A Few Good Men (1992)

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Wikidata Q108946, film, IMDb tt0104257, TMDB 881: matched by corpus:resolve, told apart by episode credits Rob Reiner as director (The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame); 5 more episodes agree.

What a model would be handed about it, for corpus:ask.

The Rewatchables' awards

From ‘A Few Good (Re)Men’ Live From L.A. With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey (2023-08-01):

Double feature

  1. pick The American President: A second Sorkin script with a happier ending, picked in honor of Amanda Dobbins.
    “Mine is American President.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:50:09
  2. pick Paths of Glory: The nerdy pick: Kubrick's courtroom drama.
    “Paths of glory. Stanley Kubrick's incredible courtroom drama.”
    Sean Fennessey · 1:50:34
  3. pick The Caine Mutiny: He calls it the best military courtroom movie ever made.
    “And I think the Kane Mutiny is probably the best one.”
    Sean Fennessey · 1:50:48
  4. pick Top Gun: Two of his all-time favorites for a Tom Cruise double feature.
    “So I would do Top Gun and this movie, just 2 of my all-time faves,”
    Chris Ryan · 1:51:02
  5. pick Presumed Innocent: His alternative if he wanted a legal drama double feature.
    “or if I was feeling more inclined for a legal drama, double feature, I would do this and presumed innocent,”
    Chris Ryan · 1:51:02
  6. pick The American President: A later speaker (apparently the guest who joined late) gives the same pick when asked for hers.
    “American president.”
    unknown · 1:52:08

Most rewatchable scene

  1. pick Jessup's first scene: Who the fuck is PFC William T. Santiago?
    “Who the fuck is PFC William T. Santiago?”
    Bill Simmons · 0:28:51
  2. pick The outdoor lunch with cigar-chomping Jessup and the you roll the dice, take your chances speech
    “Next scene is the outdoor lunch with cigar chomping Jessup.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:30:11
  3. pick Kaffee interrupting Jack Ross's pickup game and Ross walking off the court smiling
    “Kathy interrupting Jack's first game.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:32:55
  4. pick The opening statements, where Ross spoils the whole movie
    “I threw in the opening statements here for rewatchable just because if you're at courtroom month.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:33:41
  5. pick The mess hall redirect of Kendrick's witness and the Kevin Bacon he-got-me face
    “Um... Next thing, the, uh, the mess hall redirect.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:36:39
  6. pick Galloway's you're a lousy softball player, Jack, and Ross's you got bullied into that courtroom
    “You're a lousy fucking softball player, Jack.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:37:15
  7. pick Drunk Kaffee and the galactically stupid / Rocco Globo School for Women scene
    “Thank you for playing, should we, or should we not follow the advice of the galactically stupid?”
    Bill Simmons · 0:40:16
  8. pick The courtroom showdown, Cruise versus Nicholson, ending in the you can't handle the truth speech
    “My pick, cruise versus Nicholson.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:42:40
  9. pick The scene after the verdict where Downey does not understand why he is being discharged and Kaffee says you cut these guys loose
    “My 1st most rewatchable scene, is the next scene where Downey doesn't understand that he's been just trying to be discharged.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:47:49
  10. pick Galloway going to see Kaffee for the first time while he is hitting ground balls
    “I really like when Joe goes to see Cruz for the 1st time and he's hitting groundballs.”
    unknown · 0:49:12

Ebert's review · Reading what Roger Ebert wrote about the film.

  1. pick A Few Good Men: Two and a half stars; Ebert faults the screenplay for spelling everything out.
    “This is a tough one for our guy, Roger Ebert.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:25:56

Who won the scene · Who wins the Cruise versus Nicholson courtroom scene as a piece of acting.

  1. winner Tom Cruise as Daniel Kaffee: Argues that watching it now he watches it for Cruise; a second voice and the room agree.
    “Cruise wins. He wins. He wins going away, in my opinion.”
    unknown · 0:48:23

Dion Waiters Award · Small role, big impact; here Nicholson is ruled out as too big a part.

  1. winner Kiefer Sutherland as Jonathan Kendrick: Put forward when Nicholson is out of the running; a second voice agrees he is really good.
    “Deion Waders Award, if it's not Jack Nicholson, who is it?”
    Bill Simmons · 1:20:27

Best That Guy · The best that-guy performance in the film.

