Jack Reacher yes,no, maybe so

[Captaindemotion]

To some extent, it doesn't really matter where you start, as they're all pretty much standalone, though there is a bit of an ongoing arc between three of the last four books, namely 61 Hours, Worth Dying for and A Wanted Man. The Affair, the second most recent book, is a prequel, set in 1997 during Reacher's last days in the army (about 6 months before the events in Killing Floor, the first in the series, and thus the arc doesn't apply. Also, the third and fourth books in the series also sort of follow on from each other and if you read the fourth before the third (as I did) it sort of spoils you for the ending of the third. But the fourth doesn't spoil you for the 5th book, if you know what I mean.

The Enemy, the 8th book in the series, is set in 1990, about 7 years before Killing Floor, when Reacher is still in the army and is an alternative starting point to KF. It's also better than The Affair, which I thought was a little disappointing, as was A Wanted Man.

Killing Floor and Die Trying, the second in the series, are both good, but it was around the third novel where Lee Child really hit gold with the formula, IMHO.

 

[StolenThunder]

I really enjoyed it. I agree with the comment of Captaindemotion above in that it could easily have been made in the 70s, attitude and feeling wise.

And ooft, Rosamund Pike!

 

[Trekker4747]

I wasn't too impressed by her in this movie, really. Physically, at least. She has the Spooky Eyes most of the time and the rest of the time eyes like someone was jamming a rod up her ass.

She's certainly an attractive woman, but I didn't much like her or her character in the movie.

 

[Captaindemotion]

^My view rarely strayed above her chest, truth be told. If we'd been meeting in person, she would continually have been going 'Eyes are up here, Mister!'

 

[Captain Craig]

Thanks Captaindemotion, in that case I'll just make sure that the first book I read isn't the 4th book. Probably just try for One Shot or Killing Floor to start with.

 

[Captaindemotion]

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/tom-cruises-jack-reacher-sequel-412465

So, it seems that there were too many 'No' answers, or at least insufficient 'yes' ones to turn Reacher into a franchise. Aragorn's prediction about the series being rebooted with Tyler Perry may not have been too far off the mark!

Implications here for Tom's star power or was this just the wrong vehicle for him? Might this have Reached (hoho) a wider audience with someone more suited to the character from the book or does the fact that a megastar like Cruise couldn't guarantee success just go to prove that literary success doesn't always mean filmic success (we're looking at you Jack Ryan)? And is there less and less room for old-fashioned mid-range thrillers, that only Denzil seems to make any more?

 

[Star Wolf]

I think they overestimated the reach and popularity of the book franchise. From what was on screen there was nothing new about the character from the silent stranger to playing Martin Riggs in the showdown.. I doubt having The Rock play Jack Reacher would have made any difference

 

[Captain Craig]

That's too bad, I'd enjoy another installment.

It also goes to show that no matter how many times you hear some internet faceless poster scream that a movie has to make 2.5x budget to get a sequel or be deemed profitable you can laugh it off. It's not even rule of thumb. If that were true you'd think a film that cost $60m to make would be fine then with $150m-$175m worldwide. However that article is citing inside sources saying it needs $250m worldwide to ensure a sequel. That's a little over 4x budget for the film.

It's just over $150m ww now, and as much as Cruise has a following in the Asian markets getting another $100m seems to be, well...an impossible mission.

 

[Gaith]

Is there less and less room for old-fashioned mid-range thrillers, that only Denzel seems to make any more?

Why spend ~ 4 hours and more than ten bucks on a trip to a 2+ hour movie when the content (brooding crime drama with an emphasis on twisty plots and wisecracks) looks like any of the dozens of cop/quasi-cop dramas airing every night? Why not wait a few months and Redbox it for $1.30 instead?

And does there need to be more than one Jack Reacher movie? Is the character so complex, and his story so nuanced, that a single movie more than half an longer than Casablanca can't do him justice?

... Or was the aging star of Mission: Impossible rather trying to score a similar payout on a much easier, domestic shoot? Did he and Paramount hope they'd found a Twilight-meets-Saw sort of perpetual cash motion machine?

It seems to me that if Cruise wants to keep making M:I-sized checks, he's got to keep making M:I-sized movies.

 

[Captaindemotion]

^I think you're probably right on most, if not all grounds. The likes of HBO offer entertainment on a par with many movies nowadays. And as I said before, this did seem an odd choice for Tom for his new potential franchise.

As for Reacher's character, well, no-one is saying that he needs to be analysed over many movies (indeed, his simplicity is one of his main points of appeal). But I do think that the stories are strong enough for cinematic adaptation (though I'd still prefer a HBO ongoing adaptation.

I'd have liked to see an ongoing series of movies, with or without Cruise, but clearly it wasn't to be. But hey, there's always the books - or the inevitable reboot!

 

[Aragorn]

Well it looks like the Alex Cross series will be going forward with Tyler Perry despite horrible reviews, probably because the last movie cost very little for a name brand property.

Mitch Rapp and a Jack Ryan reboot are also coming up.

 

[Star Wolf]

I guess that means Tyler Perry is tied up. The Rock is old enough now to play a retired officer and Sheriff Buford Pusser seems to be one and out.

 

[Enterprise is Great]

Mitch Rapp and a Jack Ryan reboot are also coming up.

Hopefully they don't cast Cruise as Mitch Rapp. No knock against Cruise. I like a lot of his movies but he's as wrong for Rapp as he was for Reacher.

 

[Aragorn]

Mitch Rapp and a Jack Ryan reboot are also coming up.

Hopefully they don't cast Cruise as Mitch Rapp. No knock against Cruise. I like a lot of his movies but he's as wrong for Rapp as he was for Reacher.

The hot name rumored a while back for Rapp is Chris Hemsworth (supposedly with a $10 million paycheck), but nothing's come of it yet.

 

[Captain Craig]

Well it looks like the Alex Cross series will be going forward with Tyler Perry despite horrible reviews, probably because the last movie cost very little for a name brand property.

Mitch Rapp and a Jack Ryan reboot are also coming up.

Really? So there will be a second Perry led Alex Cross film? Link, I've not seen that yet. I enjoyed the first one.

Seems wrong that Reacher isn't likely to get a second film after hearing this. It did so much better at the box office.

 

[Captaindemotion]

The next Ryan movie will mark his fourth incarnation, with Baldwin, Ford and Affleck having gone before. I think Reacher is a more compelling and interesting character and I note that the new Ryan movie (called Jack Ryan - unless the fact that Reacher didn't do terribly well alters that) isn't even based on a Tom Clancy novel. I do think that Reacher will, er, reach the big screen again some day.