Rules Of Engagement

William Friedkin unleashes his flare for tense action and gripping suspense in RULES OF ENGAGEMENT, an exciting military legal thriller that examines the moral gray area of combat experience and reflects on the ethos of the American military in the late 20th century. When the U. S. embassy in Yemen is stormed by anti-American protesters, Marine Colonel Terry Childers (an intense Samuel L. Jackson) rescues Ambassador Mourain (Ben Kingsley) from the explosive siege, and under fire from snipers within the crowd, he orders his men to return fire, resulting in many civilian casualties. To appease international outrage at an apparent war crime, the U. S. government court-martials Childers for violating the Marine's "rules of engagement," and his only hope rests on Marine lawyer Colonel Hayes Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones), a veteran who owes Childers his life for, ironically, a war crime committed by Childers in the Vietnam War. An intense, chiaroscuro courtroom drama and brutal combat film, RULES OF ENGAGEMENT takes a difficult look at the moral ambiguity of life in combat and the value of guilt, honor, and loyal sacrifice in the duty to one's country.