  1. nominee J.A. Preston as Judge Randolph: Mentioned, with the hosts unsure of his name.
    “J.A. Preston is the judge.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:17:28
  2. winner unnamed actor as one of the three interviewers of Joe Galloway: The actor remembered as the 90210 rapist, whose name the hosts do not know.
    “Well, I wanted to mention him, but the winner is, in the beginning, one of the 3 guys interviewing Joe Galloway was that guy who played the 90210 rapist, Garrett Slane.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:17:36
  3. nominee Xander Berkeley as Sam and Danny's boss: Also the Ralph in Heat.
    “Sam and Danny's boss is Xander Berkeley.”
    unknown · 1:17:54
  4. nominee Michael DeLorenzo as William Santiago: Floated as the New York Undercover actor who plays Santiago.
    “Is in your mind is Michael DiLorenzo fit the bill for this from New York Undercover, who plays Santiago?”
    unknown · 1:18:13

Overacting award · The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge overacting award.

  1. winner Tom Cruise as Daniel Kaffee: For drunk Kaffee, and for being miraculously sober the next morning.
    “Well, Cruz also wins the Ruffalo Hannah Rubinik Partridge overacting word for drunk Tom Cruise.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:17:15

What aged best · What in the movie has aged best.

  1. pick Harold Dawson's you don't have to have a patch on your arm to have honor, and the officer on deck: Ending on a corny scene that gets him every time.
    “And then Wolfgang builds and just fucking goes for it.”
    Chris Ryan · 0:50:22
  2. pick Kaffee on the couch with a bat and a Hawaiian shirt watching baseball, with no phone: Not sure if it aged best or aged out of existence.
    “You know what was pretty, it was age the best, but I can't tell if it's like an age of the best or is aged out of existence, is lying on the couch, holding a baseball bat, watching a baseball game while wearing a sick Hawaiian shirt.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:52:31
  3. pick Kendrick's Humvee trivia: Kiefer Sutherland could not drive it, so Noah Wyle did: Offered as behind-the-scenes trivia that aged well for him.
    “Originally, Kendrick was the one driving the Humvee when he picks up them and they're in the whites, and he couldn't drive the extra wide vehicle, keep for Sutherland, and actually hit Marines on multiple tapes.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:53:36
  4. pick Guantanamo Bay as the site of corrupt action: It resonates and it plays.
    “I think Guantanamo Bay is the site of corrupt action, you know?”
    Sean Fennessey · 0:54:14
  5. pick Tom Cruise as early 90s Cruise: Like an uncle who comes to Thanksgiving: you still love him.
    “I also have early 90s cruise for me, just aging the best because he's, we still love Tom Cruise, right?”
    Sean Fennessey · 0:54:28

Big Kahuna Burger Award · Best use of food and drink.

  1. winner The Baltimore crabs: A second voice answers with the Yoo-hoo.
    “The Big Kahuna Burger Word, best use of food and drink. The Baltimore crabs.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:55:02
  2. nominee The Yoo-hoo: Running gag; a Yoo-hoo is later brought out.
    “I would say that in the Yoo-hoo.”
    unknown · 0:55:10

Vincent Chase Award · Named after Vincent Chase of Entourage: are we sure this character was actually good at his job?

  1. winner Harold Dawson: He nearly starts World War III, kills a guy with a code red, and never mentions he was alone in the room with Kendrick.
    “Are we sure this character was actually good at his job?”
    Bill Simmons · 0:55:32

Unintentional Comedy Award · The funniest thing in the movie that was not meant to be funny.

  1. winner Drunk Tom Cruise: Already won the award in the first episode.
    “Uh, drunk drunk cruise wins.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:56:57
  2. nominee Cruise hitting softballs way too hard: He looks like he has never held a bat.
    “We already have the award. Cruise hitting softballs way too hard.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:56:27
  3. nominee Kendrick laughing at the blow job joke
    “Kendrick laughing after the blowjob joke we mentioned.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:56:44
  4. nominee Jessup's sudden anti-Semitic line to Weinberg
    “And then randomly anti-Semitic Jessop, when he's like, you, Lieutenant Weinberg?”
    Bill Simmons · 0:56:48

Juice Award · Best toe-to-toe moment for a non-star.

  1. winner Kevin Pollak's Weinberg chewing out Galloway as Sam Weinberg: Weinberg lays into the others for bullying.
    “Kevin Pollock, just chewing out to be more.”
    Bill Simmons · 0:57:29

Butch's Girlfriend Award · The weak link of the film.

  1. winner Demi Moore as Joe Galloway: One voice argues the miscasting makes the movie more fun; another says she was saddled with Sorkin dialogue she cannot deliver.
    “I actually enjoy how Miss Cast Demi Moore is in this movie, and I think it's, I think if it was a serious actress, I don't think the movie is as fun to watch.”
    unknown · 0:57:56
  2. winner Demi Moore as Joe Galloway: Says she and Cruise have no sexual vibes and she never feels human.
    “I just think she's been saddled with Sorkin dialogue, which she is not equipped to deliver.”
    unknown · 0:59:58

What aged worst · What in the movie has aged the worst.

