On 15 January 2014, Center for Law and Policy screened A Few Good Men for the first batch of LL.B. students at the UMT School of Law and Policy. The movie was also a part of the course Skills Development-I taught by Syed Imad-ud-Din Asad [LL.M. (Harvard); Founder and Director, Center for Law and Policy; Founding Director and Associate Professor, UMT School of Law and Policy] in the LL.B. program.
This 1992 courtroom drama was adapted for screen by Aaron Sorkin and is based on his play with the same name, starring Jack Nicholson, Tom Cruise, and Demi Moore in the lead roles. The film was nominated for numerous awards but received none.
Two Marines are accused of being involved in the murder of their fellow marine at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Their case is taken up by an amateur lawyer, Daniel Kaffee. He reluctantly partners with JoAnne Galloway, a more experienced naval officer, in order to prepare a case in defense of the two marines who, they believe, were ordered to punish their colleague, something they could not have refused given that they strictly have to abide by the 'law' at the Base. After the suicide of one of the integral witnesses, Kaffee believes that his case is lost but with Galloway's insistence he agrees to call the base commander, Colonel Jessup, as a witness. What follows is Jessup's brilliant speech about how things have to be dealt with in order to provide national security and his shocking confession about ordering the murdered marine's punishment or 'code red'.
The movie was followed by a thorough discussion, led by Professor Asad, about moral values on the one hand and national security concerns on the other and finding a balance therein. The students participated enthusiastically and shared their viewpoints regarding the same.
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