A Few Good Men (1992)

Why so much hype?

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

For so many years this was my favorite movie. The plot, the acting, the scenes are all superb. Tom Cruise may be the lead but every actor brought their A Game for this film. Aaron Sorkin and Reiner rounded out a brilliant ensemble to make this a totally enjoyable experience. Enjoy every moment.

Tom Cruise Shit his pants in this movie around 20 minutes.

This is certainly an excellent movie, with great cast that give amazing performances.I must have watched it 5-10 times and it will always attracts my attention till the end.Yet one thing that always annoyed me is that effort in the script to make everyone's lines pompous throughout the movie. It is as if every character has to keep saying things that will shake every one else and the audience.This could be true come from Jessup's character, Cedricks' or perhaps one of the marines who surely express a passion of their work and duty.But it is tiring to hear heavy lines from everyone throughout the movie. Especially in a court drama it is distracting from the points /meanings the story is trying to pass.

Aaron Sorkin leaves a unique mark on all his work, and if you like "The West Wing," you'll like this movie, even if it is imperfect.A Few Good Men is about the trial of two US Marines stationed in Cuba who have been charged with killing one of their peers in a hazing ritual. They are appointed attorneys Lt. Kaffee (Tom Cruise) and Lt. Commander Galloway (Demi Moore). The two attorneys feud at first, but end up working together to expose a sinister cover-up job within the Marines.Sorkin does what he does best in "A Few Good Men": writing intelligent, engaging, and wit-filled dialogue. The characters feel like real people because they talk like real people. The wit in the dialogue also adds a lot of levity to this film with a pretty dark subject matter. Characters toss out jokes at each other that never feel out of place or silly, setting a nice tone for the entire movie. Some parts of the film have the potential to be dry, but they never are due to the nature of the dialogue.Since the film is based on Sorkin's stage play and the screenplay is written by Sorkin, so his idiosyncrasies come through much more strongly than those of the actual director, Rob Reiner. As the case of many films based on stage plays, film elements like cinematography and editing take the back seat to dialogue and acting. It's a good thing that the performances across the board do the script justice.The criticism I have of the film is just how predictably things unfold. Big reveals and turning points in the case are predicted by the characters during trial preparation meetings. When these big reveals actually happen in the courtroom, the audience is already expecting them, and their power is lost. The underwhelming reveals pale in comparison to films like "12 Angry Men," or other similar court dramas with unexpected narrative twists.The film is also pretty uncompelling on a larger, thematic level. It seems to be an indictment of the "for the greater good" moral system that the military operates with. Military bigwig Col. Jessup (Jack Nicholson) is a stereotypical testosterone-filled figure with warrior-like pride. Jessup is not likable and not very complex at all, an easy target for the audience to vilify. Even lower-ranking soldiers are blamed for following orders that perpetuate the military's culture. The film almost comes off as purely anti-military more than anti-military culture.In a lot of ways, "A Few Good Men " plays like a long episode of the West Wing. Sorkin's style comes through clearly and the film is fun, even though it feels like it could have reached greater heights.