  1. pick Christopher Guest as Dr. Stone: A strange choice to cast the funniest guy as a boring internist.
    “Why is he in the movie?”
    unknown · 1:01:03
  2. pick Luther the newsstand guy and the aphorisms: Calls it some of the dumbest Sorkin dialogue.
    “That's some of the dumbest shit ever in a soorkit movie.”
    unknown · 1:01:35
  3. pick Kaffee drinking Yoo-hoo without shaking it: Behaves like a 14-year-old, not a lawyer.
    “Kaffe doesn't shake the yoo-hoo before he drinks it.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:04:05
  4. pick Cruise modeling Kaffee on David Miscavige: From the book Going Clear.
    “Cruz said he modeled his performance on his friend, the Church of Scientology chairman, David Miscavich.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:04:57
  5. pick Everyone telling Kaffee he is the best after four days of so-so legal work: Show, don't tell; compares it to NBA Twitter after three games.
    “Just everybody, after 4 days of like so-so legal work, 4 people coming up to caffeine and being like, you're the goat.”
    unknown · 1:07:16

Better title / porn parody title · A better title for the movie, including a porn parody title.

  1. pick Code Red: Offered as a title in the mix; two orders is ruled out as giving it away.
    “I think code red is in the mix, right?”
    unknown · 1:08:55
  2. pick Dishonorable Discharge: His porn parody title.
    “Uh, dishonorable discharge.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:09:12

Best quote · Best quote from the movie.

  1. pick You can't handle the truth; so this is what a courtroom looks like; and the hits just keep on coming: Notes the movie has so many quotes.
    “Best quote, uh, obviously it's you can't handle the truth, but we also have, so this is what a courtroom looks like, and the hits just keep on coming.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:09:38
  2. winner There is no Markinson, Markinson is gone: His favorite.
    “My favorite, though, is there is no markets and markets and is gone.”
    unknown · 1:09:55

Hottest take · The hottest take about the movie.

  1. pick Kaffee is the Jimmy Butler of law: A bad locker-room guy who is nails when it matters most.
    “Is Danny Caffey the Jimmy Butler of law?”
    unknown · 1:10:39
  2. pick The case is not that big a deal, and Santiago may have had it coming: Says the case is bullying that got out of hand and asks if Santiago deserved to die.
    “Did Private San Diego deserve to die?”
    unknown · 1:11:29
  3. pick Cruise should have been nominated and won the Oscar for this: Calls it the first of the three Academy Awards he has not received.
    “I also think that the cruise should have been nominated for best actor, and I also think he should have won,”
    Sean Fennessey · 1:11:51

Father Robert Duvall Award · A new award for the best unexpected cameo.

  1. winner Christopher Guest as the priest: Appears as a priest for ten seconds for unclear reasons.
    “He's just a priest for 10 seconds for reasons that have been unclear.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:12:26

Casting what-ifs · Almost-castings and recasts.

  1. pick Gene Hackman as Jessup: Turned it down to do Unforgiven, and won the Oscar; James Woods was also considered until Nicholson said yes.
    “So, Gene Hackman turned down Jessop.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:12:34
  2. pick Jodie Foster and Linda Hamilton as Joe Galloway: The two actresses Demi Moore was up against; she dropped her asking price to $2 million.
    “But she was battling 2 actresses.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:13:48
  3. pick Jason Alexander as Sam Weinberg: Originally cast, then had to drop out when Seinfeld was renewed; the hosts split on whether Weinberg is better with him.
    “Originally cast as Sam Weinberg.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:14:28
  4. pick Will Smith and Brad Pitt as Dawson and Downey: Asks if the movie is better or worse with them.
    “If we just had Will Smith and Brad Pitt as Dawson and Downey, is this the better or worse movie?”
    Bill Simmons · 1:20:40
  5. winner Angela Bassett as Joe Galloway: Runner-ups were Julianne Moore and Geena Davis.
    “My winner is Angela Bassett.”
    unknown · 1:21:15

Tom Cruise Award · Most valiant attempt to emulate a normal human being.

  1. winner Tom Cruise as Daniel Kaffee: For the softball scenes.
    “The Tom Cruise Award for most valiant attempt to emulate a normal human being goes to Tom Cruise.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:14:14

Apex Mountain · Whether a person or thing is at the peak of their career or reputation here.

  1. pick Demi Moore: No.
    “Apex Mountain, Demi More, no.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:24:23
  2. pick Jack Nicholson: No; his peak is somewhere around Cuckoo's Nest and Chinatown.
    “Apex bound for Nicholson, no.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:25:15
  3. pick Kevin Pollak as Sam Weinberg: Yes.
    “Kevin Pollock, yes.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:25:46
  4. pick Rob Reiner: Yes; Seinfeld just got picked up.
    “Rob Reiner. Seinfeld, it just got picked up. Castle Rock. I'm going to say yes.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:26:04
  5. pick Tom Cruise: Already decided: his apex is Jerry Maguire.
    “I think it was Jerry Maguire.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:26:35

Best racehorse name · The best name in the movie that would suit a racehorse.

