Thanks for participating

Thanks. I usually write reviews just to hear myself talk. When I want to read a good one I read somebody who can really write, like Ebert or others, even if I don't like what they have to say. And I rarely read them ahead of time, but after? Almost always. I like to see what others thought, and what I might or might not have missed.

But I appreciate the kind words, anyway.

On to today's topic: Jack Reacher

There will be a Jack Reacher II, and III, and perhaps like James Bond and Superbowl an XXVII, because this is the very definition of a "franchise." Of course it's been done before - and better - but that doesn't matter, there is a suspenseful enough plot to string along even the most sentient audiences, sufficient and easy connection of the dots, the methodical layout of mystery, solved over time, a handsome leading man and a comely damsel or two along the way.

The first one of these I remember was Clint Eastwood's spaghetti westerns: the loner with no name (or background) fighting insurmountable odds and (of course) triumphing in the final reel. Add in the most evil antagonist (Auric Goldfinger), a smash-em-up car chase (Bullitt), and an entangled plot worthy of Bourne, and what to you have? A Mixmaster of a potboiler, but nothing original anywhere. And it doesn't matter, because this is a Christmas movie, designed to leave you breathless for two hours and to be as forgettable as the wrapping paper around that nasty holiday shirt you'll never wear.

Tom Cruise is the loner, called from retirement (you've heard this set up before?) to solve the mystery behind a mass murder by rifle (hence the postponement of the premier on Newtown Friday), with a fun interlude with Robert Duvall (as the crusty ex-Marine) and ... well, you get the idea. Daughter fights Daddy, DA fights lawyer, and Reacher fights everybody. Hollywood recycles!

I'm not dissing it. I'm glad I went. I didn't have high expectations, and they were met. A few instances of wooden acting, "seen-it-before" plot devices, and endless "I'm going to kill you, but first I have to talk for two minutes so you can get away" (a pet peeve) scenes, but overall, pretty much fun. And a bit of eye candy for both girls and boys.

The biggest problem with Jack Reacher is that the movie had the chance to stand 6 foot 5 inches tall, and only manages to reach about 5 foot 7.

Yes, it's a metaphor.