Soldier (1998)

Missing In Action

On second thought, my title to this review should be "Missing THE Action", which is the film's dominating and damning problem: starring action hero Kurt Russell ("Escape from New York") and directed by genre resident Paul Anderson ("Mortal Kombat"), I expected "Soldier" to be a veritable action-powerhouse...yet the film goes beyond missing its mark and lacks any definitive direction - unsure if it wants to be a an action flick, a survival story, or a social critique.

"Todd" (Russell) is a soldier born into and raised in your typical lifelong military program: taught to kill as soon as he can walk, he excels in his training and becomes the callous veteran of many conflicts. However, when a rival program pits its stronger, faster units against the older models in an exhibition, Todd is presumed killed and his body is dumped on a designated garbage disposal planet. Here, he settles in with a close-knit community of exiles, and slowly begins to attain a level of humanity he never knew...until the new breed of soldiers, in an effort to gain combat experience, is dispatched to the planet to weed out its inhabitants.

As said before, the film lacks action - or, at the very least, lacks satisfying action: with the exception of two encounters with rival soldier "Caine" (a hunky Jason Scott Lee, "The Jungle Book"), Russell has no hand-to-hand fights, and the only firefight - a slow-moving 17-on-1 shoot-`em-up - doesn't occur until the film's last twenty minutes. The rest of the movie focuses solely on Todd getting acquainted and trying to fit in with his hosts, and for a lack of a more delicate phrase, this is very boring: though an accomplished actor, Russell lacks the subtlety in this film to make his rarely-speaking character appear like anything besides a guy who doesn't understand what the heck is going on - lots of pursed-lip, wide-eyed staring. But he calls everyone "sir" - even women.

The rest of the performers - including Connie Nielsen ("One Hour Photo") and Gary Busey ("Under Siege") - are generally passable in their portrayals, but aren't given an opportunity to add to the script. The film's graphics are visibly outdated, and the sets range from okay-ish to dollar-budget. However, the more significant fault lies in the film's sense of morality: the faction that bred Russell's character is seen exercising cruelty and infanticide, yet when the bigger and better soldiers with the cockier commander (Jason Isaacs, "The Patriot") arrive, the folks behind Todd's creation are suddenly turned into good guys. In addition, the over-the-top militarism displayed has no purpose: it's never revealed why a program to turn out such soldiers is even required, and the attack on the exiled colony happens for no other reason than that the commander is a jerk.

While I was expecting Anderson's trademark style of pop-direction and not much of a story, "Soldier" is a significant step below average for the man who brought us "Mortal Kombat" and "Resident Evil", and it's not hard to see why the film flopped back in 1998. In short, this movie isn't going to stir too much interest with either sci-fi or action fans, and Kurt Russell devotees have definitely seen better from their man. Leave this one on the shelf unless you're desperate. June 25, 2008

Soldier

Kurt Russell is good as a future solder in a special unit. When the new improved versions are introduced his years of experience almost kills one of them but him and two others are killed and left on a dump planet. The only problem is Kurt wasn't quite dead yet. Some survivors of a ship crash that has lived there for years nurse him back to health. Although he was raised to have no feelings and be the best soldier he could be he develops a liking for these civilians. So much so when the improved versions do an Op on the planet and anyone there is considered hostiles, he defends the civilians. Good action movie if you enjoy movies like "No Escape" and "Universal Soldier". Good quality DVD and fair replayability. June 9, 2008

Soldier

Few actors could accomplish what Kurt Russell does with this character. He manages to convey so much without uttering more than a dozen lines. Some are one word lines at that. He turns a cold-blooded killer into a flawed and likeable hero. This movie show cases true talent. March 14, 2008

Great Entertainment, Great Acting

This is a fantastic science fiction movie with great action, storyline, and acting. Kurt Russel is particularly fantastic in this because he barely even says 25 words the whole show. Yet, he is able to portray such a complex character that transforms as the storyline unfolds.

After being trained from birth to be an elite killer soldier, following orders at all costs, and completely devoid of humanity and human feelings, Todd finds himself disposed of when he is replaced by a better soldier. He is dumped on a waste disposal planet where survivors of a crash are living. He lives among them and ultimately defends them when the "better soldiers" arrive on a training mission.

This movie moves very fast, so we are not bored at all. And the storyline is so interesting, though somewhat bloody, that we are engrossed the entire time. I recommend this for fans of science fiction and unusual science fiction since Kurt Russel does such a good job as a main character who barely speaks but tells an incredible story. December 21, 2007

Soldier

Had this in video and wore it out. Loved the premis and concept. Russell is no slouch either

I gave this as a gift.
X
C December 11, 2007

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