  1. pick Code Red, Jessup, Markinson's Gone, the Rocco Globo School for Women: The candidates offered.
    “Best racer's name, Code Red, Jessup, or Marketson's gone.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:27:02

Mallory Rubin Award (did it need a better sex scene) · Did the movie need a better sex scene, or any sex scene?

  1. winner Kaffee and Aunt Ginny: Argues there is palpable tension there that does not exist between Kaffee and Joe.
    “Okay, I think this is actually the winning candidate.”
    unknown · 1:30:38
  2. nominee Kaffee and Joe after the crab date: The one clear spot in the movie where it could have happened.
    “I think there's one clear spot in the movie where it could have happened. Yeah, the date.”
    unknown · 1:29:54

Picking Nits · Nitpicks about the film they love.

  1. pick Taking six weeks to realize Santiago was not packed for a 6 AM flight
    “It took the dream team of Caffe and Weinberg and Galloway 6 weeks to realize that San Diego wasn't packed for a 6 AM flight.”
    unknown · 1:32:09
  2. pick Sam Weinberg: Asks what good he did in the whole trial, and why they do not boot him.
    “What good did Sam Weinberg do in this entire trial?”
    unknown · 1:33:01
  3. pick Putting Downey on the stand before Dawson
    “Why in the name of God was Downey testifying?”
    unknown · 1:33:41
  4. pick Ross waiting a week to arrest Kendrick
    “Why did Jack Ross wait a week to arrest Kendrick?”
    unknown · 1:39:27
  5. pick Kaffee's diet of Yoo-hoo, Cocoa Puffs and bar popcorn: Asks how the guy is alive.
    “How is this guy alive?”
    unknown · 1:36:17
  6. pick Cruise missing shots on the Nerf hoop: Eight shots in two seconds, and he only makes four.
    “Eight shots, but he's he only makes 4 of them.”
    unknown · 1:38:45

Sequel, prequel, prestige TV · The sequel, prequel or prestige TV show they would make.

  1. pick Prestige TV prequel with young Markinson and Jessup coming up through the ranks in Vietnam: Considers the movie itself untouchable.
    “It's fucking prequel, prestige TV, Young Markinson and Jessup.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:40:54
  2. pick All-Black cast remake with a white Dawson and a white judge
    “It's all black cast, but with a white Dawson and a white judge.”
    unknown · 1:41:24

Unanswered questions · Questions the movie leaves open.

  1. pick Did Markinson only kill himself over Santiago, or was there more?: A joke that he faked his death follows.
    “Are we sure Marketson killed himself?”
    unknown · 1:43:14
  2. pick Why not submit Markinson's suicide note as evidence?
    “why don't they submit his suicide note as evidence?”
    unknown · 1:44:00
  3. pick What would Jessup's punishment have been?
    “I do want to know what Jessup's punishment would have been.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:46:48
  4. pick Why not call Jessup's clerk Tom to the stand?: The one witness who hears every crucial conversation.
    “The one witness who could have instantly sealed it to the stand, Tom, Jessop's clerk, the door guy,”
    unknown · 1:48:37
  5. pick Whether Tom Cruise has serious head injuries from stunts: Theory he floated backstage that Cruise is being shielded in interviews.
    “I just, uh, I do wonder whether he has really horrendous CTE.”
    Chris Ryan · 1:54:52

Secret Handshake · A prop or piece of memorabilia they would want.

  1. pick Jack Ross's Georgetown Supreme Court tank top: Was looking at it on eBay.
    “Jack Ross's Georgetown.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:53:09
  2. pick Kaffee's bat
    “I like the bat.”
    unknown · 1:53:32

Coach Finstock Award · Best life lesson.

  1. winner You don't have to have a patch on your arm to have honor: A moment he loves.
    “I think it's you don't have to have a patch on your arm to have honor.”
    Chris Ryan · 1:54:06
  2. nominee Unit, Corps, God, Country
    “I mean, Unicore, God rewatchables.”
    unknown · 1:54:15

Who won the movie · Who won the movie.

  1. winner Tom Cruise as Daniel Kaffee: Unanimous among the hosts.
    “It's got to be Tom Cruise.”
    Bill Simmons · 1:54:31

Who talked about it

Blank Check with Griffin & David

Blank Check — Patreon

The Big Picture

The Rewatchables

Came from

What the speakers say it drew on. Each is a speaker's account: “the maker said so” when they report the maker's own words, “the host's read” when the read is theirs.

