rules of engagement : Hodges is saved. Childers is a hero and the two men cement afriendship that will stand as a greater honor than anything else inthe Marine Corps. The film moves forward to present day. Colonel HayesHodges is retiring. A career marine, Hodges feels weary and tired,disappointed in not living up to his Father's (Philip Baker Hall)RULES OF ENGAGEMENTDirected by William FriedkinScreenplay by Stephen GaghanWith Samuel L. Jackson, Tommy Lee Jones(Theater) R 123 min. Back in the '70s, when Vietnam was raging and the Young Turkswere blazing a rebellious trail through Hollywood, a tyro auteur likeWilliam Friedkin, with the mantle of European artistic sensibilitydraped stylishly across his shoulders, would have cast a cold eye on ajob of work like "Rules of Engagement". That was then, this is now. Still, a lot of this movie is pretty engaging, if you close youreyes to a smattering of logic-stretchers and wince-makers. Two Marinecolonels, Hayes Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones) and Terry Childers (SamuelL. Jackson), have been buddies since Vietnam, when Childers savedHodges's life. Hodges sustained the leg wound that put him behind alawyer's desk for the rest of his Marine career while Childers went ondistinguishing himself in combat in the world's trouble zones. Then comes Yemen. A protest outside the American embassy turnsugly (we never quite know what it's about.) Childers evacuates theAmerican ambassador (Ben Kingsley) and then, under withering attackand with marines dropping like flies, orders his men to fire on thecrowd. 83 are killed, including a lot of women and children. Noweapons are found among the dead, and a surveillance tape goesmissing. Childers finds himself facing a court-martial. Of course heturns to his old buddy, who of course is retiring, and doesn't wantthe responsibility ("I'm a good enough lawyer to know you need abetter lawyer than me.") What "Rules" would like to be about, and sometimes rises to, is amoral ambiguity in which the boundaries between duty and excess,defensible reaction and overkill, Guadalcanal and My Lai, good andevil, are blurred. The courtroom stuff is good, although the promisedmismatch between the self-described plodder Hodges and the brilliantprosecutor (Guy Pearce) never materializes - Hodges holds his ownnicely. But the story is generously ventillated with holes, andcharacters do things that simply make no sense, and Friedkin grabs atcliches like a contestant asking Regis for a lifeline. It is revealedthat politicians are slimy and unprincipled, that men at arms forgespecial bonds (even if they're on opposing sides), and that, as Pearcepoints out, that "whether a man is charged with murder or hailed as ahero is sometimes a very thin line.." The acting is of the high quality you'd expect from a cast thatincludes Jones and Jackson and Kingsley and Anne Archer. Pearce trieson a Bronx accent, and wears it well. Bruce Greenwood's villainy isoverdone, but the fault is with the filmmaker. Whether a man ishailed as a great director or pilloried as a hack is sometimes a verythin line. And sometimes not so thin.
rules of engagement : Directed by: William FriedkinWritten by: James Webb (story), Stephen Gaghan"Rules of Engagement", the new film from William Friedkin (you remember, theguy who directed "The Exorcist" way back when), is something of an enigma.It's one of those films which is entirely predictable, not particularly wellwritten, and it's all stuff we've seen before. However, there is somethingabout it that holds your attention despite all of this. I suppose it couldbe the two leads, Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson, two of the betteractors working in Hollywood today. It could also be that Friedkin somehowmanages to keep the action going throughout the entire film so that you'renever distracted by having seen all this before. Whatever the reason, "Rulesof Engagement" is one of those bizarre movies like "The 13th Warrior" whichhas no discernible redeeming qualities, but I was incapable of disliking.Colonel Terry Childers (Samuel L. Jackson) is a decorated marine and Vietnamveteran. His latest assignment is to fly into Yemen with a squad of marinesand rescue an ambassador (Ben Kingsley) and his family from protestors atthe American embassy. When the protestors turn violent and marines arekilled, Childers orders his men to open fire on the crowd, killing over 70people. Now he faces a court martial and up to fifteen years in prisonunless he can prove that the crowd had weapons, and he was only returningfire. His attorney is Colonel Hayes Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones), a friend whoselife Childers saved in Vietnam. The prosecuting attorney is the slimy MajorMark Biggs (Guy Pearce), who has been hired on by the even slimier WilliamSokal (Bruce Greenwood), who wants everything pinned on Childers so the UScan save face.
