Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
When cocky military lawyer Lt. Daniel Kaffee and his co-counsel, Lt. Cmdr. JoAnne Galloway, are assigned to a murder case, they uncover a hazing ritual that could implicate high-ranking officials such as shady Col. Nathan Jessep.
A Few Good Men is carried overwhelmingly by its performances — Nicholson's 'You can't handle the truth' courtroom confrontation is one of cinema's most iconic moments, and the ensemble including Cruise, Demi Moore, and Kevin Bacon is uniformly strong, earning a well above average acting score. The ending courtroom climax is genuinely electrifying and satisfying, justifying a top mark. The plot, adapted from Sorkin's stage play, is solid and well-constructed but fairly conventional as a legal thriller — no major surprises in structure. Cinematography is functional and competent but unremarkable, serving the material without distinction. Novelty is the weakest dimension: the film is a by-the-numbers courtroom drama in structure, and while the military setting adds some flavor, it doesn't reinvent or distinctively distinguish itself from the genre in conception or voice beyond its exceptional cast and Sorkin's sharp dialogue.