The Verdict: 1 line the host's read ×1

  1. lineage (lineage): The Verdict ⇒ A Few Good Men (the host's read). You cannot have A Few Good Men without The Verdict; everything on the courtroom checklist comes from it.
    “you really, really cannot have a few good men without having the verdict”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:07:27 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

Led to

What the speakers say drew on it, marked the same way.

A Time to Kill: 1 line the host's read ×1

  1. lineage (lineage): A Few Good Men ⇒ A Time to Kill (the host's read). A Time to Kill blends every earlier trope: country lawyer, big-shot prosecutor, cranky judge.
    “puts them in a blender and it gives you every single thing”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:28:50 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

Connected to

Aaron Sorkin: 2 lines people ×1 programming ×1

  1. people (people): A Few Good Men → Aaron Sorkin. Sorkin's difficult lines; Cruise commands them.
    “total command of the Sorkin lines”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:26:36 · Amanda Dobbins (0.70 sure it was them)

Miracle on 34th Street: 2 lines contrast ×1 theme ×1

  1. theme (theme): A Few Good Men → Miracle on 34th Street. Wanting to believe the law upholds good is a theme across the list that doesn't always pay off, but does here.
    “wanting to believe in the law and the ability of the court to uphold the side of good”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:37:20 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

Misery: 2 lines programming ×1 contrast ×1

  1. programming (programming): Misery → A Few Good Men. Misery sits in Reiner's incredible trio, all now Rewatchables.
    “But when Harry Met Ali, Misery, Few Good Men, is really the best of all of these different great actors, right?”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Misery’ With Bill Simmons and Brian Koppelman · 0:15:13 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)

The Firm: 2 lines verdict ×1 career ×1

  1. verdict (ranking): A Few Good Men → The Firm. The hosts treat them as the two lawyer movies and only one can survive the final Hall of Fame cut; A Few Good Men wins.
    “I didn't realize that this was a one lawyer only hall of fame.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 1:05:25 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

The Trial of the Chicago 7: 2 lines theme ×2

  1. theme (theme): The Trial of the Chicago 7 → A Few Good Men. Both are courtroom dramas of principled argument; Cruise's charisma is key and Chicago 7 needs scene-chewers too.
    “You have to have people that want to gnaw on the scenery, that want to yell, that want to be in the center of the frame.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:22:15 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

The Verdict: 2 lines lineage ×1 contrast ×1

  1. lineage (lineage): A Few Good Men → The Verdict. You cannot have A Few Good Men without The Verdict; everything on the courtroom checklist comes from it.
    “you really, really cannot have a few good men without having the verdict”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:07:27 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

12 Angry Men: 1 line programming ×1

  1. programming (programming): 12 Angry Men → A Few Good Men. 12 Angry Men is a technicality: a morality play in a side room, not a courtroom drama.
    “It's a morality play inside of a side room related to a courtroom”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:12:02 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)

A Time to Kill: 1 line lineage ×1

  1. lineage (lineage): A Time to Kill → A Few Good Men. A Time to Kill blends every earlier trope: country lawyer, big-shot prosecutor, cranky judge.
    “puts them in a blender and it gives you every single thing”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:28:50 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

Demi Moore: 1 line what-if ×1

  1. what-if (casting what-if): Demi Moore → A Few Good Men. Pairing Cruise again with Demi Moore after A Few Good Men would have made a good Claire.
    “ever since a few good men on cruise doing another movie with Demi Moore, and I thought she would make a good Clare.”
    The Rewatchables · 'Mission: Impossible' With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Jason Concepcion · 0:33:15 · Jason Concepcion (0.40 sure it was them)

Heat 2: 1 line lineage ×1

  1. lineage (Sorkin legacy-sequel comparison): A Few Good Men → Heat 2. A hypothetical Sorkin A Few Good Men sequel is compared to Heat 2 as a legacy-sequel recast by its original creator.
    “it's not Fincher doing the legacyquel with an entirely different cast, but it is Sorkin making his own legacy.”
    Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Color of Money with Chris Ryan · 1:36:10 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

Jack Nicholson: 1 line unmapped ×1

  1. unmapped (Hannibal Lecter part): Jack Nicholson → A Few Good Men. A role like Costello, like Jessup or Lecter, is a home-run part that should get a supporting actor nod.
    “This was like the Hannibal Lecter, that even the Jessup and Fugon man.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:49:34 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)

Kevin Bacon: 1 line career ×1

  1. career (career): Kevin Bacon → A Few Good Men. Bacon chose to be a character actor, wanting a part like A Few Good Men over the Tom Cruise role.
    “I want like, I want the fucking part in a few good men rather than being turned down for the Tom Cruise role.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · In the Cut with Jourdain Searles (Ad-Free) · 0:59:38 · Griffin or David (unclear) (0.35 sure it was them)

