CREDIT: PARAMOUNT PICTURES
The slickness of the new Jack Reacher installment is simultaneously its most worthy and detrimental feature.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is an action thriller film starring Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher, an ex military major who leads a drifter-like lifestyle until he discovers that his comrade Maj. Susan Turner has been arrested and accused of espionage related to the murder of two soldiers in Afghanistan.

Confident that Maj. Turner is being framed, Jack Reacher embarks on a vigilante journey on the run from the military seeking justice for Turner, and in the process connects with Samantha Dayton, a teenage girl who might be Reacher’s daughter.

Never Go Back is stylish and modern in a way that feels like it isn’t trying to hard to conform too or establish a trendy aesthetic. The film has a natural colouration, which provides pleasant realism in contrast to popular gloomy filtering effects meant to reflect a dark or serious tone. The realistic look of Never Go Back makes it easier to believe and get immersed in the world that the movie takes place in.

Scenes in this movie are mostly composed of shots from various angles edited together, all of which are carefully composed to be visually pleasing and interesting no matter how brief they may be. The shots cut back and forth at a swift pace, lingering during emotional or suspenseful moments, and becoming more rapid during intense action moments, though never in a flashy or distracting manner. The constant variety helps to sustain attention and keeps things engaging.

There are a good deal of close ups that create an intimacy with the characters that allows the viewer to fully take in the facial expressions, reactions and body language of the actors which in turn allows a great deal of communication to take place without words.

The dynamic between main characters Reacher, Turner and Dayton feels natural. You can sense chemistry and experience a dimension of believability that happens when an actor really understands who their character is and can channel this. The same can be said for Patrick Heusinger who portrays an intense, sadistic assassin in pursuit of Reacher with a passion that is transfixing.

Unfortunately the outstanding cast is brought down considerably by overdone dialogue. Everyone in this movie is a one-liner robot that always has the perfect, cool thing to say calculated using an algorithm to determine the most succinct possible response that prompts a chain of clever back and forth dialogue while moving the plot along at an ideal pace. There is never a moment that feels like a genuine, flawed human interaction. The threshold of corniness is breached; no one actually talks like these people.

The fight choreography in Never Go Back is great and the frequency of action sequences is ideal. They are spaced out just enough that they retain full impact while not letting things get boring in the meantime, assuring that the film successfully avoids the action movie trap of feeling like an excuse for explosions and violence. Every action sequence takes a different approach in exploring the power struggles between characters while playing with audience expectations. There is no formula to catch onto which keeps the fights feeling real, exciting and unpredictable.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is a fun, stylish action movie with a great cast that finds clever ways to avoid common action movie pitfalls, though you might find yourself rolling your eyes at some of the dialogue.