chain of events cementing Reacher as a certifiable butt-kicker. To understand the fictional character Cruise attempts to channel, let’s go back to Lee Child’s writing, dating Reacher’s first appearance at March 1997. McQuarrie, a typical writer for such hits as The Usual Suspects and Valkyrie, has only directed one other film which was 2000’s The Way Of The Gun, meaning something about Jack Reacher really must have stirred enough interest to get him back in the directorial chair once again.Ĭould it have been Tom Cruise bringing his superstar talents aboard as the titular character? Was it Lee Child’s magnificently written novel franchise which created Reacher in the first place? Did he simply think no other visionary could handle his script in a way he’d approve of? Could have been a little bit of each, could have been none of the above, could have been he was in “director jail,” but let’s analyze how McQuarrie’s brand-new super-cop flick stacks up against the backlog of competition. As if Hollywood doesn’t already have enough badass crime stopper franchises in production, director Christopher McQuarrie wanted a shot at the genre with his own mysterious ex-militant investigator film, Jack Reacher.
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