The Judge

Living in the shadow of his father, Judge Joseph Palmer, (Robert Duvall) estranged son and hot-shot lawyer, Hank Palmer (Robert Downey Jr.) returns to his hometown to help bury his mother. While here, Joseph and Hank struggle to keep their dislike for each other to keep from boiling over. After the funeral, Joseph is accused of striking and killing a person with his car who he had, earlier in life, shown a great disdain for. Hank decides to try and help fight for Joseph's innocence as prosecutor Dwight Dickham (Billy Bob Thornton) pushes for Joseph to be charged for murder.

A passion project for Robert Downey Jr, as he is the star and his production team helped get the film made, The Judge tries to balance a film that wants to be equal parts dysfunctional family comedy and court room drama. Director David Dobkin struggles to maintain a solid balance in the film; resulting in a movie that never really knows what it wants to be. The only thing The Judge know what it wants is for every nearly every scene to be blown out with light as if they hired a second-rate Robert Richardson (sorry, Janusz Kaminski).

Hank is what you would expect Robert Downey Jr. to be playing, as of late. He is brash and fast-talking (is there any other lawyer in film?) while Joseph is stern and cold to Hank. Hank's brothers Glen and Dale (Vincent D'Onofrio and Jeremy Strong) are much closer to Joseph, having stayed in town while Hank left and went to law school. The strained relationship between Joseph and Hank fuels most of the film's verbal dynamics, yet comes off as more forced than a natural relationship.

While in town, Hank is going through a divorce and tries to rekindle a past romance with Sam, (Vera Farmiga) who owns the local diner. The constitutes an added subplot, along with Sam's daughter (another subplot) that feels shoehorned into the story to try and make Hank sympathetic, yet antagonistic at the same time. Sam comes and goes from the film as the screenplay needs and never pulls you in as it should.

The meat of the film comes from Hank and Joseph trying to reconcile their past differences in an attempt for Hank to adequately defend Joseph of the charges levied against him. Along with the previously-mentioned cliches in the film, Joseph also might be suffering from an illness that can cause him to forget pieces of information in his life (including whether or not he killed a person).

The Judge has the right ingredients for a solid film, but the paint-by-numbers screenplay sinks it. Every idea in The Judge rings false and never allows one to invest with the characters or story. Instead the film forcefully tugs on the heartstrings of the audience when they want you to cry or tickle your funny bone when they want you to laugh. The Judge tries to manipulate the audience into feeling what you should feel instead of just letting the film naturally flow and letting the audience share the film's emotions naturally.

4.1/10

Jack Reacher

Tom Cruise re-teams with Christopher McQuarrie to bring the literary character Jack Reacher to the big screen.

I have never read any book involving the character of Jack Reacher, including 'One Shot', which this film used as the basis. So, not being able to compare and contrast the book versus the film, I will solely be reviewing the film on its own merits.

After a sniper guns down five people in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the sniper is easily tracked down. Using crime scene evidence, this appears to be an open and shut case. During his interrogation, the sniper, James Barr (Joseph Sikora) writes down "Get Jack Reacher".

We learn that Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) is a ghost. There is little information on him, and most of it comes in the form of his military history. Jack Reacher shows up and almost immediately teams up with Barr's defense attorney Helen Rodin (Rosamund Pike). Helen is just trying to ensure that Barr gets a fair trial while her father, District Attorney Alex Rodin (Richard Jenkins) feels that this case is a slam dunk.

As such with a film like this, the case isn't a slam dunk and Jack Reacher begins to find evidence that may free Barr. Jack uses his intelligence and wit to overcome obstacles that are continually thrown his way in an effort to avert him from saving Barr. In typical Tom Cruise fashion, action, fists and one-liners are thrown out in a fury with most landing for good shots.

Writer and director Christopher McQuarrie makes an old-school feeling solid action/mystery film. McQuarrie's script is a little too generous with wrapping things up in a neat little package, though. As an action film, though, you could do much, MUCH worse. There are no humongous set pieces or large amounts of gaudy CGI continuously hitting you over the head. This is a solid, stripped-down, yet somewhat forgettable action film. Christopher McQuarrie provides a few action set pieces that do not feel over the top (with the exception of a fist fight in the rain) and doesn't try to 'wow' you with whatever new CGI creation that was devised this week. Instead, the action is solid, just like the performances.

Jack Reacher does not really stand out amongst other characters that Tom Cruise has played before. He is secretive, but a solid good guy who wants things to be done right... even if he is the only one who can do it that way. Jack Reacher follows a solid code of conduct, and with the exception of a car chase, adheres to what he believes in. Granted, as he never seems to fear what he is getting in to, there really is no threat that anything bad is going to happen to him.

Jack Reacher is nothing grandiose, but also nothing gratuitous either. Just a good old fashioned action/thriller. And sometimes that is all you need.

7.3/10