Mission: Impossible: 1 line career ×1

  1. career (career arc): A Few Good Men → Mission: Impossible. Few Good Men shows the possibility and edge of Cruise that fades as he moves to Ethan Hunt.
    “the edge of Tom Cruise characters kind of goes away as he moves towards Ethan Hunt.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 0:38:18 · Amanda Dobbins (0.50 sure it was them)

My Cousin Vinny: 1 line craft ×1

  1. craft (craft): My Cousin Vinny → A Few Good Men. Vinny is a parody and a loving endorsement of all the pleasures of courtroom movies.
    “a parody of these types of movies and a parody of the legal system”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:21:02 · Amanda Dobbins (0.55 sure it was them)

NCIS: 1 line lineage ×1

  1. lineage (TV lineage): A Few Good Men → NCIS. A Few Good Men's JAG lawyer role is linked to the JAG/NCIS rights tangle as the joke legacy sequel.
    “As we all know, NCIS is based on JAG. is a spinoff. technically a spinoff of the TV show, Jack.”
    Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Color of Money with Chris Ryan · 1:37:25 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

Network: 1 line programming ×1

  1. programming (programming): A Few Good Men → Network. It is in the conversation for most rewatched movie of a lifetime, next to Network, Oz, Godfather, Goodfellas and Pulp Fiction.
    “and a few good men is right there with it.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:19:27 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)

Rob Reiner: 1 line people ×1

  1. people (people): A Few Good Men → Rob Reiner. Reiner is in the descending line of filmmakers.
    “Oliver Stone, Rob Reiner”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:30:05 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

The Caine Mutiny: 1 line contrast ×1

  1. contrast (contrast): A Few Good Men → The Caine Mutiny. It is a conventional military courtroom drama like The Caine Mutiny, yet has special energy due to Sorkin.
    “some very good movies like the King Mutiny, some very mediocre movies like Rules of Engagement.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:19:58 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)

The Departed: 1 line people ×1

  1. people (same actor, different result): The Departed → A Few Good Men. Nicholson nailed every line of Sorkin's watertight script in A Few Good Men but is all over the place in The Departed.
    “he nails every line of Sorkin dialogue. It's like watertight script.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:50:13 · Chris Ryan (0.60 sure it was them)

The Pelican Brief: 1 line programming ×1

  1. programming (programming): The Pelican Brief → A Few Good Men. Disqualified: legal thriller, not courtroom drama, operating outside the courtroom.
    “operates almost entirely outside of the courtroom”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:11:07 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

The West Wing (TV series): 1 line craft ×1

  1. craft (craft): The West Wing (TV series) → A Few Good Men. Cruise and Nicholson are the best single Sorkin performances, but the West Wing ensemble is best because Sorkin could write for them.
    “Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson are the best single Sorkin performances”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:26:29 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

To Kill a Mockingbird: 1 line programming ×1

  1. programming (programming): To Kill a Mockingbird → A Few Good Men. Left off the list as more homework than pleasurable; the list favors twisty, speechifying, overacting movies.
    “pleasurability factor of a lot of these movies”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:14:25 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Tom Cruise: 1 line people ×1

  1. people (people): A Few Good Men → Tom Cruise. Cruise does Sorkin's rhythms well and the film is not iconic without Cruise and Nicholson.
    “I don't know that a few good men is, you know, as iconic as it is without Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:21:16 · Amanda Dobbins (0.65 sure it was them)

Where it came up

What was said about it, by kind

career (3)

  1. career (career arc): A Few Good Men → Mission: Impossible. Few Good Men shows the possibility and edge of Cruise that fades as he moves to Ethan Hunt.
    “the edge of Tom Cruise characters kind of goes away as he moves towards Ethan Hunt.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 0:38:18 · Amanda Dobbins (0.50 sure it was them)
  2. career (career): A Few Good Men → The Firm. Tom Cruise's Firm period was important to Amanda; she ranks it the best Grisham movie.
    “the firm is like the quote best movie”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:31:01 · Amanda Dobbins (0.55 sure it was them)
  3. career (career): Kevin Bacon → A Few Good Men. Bacon chose to be a character actor, wanting a part like A Few Good Men over the Tom Cruise role.
    “I want like, I want the fucking part in a few good men rather than being turned down for the Tom Cruise role.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · In the Cut with Jourdain Searles (Ad-Free) · 0:59:38 · Griffin or David (unclear) (0.35 sure it was them)

contrast (4)

