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Special Features
Audio Commentary from director Rob Reiner
"Exclusive Documentary: Code of Conduct, Featuring interviews with Rob Reiner, Aaron Sorkin and cast"
From Stage to Screen with Aaron Sorkin and Rob Reiner
Bonus Trailers
Filmographies
Production Notes
Interactive Menus
Scene Selections with Motion Images
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Product Description
Customer Reviews
I first saw "A Few Good Men" as an in-flight movie, and after the first couple of scenes I thought that for once they'd really picked the right kind of flick: A bit cliched (yet another idle, unengaged lawyer being dragged into vigorously pursuing a case against his will), but good actors, a good director and a promising storyline.
Then the movie cut from the introductory scenes in Washington, D.C. to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Jack Nicholson (Colonel Nathan Jessup) inquired: "Who the f**k is PFC William T. Santiago?"
And suddenly I was all eyes and ears.
Director Rob Reiner and Nicholson's costars describe on the movie's DVD how from the first time Nicholson spoke this (his very first) line in rehearsal he had everybody's attention; and the overall bar for a good performance immediately rose to new heights. Based on my own reaction, I believe them sight unseen. Or actually, not really "unseen," as the result of Nicholson's influence is there for everybody to watch: Never mind that he doesn't actually have all that much screen time, his intensity as an actor and the personality of his character, Colonel Jessup, dominate this movie more than anything else; far beyond the now-famous final showdown with Tom Cruise's Lieutenant Kaffee. Nobody could have brought more power to the role of Jessup than Nicholson, no other actor made him a more complex figure, and nobody delivered his final monologue so as to force you to think about the issues he (and this film) addresses; and that despite all the movie's cliches: The reluctant lawyer turning out a courtroom genius (as lead counsel in a murder trial, barely a year out of law school and without *any* prior trial experience, no less), the son fighting to rid himself of a deceased superstar-father's overbearing shadow, and the "redneck" background of the victim's superior officer Lieutenant Kendrick (Kiefer Sutherland, who nevertheless milks the role for all it's worth).
Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, who adapted his own play, reportedly based the story's premise - the attempted cover-up of a death resulting from an illegal pseudo-disciplinary action - on a real-life case that his sister, a lawyer, had come across in the JAG Corps. (Although even if I take his assertion at face value that assigning the matter to a junior lawyer without trial experience was part of the cover-up, I still don't believe the real case continued the way it does here. But be that as it may.) Worse, the victim is a marine serving at "Gitmo," the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, where *any* kind of tension assumes an entirely different dimension than in virtually any other location. In come Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) and co-counsels Lt. Sam Weinberg (Kevin Pollack) and Lt.Cmdr. JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore), assigned to defend the two marines held responsible for Santiago's death; L.Cpl. Harold Dawson (Wolfgang Bodison) and PFC Louden Downey (James Marshall), who claim to have acted on Kendrick's orders to subject Santiago to a "code red," an act of humiliating peer-punishment, after Santiago had gone outside the chain of command to rat on a fellow marine (none other than Dawson), attempting to obtain a transfer out of "Gitmo." But while Kendrick sternly denies having given any such order and prosecuting attorney Captain Ross (Kevin Bacon) is ready to have the defendants' entire company swear that Kendrick actually ordered them to leave Santiago alone, Kaffee and Co. believe their clients' story - which ultimately leads them to Jessup himself, as it is unthinkable that the event should have occurred without his knowledge or even specific direction.
