The much lauded military courtroom drama that propelled screenwriter Aaron Sorkin into the higher echelons of Hollywood has come to the Edinburgh Fringe at the hands of Nomad Theatre.
It's been 25 years since A Few Good Men first played on Broadway and, despite the passage of time and the popular film adaptation, the story of bullying and brutality in the military has never lost its power or the captivating style with which the characters interact.
The punchy dialogue and intricate interplay is brought to the Fringe in a slightly abridged but nevertheless wholly satisfying form.
The well-told trio of 'The Pushy Broad, the Smart Jew and the Harvard Mouth" facing off against the closed ranks of the soldiery and brass of Guantanamo Bay in a seemingly unwinnable trial is played out in charismatic and captivating style by the leads Lydia Kemish, Francis Pindar and Stuart Norris.
Creating a simple yet effective staging with a few tables and chairs, the myriad scene changes and time shifts in the tale are evoked with ease and, as a result, the play flows swiftly and easily over the two-hour runtime.
There were a few minor issues with the lighting and technical details and an unfortunate handful of stumbles over some of the more frenetic dialogue in the piece, which are understandable on the opening night.
This still stands as a formidable piece of entertainment, expertly wrought, admirably performed and, considering the longer than average runtime for a Fringe show, well worth the effort.