Rules of Engagement DVD Tommy Lee Jones Samuel L Jackson Widescreen

Description

Rules of Engagement
Tommy Lee Jones (Actor), Samuel L. Jackson (Actor), William Friedkin (Director) Rated: R (Restricted) Format: DVD

Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson deliver electrifying performances in this “tense, superbly-directed and top-drawer drama” about what happens when the rules that command a soldier become the rules that condemn him. Colonel Terry Childers (Jackson) is a patriot and war hero. But when a peacekeeping mission he leads in Yemen goes terribly wrong, he finds himself facing a court martial. Accused of breaking the rules of engagement by killing unarmed civilians, Childers’ only hope of vindication rests with comrade-in-arms Hays Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones), a military lawyer of questionable abilities. Together, they face the battle of their lives.Directed by Oscar.-winning director William Friedkin and co-starring Guy Pearce, Bruce Greenwood, Anne Archer and Academy Award.-winner Ben Kingsley, Rules of Engagement is “”a magnificent movie you must see.”

Actors: Tommy Lee Jones, Samuel L. Jackson, Guy Pearce
Directors: William Friedkin
Format: Multiple Formats, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Widescreen
Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Subtitles: English
Dubbed: French
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only.)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Rated: R (Restricted)
Studio: Paramount
Run Time: 128 minutes

Jackson plays U.S. Marine Colonel Terry Childers, who is brought to court-martial after men under Childers’ orders kill a large number of civilians outside the U.S. embassy in Yemen.

James Webb, to whom the story is credited, is a US Naval Academy graduate and former U.S. Marine combat officer who was awarded the Navy Cross in Vietnam as a Lieutenant platoon commander, a lawyer and U.S. Secretary of the Navy. Webb later served as a U.S. Senator from Virginia.

Having served in the Marine Corps, I am a sucker for all things Marine. I am also a fan of both Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson, but then again who isn’t? These two powerhouse performers team up for one good movie.

Jackson plays Terry Childers who is a 30 year combat veteran colonel in the Marine Corps. Childers is sent into Yemen to rescue an Ambassador (Ben Kingsley) and his family. The mission gets quite hairy and terrorists and civilians both are caught in the firestorm to follow. The incident in seen as an embarassment at best and a political nightmare at worst by the folks in Washington and Childers is put on military trial for murder. He asks his old buddy Hayes Hodges (Jones) to defend him. Hodges also happens to owe Childers his life from events in Vietnam.

The movie has the outcome you might expect and along the way we are introduced to a not so hidden conspiracy to frame Childers for the crime. What separates this usual plot from other films is the outstanding acting of Jackson and Jones. Jones takes center stage and wows you as a former combat Marine turned military lawyer who struggles to search for his own identity and questions his value as a Marine along the way. Jackson as always delivers a rock solid and emotional performance.

The direction of this movie is particularly noteworthy. It does an admirable job with addressing the modern military dilemna of fighting unseen enemies in urban environments. The director holds some things from you so that you will find yourself questioning the acts of the Marines involved in the shooting. Only at the end does he give you everything you need to know. This makes the movie better than most.

0-7921-6818-6

DVD is perfect. Case shows a little wear Case insert included. Special features include “A Look Inside” Cast and Crew interviews, behind the scenes featurette, commentary by Director William Friedkin, Dolby Digital 5.1, English subs.