Tom Cruise steps back into the shoes of Jack Reacher, the character created by author Lee Child. Based on Child’s novel Never Go Back, the former army major is framed and hunted, and he is on the run from a private arms dealership.
Reacher gets entangled in this mess when he decides to protect his friend and supporter in the army, Major Susan Turner (Cobie Smulders). Turner and Reacher share a warm banter and flirtatious telephonic friendship which Reacher hopes might have romantic potential. But his arrival in Washington DC to meet Turner coincides with her recent arrest. Reacher believes in Turner’s integrity and loyalty which sucks him in to a dangerous situation where they are being pursued by highly trained former military police and army men.
In the midst of all the hiding, chasing and shooting Reacher is conflicted and troubled by a paternity suit and the possibility of having a 15-year-ld daughter who he has never met before.
The action shifts from DC to New Orleans as Turner and Reacher work tirelessly to clear the former’s name, protect Samantha (Danika Yarosh) and blow the lid on a major government conspiracy.
Logic has to be discarded while watching this convenient and tired thriller where Cruise seems to be going through the motions as a wandering vigilante, while Smulders and Yarosh over-think their parts.
Early in the film a character asks Reacher, “Who are you?” Reacher replies, “The guy you didn’t count on.” Director Edward Zwick pads out this one-liner with more quips, adrenaline pumping fights and more than capable adversaries to test Reacher’s abilities. You are almost willing to forgive the cheesy emotional climax especially when it ends with Cruise’s electric smile. This one’s for Reacher, Cruise and Child fans alone.
