The story follows a young lawyer's plight to defend two marines accused of murder. He takes a risk by calling Col. Nathan R to the stands for questioning after the commander tries to make the case go undercover.
A brisk and familiar courtroom drama of the old school, as pleasant to watch as it is predictable, Men more than anything else is a tribute to pure star power.
As a courtroom drama, it manages to overcome its shortcomings -- some fairly ridiculous dialogue, implausible situations and predictable plot points -- with the pure screen power of its stars.
As you may have suspected, Jack Nicholson steals the show. His Col. Nathan Jessep isn't in a lot of scenes, but when he's there, you can't take your eyes off him.
The literally in-your-face camera work can easily expose an actor's weaknesses, but, with the lens framed on Nicholson's bulldog visage, he lets loose with volcanic fury. His demagoguery and gung-ho self-righteousness are something to behold.
More than competent are Moore, spared from what would have been a phony romantic involvement with Cruise, Kevin Bacon as a prosecutor and Kiefer Sutherland as a by-the-book Marine.
It's a very watchable picture, with plenty of drama and some good laughs. But you can't forget for a moment that Reiner is taking your emotions on a carefully guided tour.
By pitting Cruise against Nicholson in the film`s final courtroom confrontation, Sorkin and Reiner are pitting two notions of masculinity and two notions of stardom against each other.