  1. contrast (contrast): A Few Good Men → Misery. A Few Good Men can be rolled into anywhere; Misery cannot be started midway.
    “You could just kind of roll into a few good men, wherever it's it's a perfect rewatchable, right?”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Misery’ With Bill Simmons and Brian Koppelman · 0:41:52 · Bill Simmons (0.65 sure it was them)
  2. contrast (contrast): A Few Good Men → The Caine Mutiny. It is a conventional military courtroom drama like The Caine Mutiny, yet has special energy due to Sorkin.
    “some very good movies like the King Mutiny, some very mediocre movies like Rules of Engagement.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:19:58 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)
  3. contrast (contrast): Miracle on 34th Street → A Few Good Men. Miracle is the starter kit: a fantasy kids courtroom drama, unlike the others, which are incomprehensible or inappropriate for children.
    “Miracle on 34th Street is like, is kind of the starter kit”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:36:42 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)
  4. contrast (contrast): The Verdict → A Few Good Men. Verdict's results hinge on integrity and decency, a counterpoint to being right or wrong.
    “a lot of these movies which are about the vagaries of being right and wrong”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:09:55 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)

craft (2)

  1. craft (craft): The West Wing (TV series) → A Few Good Men. Cruise and Nicholson are the best single Sorkin performances, but the West Wing ensemble is best because Sorkin could write for them.
    “Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson are the best single Sorkin performances”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:26:29 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)
  2. craft (craft): My Cousin Vinny → A Few Good Men. Vinny is a parody and a loving endorsement of all the pleasures of courtroom movies.
    “a parody of these types of movies and a parody of the legal system”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:21:02 · Amanda Dobbins (0.55 sure it was them)

lineage (4)

  1. lineage (Sorkin legacy-sequel comparison): A Few Good Men → Heat 2. A hypothetical Sorkin A Few Good Men sequel is compared to Heat 2 as a legacy-sequel recast by its original creator.
    “it's not Fincher doing the legacyquel with an entirely different cast, but it is Sorkin making his own legacy.”
    Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Color of Money with Chris Ryan · 1:36:10 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)
  2. lineage (TV lineage): A Few Good Men → NCIS. A Few Good Men's JAG lawyer role is linked to the JAG/NCIS rights tangle as the joke legacy sequel.
    “As we all know, NCIS is based on JAG. is a spinoff. technically a spinoff of the TV show, Jack.”
    Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Color of Money with Chris Ryan · 1:37:25 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. lineage (lineage): A Few Good Men → The Verdict. You cannot have A Few Good Men without The Verdict; everything on the courtroom checklist comes from it.
    “you really, really cannot have a few good men without having the verdict”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:07:27 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)
  4. lineage (lineage): A Time to Kill → A Few Good Men. A Time to Kill blends every earlier trope: country lawyer, big-shot prosecutor, cranky judge.
    “puts them in a blender and it gives you every single thing”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:28:50 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

people (4)

  1. people (same actor, different result): The Departed → A Few Good Men. Nicholson nailed every line of Sorkin's watertight script in A Few Good Men but is all over the place in The Departed.
    “he nails every line of Sorkin dialogue. It's like watertight script.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:50:13 · Chris Ryan (0.60 sure it was them)
  2. people (people): A Few Good Men → Tom Cruise. Cruise does Sorkin's rhythms well and the film is not iconic without Cruise and Nicholson.
    “I don't know that a few good men is, you know, as iconic as it is without Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:21:16 · Amanda Dobbins (0.65 sure it was them)
  3. people (people): A Few Good Men → Aaron Sorkin. Sorkin's difficult lines; Cruise commands them.
    “total command of the Sorkin lines”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:26:36 · Amanda Dobbins (0.70 sure it was them)
  4. people (people): A Few Good Men → Rob Reiner. Reiner is in the descending line of filmmakers.
    “Oliver Stone, Rob Reiner”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:30:05 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

programming (6)

  1. programming (programming): Misery → A Few Good Men. Misery sits in Reiner's incredible trio, all now Rewatchables.
    “But when Harry Met Ali, Misery, Few Good Men, is really the best of all of these different great actors, right?”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Misery’ With Bill Simmons and Brian Koppelman · 0:15:13 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
  2. programming (programming): A Few Good Men → Network. It is in the conversation for most rewatched movie of a lifetime, next to Network, Oz, Godfather, Goodfellas and Pulp Fiction.
    “and a few good men is right there with it.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:19:27 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)
  3. programming (programming): The Pelican Brief → A Few Good Men. Disqualified: legal thriller, not courtroom drama, operating outside the courtroom.
    “operates almost entirely outside of the courtroom”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:11:07 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  4. programming (programming): 12 Angry Men → A Few Good Men. 12 Angry Men is a technicality: a morality play in a side room, not a courtroom drama.
    “It's a morality play inside of a side room related to a courtroom”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:12:02 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)
  5. programming (programming): To Kill a Mockingbird → A Few Good Men. Left off the list as more homework than pleasurable; the list favors twisty, speechifying, overacting movies.
    “pleasurability factor of a lot of these movies”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:14:25 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  6. programming (programming): A Few Good Men → Aaron Sorkin. A Few Good Men and The American President get folded into a Sorkin series, not a Reiner one.
    “Few good men in American president.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · 2025 March Madness Update 1 · 0:06:13 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

theme (3)

