Jason Bourne was a diabolical mess. And with last year’s 007’s Spectre to nowhere be talked about even around its release, you know things haven’t been looking up for the Spy genre. Now, with the character Jack Reacher, it’s an entirely different ballgame for the genre and let me tell you why.
Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher series has received fame along with fortune for his work. And with an A-list actor like Tom Cruise leading his main character after its commercial success as a book (a 100 million copies of 20 novels sold around the world to be exact), calling it anything less than ordinary would be quite a negative stretch. Although, the first film kind of was. Being another cliched action flick with a more or less unsettling protagonist is not what we all need, for the millionth time.
Enter Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.
Things are difficult for the independent drifter, who is quite adamant to not serve his country again, because “the uniform did not fit one morning”. Fortunately, his belly was not behind that trick, as Never Go Back continues to explain more.
With the not-so-suitable-for-the-role actor Tom Cruise filling old boots, you would think this sequel would focus only a conspiracy theory just like its predecessor. It does and does a tad bit more. Apparently, the power of love is at large once again. Woven into a web of lies created by the film’s antagonists exists How I Met Your Mother’s Cobie Smulders who proves she has become quite the bad-ass after she left Ted for The Avengers.
Fortunately, and for good reason considering they want to change the game of introductions we see in the beginning of this story, it is a phone call that attracts Reacher to her, and gets pulled into the conspiracy against her. If you’ve been looking for different, this is it.
The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond and Pawn Sacrifice’s director Edward Zwick replaces Christopher McQuarrie (who worked on the latest instalment in the Mission Impossible franchise) and chooses to add more cards to the deck as opposed to flaunting new ones.
Being quite the visionary storyteller, his past films are living proof. And if not that, he is well known for making his films quite memorable. Unfortunately, he dropped the ball with this one.
Picking up where someone left off could either go really well or just completely disastrous. It’s easy to look at someone else’s work and take it up a notch, or, get drowned with its original ideas by maintaining the style, presence and absolute rhythm. Zwick brings us the latter mostly.
With a story that starts off with with a slick of an introduction that lets both characters cross paths along with the birth of the conspiracy, it’s followed by the will to intervene, do the right thing and throw about quirky talk. Oh yeah, Reacher was on one hell of a roll.
Unfortunately, that story starts to waver along the way, as much as it was quite clear. More often than not, the film feels like it borrows heavily from other spy films, acting as a compilation of Hollywood’s greatest blockbusters. Spy films have certain standards. You have a protagonist, usually a misunderstood one who finds his way into a mess or with a messy past, brutal interrogations and mind-blowing action sequences because we all like that a boom more than often. Zwick had it all, used it yet let McQuarrie’s style be more prevalent as opposed to bringing something new to the table.
Mostly, it’s always about the storyline. On occasions, engaging visuals compensate for a lack of thereof. The film didn’t even have that. While they can’t be called anything but mild, the action sequences, mainly hand to hand fights were woven in well but were quite forgettable.
If you’re expecting an ex-military general to have a more than pleasant personality after his “cold war”, think again. Brutality and respect travel with him like a pleasant aroma, to all of which people respond positively to. And here’s where Zwick had his shiny moment. Tackling Reacher’s past mildly was quite an interesting direction to take it. Human qualities emerge fortunately for a lone ranger such as himself. Still confused? This one tidbit shall not be disclosed for this review. Let’s just say no one will see it coming.
Back at it again with its pseudo-Bourne feel, Jack Reacher:Never Go Back does what its title states and continues to establish itself as light-hearted and careless about what happens to anyone feel. Tonally speaking, it sets it aside from other big spy franchises, by being less vigorous to the eye. This sequel doesn’t take the franchise either down or up but moves along with advancements to nothing but the fact that it’s labelled a sequel. Let’s hope in his next outing, Reacher wakes up as someone other than Cruise.
So, if you’re in the mood for a mellow action film that inherits most of its look from past action ballers, you’re going to enjoy this one, which I personally did.
Review tickets were supplied by Novo Cinemas.
