A Few Good Men

“Unit, Corps, God, Country”

“Why does a Lieutenant Junior Grade with nine months’ experience and a track record for plea bargaining get assigned to a murder case? Would it be so it never sees the inside of a courtroom?” Kaffee questioning his role in the case.

“There was no poison on the rag and there was no intent to kill, and any attempt to prove otherwise is futile because it just isn’t true. When Dawson and Downey entered Santiago’s room that night, it wasn’t because of vengeance or hatred; it wasn’t to kill or harm. And it wasn’t because they were looking for “kicks” on a Friday night. It was what they were ordered to do. Let me say that again, *it was what they were ordered to do*. Out in the real world, it means nothing, and in the Washington navy yard it doesn’t mean a whole lot more, but if you’re a marine assigned rifle company Windward Guantánamo Bay Cuba, if you’re given an order you follow it or you pack your bags. Make no mistake about it, Harold W. Dawson and Private Louden Downey are sitting before you today because they did their job.” – Opening Statement for the Defense by Lieutenant Junior Grade Daniel Kaffee

In the heart of the nation’s capital, in a courthouse of the U.S. government, one man will stop at nothing to keep his honor, and one will stop at nothing to find the truth. “A Few Good Men”, masterfully combined the direction of Rob Reiner and Aaron Sorkin’s writing. It follows Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise), a fast-talking Navy lawyer who’d rather bargain than battle in court, until he and Lt. Commander JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore) are handed a case to defend two Marines accused of murdering a fellow soldier at Guantanamo Bay.  They uncover a cover-up of a brutal “Code Red” hazing order that reaches all the way up the chain of command to the imposing Marine Colonel Nathan Jessep (Jack Nicholson) who sees himself as the keeper of military order. As courtroom tensions rise, Kaffee must decide whether to challenge a powerful military system and expose the truth, even if it means dismantling the very ideals of honor it claims to defend.

“Dear Mr. and Mrs. Santiago, I was William’s executive officer. I knew your son vaguely, which is to say I knew his name. In a matter of time, the trial of the two men charged with your son’s death will be concluded, and seven men and two women whom you’ve never met will try to offer you an explanation as to why William is dead. For my part, I’ve done as much as I can to bring the truth to light. And the truth is this: Your son is dead for only one reason. I wasn’t strong enough to stop it. Always, Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Andrew Markinson, United States Marine Corps.” – Lt. Col. Matthew Andrew Markinson’s voice over, as he puts on his full class A dress uniform after writing his suicide note.