  1. theme (theme): The Trial of the Chicago 7 → A Few Good Men. Both are courtroom dramas of principled argument; Cruise's charisma is key and Chicago 7 needs scene-chewers too.
    “You have to have people that want to gnaw on the scenery, that want to yell, that want to be in the center of the frame.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:22:15 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)
  2. theme (theme): The Trial of the Chicago 7 → A Few Good Men. Unlike A Few Good Men, Chicago 7 is full of obvious themes to dissect.
    “There's all of these obvious themes”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:22:57 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)
  3. theme (theme): A Few Good Men → Miracle on 34th Street. Wanting to believe the law upholds good is a theme across the list that doesn't always pay off, but does here.
    “wanting to believe in the law and the ability of the court to uphold the side of good”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:37:20 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

unmapped (1)

  1. unmapped (Hannibal Lecter part): Jack Nicholson → A Few Good Men. A role like Costello, like Jessup or Lecter, is a home-run part that should get a supporting actor nod.
    “This was like the Hannibal Lecter, that even the Jessup and Fugon man.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:49:34 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)

verdict (1)

  1. verdict (ranking): A Few Good Men → The Firm. The hosts treat them as the two lawyer movies and only one can survive the final Hall of Fame cut; A Few Good Men wins.
    “I didn't realize that this was a one lawyer only hall of fame.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 1:05:25 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)

what-if (1)

  1. what-if (casting what-if): Demi Moore → A Few Good Men. Pairing Cruise again with Demi Moore after A Few Good Men would have made a good Claire.
    “ever since a few good men on cruise doing another movie with Demi Moore, and I thought she would make a good Clare.”
    The Rewatchables · 'Mission: Impossible' With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Jason Concepcion · 0:33:15 · Jason Concepcion (0.40 sure it was them)

Fun items about it

  1. fun, about A Few Good Men: Chris points out that Cruise whispers his questions to Jessup in a courtroom where a jury would never hear, which only makes sense because it is a movie, though the script was written for the stage.
    “there's multiple moments where he just starts whispering questions at him.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 0:38:42 · Chris Ryan (0.50 sure it was them)
  2. fun, about A Few Good Men: Cruise goes quiet-loud-quiet-loud against Nicholson, like Smells Like Teen Spirit, priming Jessup to explode.
    “It's like listening, it smells like teen spirit.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 0:39:51 · Sean Fennessey (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. fun, about A Few Good Men: Amanda notes a tiny scene of timing where Kaffee says sit down to people already sitting and pauses for a second before moving on, without Sorkin-ing it.
    “He doesn't oversell it.”
    The Big Picture · The Tom Cruise Hall of Fame · 0:43:33 · Amanda Dobbins (0.50 sure it was them)
  4. fun, about A Few Good Men: As a kid Amanda or Sean practiced Jessup's speech on a park basketball court shooting free throws.
    “The Jack Nicholson speech from a few good men out loud while shooting free throws”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 0:41:34 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)
  5. fun, about A Few Good Men: Among the most rewatched movies of a lifetime, alongside Network, Oz, Godfather, Goodfellas, Pulp Fiction.
    “It's in the conversation for the most rewatched movie of my lifetime.”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:19:23 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)
  6. fun, about A Few Good Men: Kids in Atlanta quoted 'you can't handle the truth' as an elementary school joke.
    “I remember like you can't handle the truth being like an elementary school joke”
    The Big Picture · Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ · 1:23:22 · Amanda Dobbins (0.70 sure it was them)
  7. fun, about A Few Good Men: Hosts quote the dialogue at each other; Sean has seen it more than any other film.
    “I've seen it probably more than any other film, but I'll take any excuse”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 0:23:26 · Amanda Dobbins (0.60 sure it was them)
  8. fun, about A Few Good Men: Cruise wins the scene by going toe to toe with Nicholson.
    “Cruz is thundering his way through the cross-examination”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:26:15 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)
  9. fun, about A Few Good Men: Where's my bat: Cruise thinks better with the bat.
    “I think better with my bat”
    The Big Picture · Objection! Top 10 Courtroom Dramas | The Big Picture · 1:27:33 · Amanda Dobbins (0.50 sure it was them)

Who the speakers said made it

As said on the shows, not checked against the real credits.