THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 1999 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): *
Sometimes it takes a while for a movie to reveal its true colors. THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER, on the other hand, has a telling moment quite early in the story.
As Warrant Officer Paul Brenner, played in a cockily overacted performance by John Travolta, investigates a horrific murder scene at an army base, he stares at the naked female officer who has been staked spread-eagle and then brutally strangled. Finding no evidence at the crime scene, he looks up. Miracle of miracles, he manages to see something flapping in the breeze way up on top of a building off to the side. Quickly climbing to its roof, he fortuitously finds a bag of just the kind of evidence he needs.
At this point you can already sense that the entire movie will be filled with such balderdash. Don't be surprised if many members of your audience find themselves laughing uncontrollably at all the wrong moments in the movie's ridiculous plot. The film, which, sadly, is no parody, has more plot holes that pot holes on an old country road. Try to keep count of them as a way to pass the time.
The dead woman is a member of the base's psychological unit. Her father, Lt. Gen. "Fighting Joe" Campbell, who is a week from retirement, is mentioned as a possible vice-presidential candidate. He's also the highly respected base commander. James Cromwell plays General Campbell as a clone of the character he played in LA CONFIDENTIAL.
General Campbell instructs Paul to solve the case in 36 hours since, after that, the FBI and the press will have to be told about it. The script by Nelson DeMille, based on Christopher Bertolini's novel, is filled with cliched, unnatural lines. "Let me be blunt," the general tells Paul. "You are going to have to decide on this one, are you going to be a soldier or a policeman? Which one are you?" Paul, with a rock-solid chin, looks his superior straight in the eye. "I'm a soldier, sir," he snaps back with unquestioning allegiance.
Now given that every room is lit for maximum atmospherics and given that the editor has a propensity for constantly cutting to ominous choppers circling overhead, do you think something sinister might be going on? Do you think the general might be involved?
The strait-laced, dead officer turns out to have had a secret, or perhaps not so secret, obsession for sadomasochistic sex, and she conveniently left lots of videos. THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER quickly degenerates to the sleazy level of the recent film 8MM. The most repugnant part of the story is the way in which it exploits rape and rape victims for lurid titillation.
Madeleine Stowe, playing Warrant Officer Sara Sunhill, a rape counselor and investigator, joins Paul on the case. They have the typical love/hate relationship of cop buddies.
Director Simon West (CON AIR) is much more concerned with dramatic images than story telling. One time he has a cat go to the window and rub his bloody paws on it to signify that his owner is dead. The director has little regard for the intelligence of the audience. Every move is so telegraphed in advance that the film contains little genuine mystery.
Characters are so obviously either bad or good that the costume department might as well have passed out black hats to one group and white hats to the other. The killer, in particular, is quite easy to spot.
Even the usually reliable James Woods doesn't lend any credibility or interest to the film. He seems set on playing a parody of himself.
The soldiers on the base tarnish their reputations with their actions. In the same way the actors disgrace themselves by being associated with such a ridiculous movie. Most deliver decidedly subpar performances in a movie that is already in trouble because of the script and direction. Perhaps they will be lucky and the movie will leave the theaters before anyone remembers it ever existed.
THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER runs 2:00. It is rated R for strong sex, rape, sadomasochism, nudity, violence, and profanity. Since it pushes the limit of the R rating, it should be considered acceptable only for the oldest and most mature teenagers.
Email: Steve.Rhodes@InternetReviews.com Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
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