Code Red: A Few Good Men: ‘You can't handle the truth!’
A Few Good Men: Unveiling the Truth (Jack Nicholson, Tom Cruise Scene)
Colonel Jessup: (Jack Nicholson) You want answers?
Lieutenant Kaffee: (Tom Cruise) I think I'm entitled to them.
Colonel Jessup: You want answers?
Lieutenant Kaffee: I want the truth!
Colonel Jessup: You can't handle the truth!
Lieutenant Kaffee: (determined) Try me.
Colonel Jessup: (intensely) Son, we live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lieutenant Weinberg? I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Santiago and you curse the Marines. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know: that Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives.
You don't want the truth because deep down, in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall. You need me on that wall. We use words like honor, code, loyalty. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said "thank you" and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to.
Lieutenant Kaffee: (resolute) Did you order the Code Red?
Colonel Jessup: (pausing) I did the job you sent me to do.
Lieutenant Kaffee: (insistent) Did you order the Code Red?
Colonel Jessup: (shouting) You're goddamn right I did!
Code Red: secret, unofficial disciplinary action
In the film "A Few Good Men," the term "Code Red" refers to an unauthorized, covert disciplinary action taken by members of a military unit against one of their own. In the movie, Private Santiago, a young Marine, perishes in a "Code Red" incident at the Cuban naval base of Guantanamo Bay. The investigation and prosecution of two Marines accused of killing Santiago are the key plot points of the film.
Colonel Nathan R. Jessup (Jack Nicholson), who believes it is important to uphold discipline and order inside the army, issued the "Code Red" order. However, the incident has tragic repercussions and is scrutinized in great detail during the trial.
The movie investigates the truth behind the incidents that led to Santiago's murder while analyzing themes of honor, devotion, and the moral difficulties faced by military personnel. Colonel Jessup famously exclaims, "You can't handle the truth!" at a crucial juncture in the trial, implying that civilians would not be able to fathom the brutal reality of military life.
A Few Good Men (1992) - did you order Code Red?