rules of engagement : As I said, this is hardly an original movie since obvious similarities to1992's "A Few Good Men" exist. There are several things besides the lack oforiginality which really hurt this film. One is the absence of a good score.In fact, there is hardly any music at all in "Rules of Engagement". Duringthe courtroom and battle scenes, where the tension is palpable and theaudience is on the edge of their seats, a nice dramatic score would havebeen welcome. Instead, we are given overwhelmingly loud sound effects ofexplosions and gun shots which make it impossible to hear what is beingsaid. On the bright side, the battle scenes are very realistically filmed,especially the opening scene of the skirmish in Vietnam involving Childersand Hodges' unit and a VC squad.The acting in "Rules of Engagement" is certainly the film's high point.Samuel L. Jackson is the perfect choice for his role. A man consumed withpassion (Jackson is at his best when playing a character consumed by"Rules of Engagement" -- Tommy Lee Jones ExoneratesMild Courtroom Dramaby Homer Yen(c) 1999"Rules of Engagement" is a film that starts offpromisingly as a drama that combines the elements offriendship, honor, sacrifice and conspiracy. But justwhen it seems that the power of the film is about tobe unleashed, the movie somehow implodes. It switchesgears in the latter half of the film and becomes adebate about military ethics and codes of conduct,ultimately degenerating into a formulaic militarycourtroom drama. We know that at some point duringthe trial, the accused will slam the podium in frontof him in disgust, stand up, and let forth a roar thatsounds conspicuously like "you can't handle thetruth."
rules of engagement : The film begins with an intense and well-executedVietnam-era battle sequence that introduces us toChilders (Samuel L. Jackson) and Hodges (Tommy LeeJones), two soldiers in the same unit that becomelifelong friends. This battle results in heavycasualties, though these two are lucky enough tosurvive. Hodges finishes out his military career as amildly successful lawyer. Childers, however, hascontinued to serve his country admirably throughseveral dangerous conflicts, and is now a highlydecorated Colonel. The courtroom sequence that I mention above occurs asa result of the actions taken by Childress. He and histroop are sent on a difficult mission to protect aforeign embassy and its diplomat (Ben Kingsley) froman unruly mob. At the scene, rocks are being thrown,bullets are being shot, and firebombs are beingignited. The situation is getting ugly. Childers’men are coming under fire that causes him to issue aquestionable order. This has dire ramifications forhim and for our country. To quell the internationalfuror that has arisen, a conspiracy begins to rear itsugly head. As a result, Childress will becourt-martialed and may face a long prison sentence.
rules of engagement : Childress asks Hodges to defend him. At firstreluctant, Hodges says, "I'm good enough to know thatyou need someone better than me." But it's hard forhim to refuse his lifelong friend. He works quicklyRULES OF ENGAGEMENT (2000) Rated R; running time 123 minutesGenre: Drama IMDB site: Official site: Written by: Stephen Gaghan (based on the story by James Webb)Directed by: William FriedkinStarring: Tommy Lee Jones, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Greenwood, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley, Blair Underwood, Anne Archer, Philip Baker Hall, Nicky Katt, Hayden Tank, Amidou (Dr. Ahmar), Mark Feuerstein (Captain Tom Chandler), Dale Dye (General Perry), Jihane Kortobi (Little Girl) If you had told me this time last week that there was even the most remote chance that I'd damn near fall asleep while watching anything starring acting powerhouses Samuel L. Jackson and Tommy Lee Jones, I would've laughed in your face. The Story (WARNING: **spoilers contained below**):Colonel Terry Childers (Samuel L. Jackson), a highly-decorated, no-nonsense field Marine, is assigned to "babysit" the Ambassador Mourain (Ben Kingsley), his wife (Anne Archer), and their son Justin (Hayden Tank), during a protest by Yemeni citizens at the Yemen Embassy. He sends the terrified Ambassador and his family on their way, and proceeds to try to get the situation under control. But something goes terribly wrong; when the protestors start shooting and killing Marines, Childers orders Captain Lee (Blair Underwood) to give the order to the Marines to "waste the motherf---ers", under the "rules of engagement": policies and procedures put forth by the US President and Secretary Of Defense that allow US military forces to take actions they deem necessary to protect themselves from hostile forces.
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