By the time of this movie's production, Tom Cruise had made the part of the shallow youngster suddenly propelled into manhood one of his trademark characters (see, e.g., "The Color of Money," "Top Gun" and "Rain Man"); nevertheless, his considerable skill (mostly) elevates Kaffee's part above cardboard level. Demi Moore gives one of her strongest-ever performances as Commander Galloway, who would love to be lead counsel herself in accordance with her rank's entitlements, but overcomes her disappointment to push Kaffee to a top-notch performance instead. Kevin Pollack's, Kevin Bacon's and J.T. Walsh's (Jessup's deputy Lt.Col. Markinson's) performances are straight-laced enough to easily be overlooked, but they're fine throughout and absolutely crucial foils for Kaffee, Galloway and Jessup; and so, vis-a-vis Dawson, is James Marshall's shy, scared Downey, who is clearly in way over his head. The movie's greatest surprise, however, is Wolfgang Bodison, who, although otherwise involved with the production, had never acted before being drafted by Rob Reiner solely on the basis of his physical appearance, which matched Dawson's better than any established actor's; and who gives a stunning performance as the young Lance Corporal who will rather be convicted of murder than take an unhonorable plea bargain, yet comes to understand his actions' full complexity upon hearing the jury's verdict.
"Unit - corps - God - country" is the code of honor according to which, Dawson tells Kaffee, the marines at "Gitmo" live their lives; and Colonel Jessup declares that under his command orders are followed "or people die," and words like "honor," "code" and "loyalty" to him are the backbone of a life spent defending freedom. Proud words for sure: But for the "code red," but for the trespass over that invisible line between a legal and an immoral, illegal order they might well be justified. That line, however, exists, and is drawn even in a non-public court-martial. I'd like to believe that insofar at least, this movie gets it completely right.
Also recommended:
Basic
Rules of Engagement
The Firm
The Border
Guantanamo: 'Honor Bound to Defend Freedom'
The Caine Mutiny (Collector's Edition)
Galloway persists, however, believing that Santiago's death may have resulted from a "Code Red," a method of disciplinary hazing employed in certain circles of the Corps, though illegal. And if this was a Code Red, the real question is, who gave the order? Ultimately, her tenacity prevails, but though Galloway is a seasoned lawyer, she has little actual courtroom experience, so Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee (Cruise) is assigned to the case, along with Lieutenant Sam Weinberg (Kevin Pollak), with Galloway, as ranking officer, to assist. Kaffee, the son of a legendary lawyer, has skated through the first nine months of his Naval career, successfully plea bargaining forty-four cases. Outwardly upbeat and personable, Kaffee seems more concerned with his softball game than he does with the time he has to spend on the job. But underneath, he's coping with living his life in the shadow of his late father's reputation, which is an issue with which he must come to terms if he is to successfully effect the outcome of this case. And on this one he will have a formidable opponent: Colonel Nathan R. Jessup (Nicholson), who commands the base at Guantanamo.
As Jessup, Nicholson gives a commanding performance, and once he enters the film you can sense the tension he brings to it, which begins to swell immediately, and which Reiner does a great job of maintaining right up to the end. Jessup is a soldier of the old guard, a man of narrow vision and a particular sense of duty; to Jessup there's two ways of doing things: His way and the wrong way. He's a man who-- as he says-- eats breakfast three hundred yards away from the enemy, and he's not about to let a couple of lawyers in dress whites intimidate him. And that's exactly the attitude Nicholson brings to this role. When he speaks, you not only hear him loud and clear, you believe him. It's a powerful performance and, as you would expect from Nicholson, entirely convincing and believable.
Cruise, also, gives what is arguably one of the best performances of his career as Kaffee. He perfectly captures the aloofness with which Kaffee initially regards the case, as well as the determination with which he pursues it later. Cruise is convincing in the role, and some of the best scenes in the film are the ones he plays opposite Nicholson in the courtroom, the most memorable being one in which Kaffee exclaims to Jessup, "I want the truth!" to which Jessup replies, "You can't handle the truth!" And the atmosphere fairly crackles.
Moore is outstanding, as well, and she manages to hold her own and make her presence felt even in the scenes dominated by Nicholson and Cruise. It's a fine piece of acting by Moore, who deserves more than just a passing mention for it. Also turning in notable performances are Pollak, whose dry humor adds such an extra touch to the film, and Wolfgang Bodison, who makes an impressive screen debut as Lance Corporal Dawson, on of the Marines on trial for the murder of Santiago.
