Astonishingly, Jack Nicholson's legendary performance as a military tough guy in A Few Good Men really amounts to a glorified cameo: he's only in a few scenes. But they're killer scenes, and the film has much more to offer. A US soldier is dead, and military lawyers Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) and Lieutenant Commander JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore) want to know who killed him. "You want the truth?" snaps Colonel Jessup (Nicholson). "You can't handle the truth!". Cruise also shines as a lazy lawyer who rises to the occasion, and Demi Moore gives a command performance. Kevin Bacon, Kiefer Sutherland, JT Walsh and Cuba Gooding Jr round out the superb cast. Director Rob Reiner poses important questions about the rights of the powerful and the responsibilities of those just following orders in this classic courtroom drama. --Alan Smithee, Amazon.com

Tom Cruise (Mission Impossible) stars as Lt Daniel Kaffee, a man who is up against the odds when he stands as lawyer for two marines who are charged with the murder of another marine.

A consistent plot with terrific acting from an a-list cast, A Few Good Men depicts the loyalties and values of life in the army and the navy exceptionally well with the issues involved including following orders, doing the right thing and friendship all executed well by Rob Reiner (When Harry met Sally).

The opening scene of soldiers standing to order and operating there guns one by one is a remarkable piece of intelligence and exquisiteness and shows what you learn in such places, which this film does exceptionally well. The direction and script picks out the necessities for viewers to gain a good understanding of procedures, orders and life that takes place in the army and navy and makes the film more enjoyable because it does so, to give viewers a chance to gain an insight will make you happy when you have finished your viewing of this Oscar nominated picture.

Cruise is on top form as Lt Daniel Kaffee, a wise cracking intelligent young man and his determination and playful antics with his baseball bat are great to watch and this performance is matched by Oscar nominated Nicholson (Chinatown) who gives his usual best in perhaps one of his underrated performances of his career as Col Jessop, the intelligent and patriotic man who brings a sense of control and sophistication to the role.

Demi Moore (Ghost) Kevin Bacon (Wild things) and Kiefer Sutherland (24) all give good performances in their respective rolls, Sutherland in particular.

Though there is a lot of characters to contain with and perhaps too much going on at once on occasions there is no question that this is a wonderful political drama with terrific acting, direction and contains the right moral to make it a great picture.

8.5/10

A Few Good Men is Aaron Sorkin's film adaptation of his play about a court martial preceding involving the murder of a low-ranking soldier in a unit in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Tom Cruise does a very average acting job playing himself basically. He is a hot-shot marine defense lawyer who is given the case of the accidental murder of a young soldier involving an order from a high-ranking colonel, Nathan R. Jessup (Jack Nicholson). The film is a lot like the play and the dialogue is the same in a lot of cases. Jack Nicholson steals the film as the tough-as-nails marine colonel with a smart mouth and a attitude to never take crap from anyone. Demi Moore is average at best (she's also annoying), while the supporting cast including Kevin Pollack, Kevin Bacon, J.T. Walsh, Kiefer Sutherland and Christopher Guest is amazing. If you are looking for a spellbinding courtroom thriller, and don't mind some poor performances from Tom Cruise and Demi Moore, you can't go wrong with 'A Few Good Men'.

Can Daniel Kaffee defend the honour of 2 Marines who "murder" a fellow jarhead after a direct order- "code red"...the truth is....YOU CANT HANDLE THE TRUTH.

This is a classic film and you dont need to be a tom cruise fan to find it totally watchable.

...A Few Good Men is one of the best courtroom dramas ever. "The truth" is that Jack Nicholson steals the show even though Tom Cruise puts in one of the best performances of his career. The only thing that lets it down is Demi Moores slightly poor performance, but in any other flick this would have been a decent performance such is the standard of acting in this film. In fact every single "actor" who appeared in the joint BBC/HBO production of "Rome" should be made to sit through this film, paying particular attention to Kevin Pollack, Cuba Gooding & Kevin Bacon's supporting performances.
This film simply must be bought, and funded by the sale of the "Rome" box set I know a lot of you own...

I found this film absolutely amazing on all levels. A superb cast and great story with so many issues to consider. I have watched it several times and always find something new. Although all the performances were wonderful I felt that this has to be Demi Moores finest work. I am at a loss to understand the negative feedback of a couple of the reviews - were they watching a different film ?