Jack Reacher - Never Go Back...Again

[Jesse Frank]

I saw the second Jack Reacher a couple weeks ago, and I've been hearing a lot of negative feedback about the film since then. Personally I enjoyed the film very much, but I would very much like to hear the opinions of others.

 

I'm not here to judge anyone about why they didn't enjoy the movie, but I am here to understand what modern audiences and filmmakers are looking for in a big budget film. I saw To Kill A Mocking Bird just last night, and LOVED it! Truly a masterpiece, both in cinematography and in performances. Jack Reacher doesn't hold a candle to it obviously.

[Shawn Martin]

Saw it the night it was released. I thought it was terrible and made the first movie, which I loved, look like The Godfather.

 

The Plain Jane script with its tired, beaten-to-death-by-CBS-procedurals cliches about private military contractors, the hacky daddy-needs-a-new-beach-house score by Henry Jackman, the detour to New Orleans in search of tax breaks, one of the few decent shots the whole thing - the heroes running on the tarmac in the airport while the villains run by windows in the airport up above - marred by a glaring reflection of the dolly in those windows...

 

A big waste of time all-around. I think Edward Zwick was in the market for a beach house too, because I can't see why else he'd put his time and name on this. Definitely the worst of his, and Cruise's, movies that I've seen.

[Jesse Frank]

I do agree with you on many of those points. Something that I thought was odd is how much I related to the cinematography in this film. What I mean by that is if I had been asked to be the cinematographer, I would have shot it very similarly.

 

Now if I had been the director, I do not believe the film would be any better, I actually believe it would be worse. The reason I say that is because I am stuck in this mentality of cool shots equals great movie. The few short films I've made in the past have lacked in any kind of a decent script. Normally when I watch movies I get caught up in the framing and exposure instead of the story. I cut studios way too much slack in the script area, simply because I am terrible at writing and its not my expertise.

 

We are in the age of pointless sequels and prequels. Jack Reacher 2 was just another cash grab.

 

Since we are talking about this, I'd like to hear your say on Jason Bourne. It's probably the worst film I've seen since Transformers.

 

(Thank you for replying to my post, because frankly I need to hear other peoples opinions)