The supporting cast includes Kiefer Sutherland (Kendrick), Kevin Bacon (Ross), James Marshall (Downey), J.T. Walsh (Markinson), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Hammaker) and Christopher Guest (Dr. Stone). A powerful drama, superbly delivered by Reiner, "A Few Good Men" is a thought provoking, unforgettable motion picture that makes you take pause for a moment to consider some things that are for the most part out of sight and out of mind. Like who is on that wall tonight, and are we safe because of him. And it makes you reflect upon some things perhaps too often taken for granted. And that's what really makes this film so good; and it's all a part of the magic of the movies.
(1) The Tom Cruise character constantly smarts off to the Demi Moore character. His boss. His superior officer. He's a lowly Lieutenant, she's a Lieutenant Commander. In other words, he's a company grade officer; she's a field grade officer. This is a big deal in the military. My experience dealing with women of rank in the military is that, having invaded and excelled in a male dominated field of endeavor, they tend to be very concerned the men under their command won't respect them. Therefore, they DEMAND you respect them. But every time Moore tells Cruise to do something he ignores her, every time she gives him an order he has some smartass comeback and he refuses. And she just takes it. No woman who'd risen to the rank of Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy could be such a milquetoast. Forget for a moment she's a woman. ANY officer worth their salt would have yanked Cruise bald the first time he lipped off. Metaphorically speaking (probably).
Finally, he pops off to her in front of the Nicholson character, who says to him, "You know, I just realized something. She outranks you." At which point, sitting there in the darkened theatre, I muttered to myself, "Thank God someone in this movie finally noticed that."
(2) The entire premise of the movie is bogus. Okay, two young Marines have beaten a fellow Marine, and because of a previously undetected medical problem he dies. So far so good. BUT the Cruise character, a JAG officer of years of experience, believes that if he can prove they were ordered to beat the dead Marine, they'll be let off. Because they were only following orders. Which is what soldiers/Marines are supposed to do, right? And Moore, with even greater experience than he, agrees. So we've got Tom Cruise, working and slaving and agonizing over how he's going to prove Kiefer Sutherland ordered these two Marines to beat another Marine, and that Jack Nicholson knew about it.
Uno-teeny-tiny problemo. According to military law, no military member has a duty to obey an unlawful order. On my first day in Basic Training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, they taught us that "I was just following orders" is not a valid defense if you break military law, that being ordered to break the law does not relieve you of the moral and intellectual responsibility to realize what you're being told to do is wrong, and refuse to do it. As a matter of fact, one of the first things - literally - they taught me in the Army was how to refuse an illegal order without being insubordinate. But Cruise - who should know better - figures if he can prove these guys WERE ordered to commit the actions that resulted in manslaughter he can skate them free. In the real world, any JAG officer with two brain cells to rub together knows that's not the case. Realistically, at most, he can take Sutherland and Nicholson down with them, for their part in the crime, but there's no way on God's green earth his clients aren't going to be convicted. But he doesn't realize that. And he should.
This was obviously a movie written and directed by people who've never been in the military, who don't understand how the military, and military law, works. This is a fatal flaw in a movie dealing with the military, and military law. They believe that soldiers/Marines are dogged robots who just mindlessly follow orders. And if you can prove they were following orders, they can't be held accountable for their actions. False. I've heard the attitude that the end of this movie, when the two Marines are convicted and sentenced for their actions, is a horrible, horrible thing. It's not. It's what would have happened in a real military trial. At least they got that much right.
On the other hand, Jack Nicholson as a hardcore Marine full bird Colonel (talk about casting against type) is worth two stars all on his own.
Classic movie, one of Tom's best.....and Jack was classic Jack! I would recommend this to anyone, a must if you have not watched before, and and very good... Read more
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