Being the huge Kiefer Sutherland fan that I am (and this is long before 24 was ever on the air), the movie A Few Good Men has always been among my favorites.

Imagine my disappointment at the poor quality of this DVD. There was no widescreen format, so many scenes were shown with "pan-n-scan", meaning that since all of what was going on couldn't be shown on the square television screen, the people who created the DVD (and probably the VHS version as well) cut off one side and shifted the view over to that side when they felt the situation warranted it.

However, I found this to be very distracting and poorly done. Scenes which should have been sharp were blurry, and after a while the movement was annoying. I was very happy to find out that there is a Special Edition available. This is done in anamorphic widescreen and comes with audio commentary by the director Rob Reiner, a featurette on the making of the movie with Aaron Sorkin and Reiner, theatric trailer, still photo gallery, and filmography. I highly recommend that you forget about buying any version other than that.

Call the President... We're surrendering our position in Cuba...

This movie centers around the death of a Marine during a ritual known as a Code Red at the base in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The higher up in the Judge Advocate General's Office want this essentially swept under the rug. They don't assign Lt. Commander Joanne Galloway (Demi Moore) to the case as she is too much of a crack investigator. Instead, they opt for Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) who has a reputation for coasting along and opting for a plea bargain rather than going to court.

A Code Red is used to get a soldier who is floundering back in line. It is somewhere between a hazing ritual and a disciplinary action. Everyone seems to know it's out there but doesn't want to talk about it.

Galloway pushes Kaffee to investigate rather than plea bargain it down. When Kaffee interviews the two Marines charged with the crime, Private First Class Louden Downey (James Marshall) and Lance Corporal Harold Dawson (Wolfgang Bodison) they also refuse the plea bargain. This launches an investigation which culminates in a confrontation in the courtroom between Kaffee and the Commander of the base in Cuba, Colonel Nathan Jessup (Jack Nicholson).

I like all you Navy boys. Every time we gotta go some place to fight, you give us a ride...

What this movie has is an incredibly strong script, career-making acting performances, and very strong directing. This was a stage play before it was a movie, and Aaron Sorkin did a tremendous job. After viewing The West Wing for three seasons, the writing is on a caliber I am used to from him. The dialogue between the characters is fast but meaningful. The humor is dry and acerbic at times.

Sorkin manages to create each character as a very distinct person, and they are revealed slowly throughout the film. All the Marines are not carbon-copies of each other, and neither are the JAG lawyers By the end of the film, I felt that I had a pretty good feeling for what these people are like.

And it doesn't just show the investigation and court case. Sorkin also conveys background on the characters such as on Kaffee's living in the shadow of his father, a former Attorney General. The third lawyer in the defense trio is Lt. Sam Weinberg, portrayed by Kevin Pollack. I liked his character a lot, even though he wasn't in the forefront most of the time. He is a man conflicted, as he sees what the two Marines on trial as being nothing more than "beating up on a weakling". The conflict with in Weinberg is overshadowed by the performances by Cruise and Moore, but the point gets across. We get the feeling that Weinberg sees that he could easily have been on the receiving end of a Code Red and maybe has had his own struggles in his life.

Unit - Corps - God - Country

All the talk of "Code" and "Honor" made me fell like I was right at home. It sounds a lot of the way the Klingons on Star Trek talk. Sorkin has a good feel for the discipline needed, but he also portrays the Marines as individuals. As the trial wears on, we learn that Dawson has a very sympathetic side and I couldn't imagine him setting out to kill someone - no matter how he felt about them as a person. We see Downey as a follower, not too bright, who needs the discipline and regimentation that the Marine Corps. offers him.

Sutherland, on the other hand, while giving a fantastic performance, seems to be priming for the character of Freddie Lee Cobb which he will portray in A Time To Kill. In fact, the characters come off as so similar I wonder if that's what could have happened to Lt. Jonathan Kendrick after he leaves the Corps. He also gets some of the best lines in the film which he gives a dry and acerbic edge. How much is just poking fun and how much is serious contempt?

The performances by Cruise and Moore are the best performances of their careers, in my opinion. Moore is a woman in a man's world - breaking ground and still dealing with the old prejudices; trying to prove herself and yet being subjected to a treatment which gives new meaning to "sexual harassment". Cruise portrays a man dealing with his past, but in a subtle way. He is trying to find his place in the world, and yet that never overshadows the main story going on in the film.

In between Colonel Jessup and Lt. Kendrick is the executive officer, Lt. Colonel Markinson, portrayed by J.T. Walsh. Here is a man very conflicted between what is right morally and what is right for the Corps. We see very little of him, but what we do see is tremendous. He is a pivotal man in the film, riding the fence between the two sides, and his own conscience catching up to him.

Watch for quick scenes with Noah Wyle (in his pre-ER day) and Cuba Gooding Jr. (in his pre-Jerry Maguire days) as marines. Wyle especially has a part as a good-ol' boy type who just does as he's told and thinks nothing of whatever measures the Corps. has to take to make a good soldier.

You want answers?"
I want the truth!
You can't handle the truth!

As the trial wears on, it does seem that there are plenty of holes in the story that has been given. One thing we are never told is what the standard is in a court-martial. Is it a preponderance of evidence? Reasonable doubt? I think even without Jessup's testimony, there is reasonable doubt.

But without his testimony, we miss one of the greatest scenes in movie history and one of the greatest performances by Jack Nicholson. He is perfect as Colonel Jessup, almost daring Kaffee to come at him in the trial. Every scene Jessup is in he is the center of the scene; he is the man in charge and doesn't like taking orders or nonsense from anyone. He knows what has to be done and gets it done - using whatever methods he has to employ.

And he doesn't see anything wrong with that...

And Nicholson makes us believe him. Nicholson is Jessup in every way during his performance. It is no surprise at all that Nicholson won a Best Supporting Oscar for this role.

I think this is also the best bit of directing that Reiner has ever done. Whether it is because he had a dream cast and a wonderful script to work from which made it all come together so well may be debatable. However, the pacing and drama of the film is perfect.


Other Kiefer Sutherland movie reviews:



Chicago Joe and the Showgirl ~ The Cowboy Way ~ Dead Heat ~ Desert Saints ~ Ground Control ~ Lost Boys ~ Picking Up the Pieces ~ The Right Temptation ~ Ring of Fire ~ The Three Musketeers


© 2002 Patti Aliventi

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age