Rules of Engagement – Movie Review
ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – R
Director: William Friedkin
Writer: Jim Webb, Stephen Gaghan (Screenplay)
Cast
- Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
- Samuel L Jackson (The Avengers)
- Guy Pearce (Memento)
- Ben Kingsley (Gandhi)
- Bruce Greenwood (The Core)
- Anne Archer (The Art of War)
Plot: An attorney defends an officer on trial for ordering his troops to fire on civilians after they stormed a U.S. embassy in a Middle Eastern country.
Runtime: 2 Hours 8 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Rules of Engagement starts when decorated Colonel Terry Childers (Jackson) is assigned an extraction order in Yemen. However, the mission has complications leading to the soldiers’ fire on a group of civilians. Back home, Bill Sokal (Greenwood) leads an investigation into the incident that has created tensions between the US and the Middle East.
Terry turns to his oldest friend Colonel Hayes Hodges (Jones) to defend him from his court-martial. Bill recruits Major Biggs (Pearce) to lead the prosecution and is looking to lock the case and be convicted quickly. Hayes conducts his investigation before the trial gets underway.
Verdict on Rules of Engagement
Rules of Engagement is a thriller following a reluctant lawyer defending his military friend. He is accused of murdering a group of civilians, but deep down there is a wide conspiracy in play.
This courtroom drama brings to life the sensitive nature of military operations. It shows how they can spiral out of control and innocent people can be killed. This movie does a good job of showing the tension between the two lawyers through the trial. However, it does something different, it makes the prosecution lawyer Biggs somebody honourable and good at their job. For the most part, we usually despise the person trying to take down the person being charged. However, the people who hire him are the enemies of the case and those who could decide the case. It takes some strange directions as the courtroom sequences can take a backseat to the wider conspiracy unfolding in the movie. However, the all-star cast helps drive the story forward.
Where to Watch
JustWatch
Final Thoughts – Rules of Engagement is a tense courtroom drama.
