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A Few Good Men, at QPAC – theatre review

Many know the iconic cinematic phrase, ‘You can’t handle the truth!’, even if they haven’t seen the 1992 film A Few Good Men. I’m one of them. Perhaps it’s my aversion to Tom Cruise, but somehow the film passed me by, so seeing Queensland Theatre’s riveting production of Aaron Sorkin’s 1989 play was a pleasant surprise.

Sorkin was only 28 when he penned the original, which was adapted into the movie, starring Cruise, Jack Nicholson and Demi Moore, three years later. He was inspired by a real-life incident at Guantanamo Bay told to him by his Navy JAG (military lawyer) sister.

Photos by Stephen Henry

A military courtroom drama might not immediately strike one as entertaining theatre, but there’s much to praise in this production. First, how can you go wrong with a script by Aaron Sorkin? Known for his lightning-fast, witty dialogue (usually spoken while people are walking quickly) in TV series The West Wing and The Newsroom, as well as the film The Social Network, Sorkin’s verbosity can be a bit much, but is pitched just right in this early work.

Then there’s the direction by Matilda Award-winning director Daniel Evans, who has helped elicit bravura performances from the actors, most notably George Pullar as Lt. junior grade Daniel A. Kaffee and his courtroom nemesis, Hayden Spencer as Lt. Col. Nathan Jessep.

The set design by Simone Romaniuk, along with lighting design by Ben Hughes and sound design and composition by Mike Willmett make for a visually and auditorily stimulating experience. What could have been staid military and courtroom sets are brought to life with minimalist but effective design, striking lighting and transition sounds of drums and cranking machinery, with military-style chanting. Then there are the 1980s hard rock songs, such as Bon Jovi’s Living on a Prayer.

The play starts with us learning that a young marine is dead, with two other marines, Downey and Dawson, being charged with his murder. But they claim they were only following orders when they physically punished him for what was considered unacceptable behaviour. Can anyone handle the truth of what really happened?

George Pullar plays the initially arrogant and disinterested lawyer, given the case to argue on behalf of the two young men. Pullar’s character’s eyes are gradually opened to what a great responsibility he has to see justice served. His passion is ignited to do his best to win the case.

But it’s not going to be an easy task, coming up against the intimidating Jessep, the old-school guy who embodies some of the military’s uglier tenets of following orders and staying loyal to the cause, no matter the consequences. You can tell by the mounting tension when those five famous words are about to come out of Nathan Jessep’s mouth. He manages to make them his own with his explosive performance towards the play’s end.

Courtney Cavallaro is the sole female voice in this sea of testosterone, playing Lt. Cmdr. Joanne Galloway, part of the legal team. Her role isn’t as showy as some of the others, but she nails it.

Also of note are Doron Chester as Lt. junior grade Sam Weinberg and Reagan Mannix as Downey. Donné Ngabo couldn’t perform as Dawson the night I was there but substitute Jack Mahoney did him proud. Jimi Bani presides over the courtroom and Jeremiah Wray is frighteningly good as a God-obsessed marine. It’s hard missing out other actors’ names but there really are too many to mention. The main point is that they were all more than up to the task and that includes the American accents.

It’s QPAC’s 40th anniversary year and A Few Good Men is a great way for the arts precinct to see the year out. It is playing at Optus Playhouse, QPAC until 7th December, 2025.

Vicki Englund

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