Tigerland
Given that he delivered the abominations Batman Forever and Batman and Robin to the world, it is easy to forget that Joel Schumacher is actually not that bad of a director, with a resume that includes some genuinely good films, like Falling Down and The Client. Yes, he also has a lot of junk like Number 23 and Bad Company on that resume, too, but there is no denying the man has some talent. Which brings me to Tigerland. Gritty and harsh, Schumacher's take on Vietnam is the complete opposite of what I've come to expect from a Schumacher film.
In the early 70s, as public opinion turns against Vietnam, a group of young soldiers arrive for basic training in Louisiana, including Bozz (Colin Farrell), straight-laced volunteer Paxton (Matthew Davis), nervous and well-meaning Miter (Clifton Collins, Jr.) and crazy Wilson (Shea Whigham). Bozz is immediately a trouble maker, acting smart-ass to the sergeants, constantly questioning orders, sneaking off the base, and just generally causing problems. He's a bit like Jack Nicholson in One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, only on a military base instead of an insane asylum (though there are some obvious similarities as presented here). The real problem with Bozz, though, is that he is charismatic, an obvious leader, and easily influences other soldiers to also question their superiors. That is something the army cannot abide, especially as they ramp up for a trip to Tigerland, the brutal recreation of Vietnam that the will show the trainees what it is really like during war.
The movie is gritty and realistic in tone, well written by Ross Klavin and Michael McGruther, and directed with a sure hand by Schumacher. The true strength of the film is the performances, and that starts with Colin Farrell. This was his first major role. I have no idea how Schumacher found him or why he was brave enough to give a no-name the lead, but the gambit works. Farrell is excellent, and it is clear now why Hollywood tried so hard to make him a A-list star in the 2000s. That didn't quite work out (did any one like The Recruit and Alexander?), but you can see what Hollywood was salivating about. Quick note - the good thing about Farrell no longer being stuck in huge blockbusters is that he is making more quality movies now, which can only be a good thing, i.e. In Bruges and The Way Back...uh, okay, back to Tigerland.
For the third time in a row, I am reviewing a movie where I am underwhelmed by the ending. In the case of Tigerland, we have building up to a confrontation between Bozz and crazy Private Miller the whole movie. It's gonna be a bad one, we can feel it. But then it just fizzles; the ending of the film basically just rehashing a scene we saw 40 minutes earlier. It's very anticlimactic and a bit of a bummer, considering how good the movie is.
I would still recommend Tigerland, without a doubt, for its strong performances and a reminder that Schumacher can direct a quality project when he wants to.
The movie is gritty and realistic in tone, well written by Ross Klavin and Michael McGruther, and directed with a sure hand by Schumacher. The true strength of the film is the performances, and that starts with Colin Farrell. This was his first major role. I have no idea how Schumacher found him or why he was brave enough to give a no-name the lead, but the gambit works. Farrell is excellent, and it is clear now why Hollywood tried so hard to make him a A-list star in the 2000s. That didn't quite work out (did any one like The Recruit and Alexander?), but you can see what Hollywood was salivating about. Quick note - the good thing about Farrell no longer being stuck in huge blockbusters is that he is making more quality movies now, which can only be a good thing, i.e. In Bruges and The Way Back...uh, okay, back to Tigerland.
For the third time in a row, I am reviewing a movie where I am underwhelmed by the ending. In the case of Tigerland, we have building up to a confrontation between Bozz and crazy Private Miller the whole movie. It's gonna be a bad one, we can feel it. But then it just fizzles; the ending of the film basically just rehashing a scene we saw 40 minutes earlier. It's very anticlimactic and a bit of a bummer, considering how good the movie is.
I would still recommend Tigerland, without a doubt, for its strong performances and a reminder that Schumacher can direct a quality project when he wants to.
MVP: As good as Colin Farrell is, he is not my favorite thing about the movie. That honor would actually have to go to Cole Hauser (Pitch Black) as Cota, a veteran sergeant who trains the platoon once it arrives at Tigerland. He is the only authority figure Bozz respects, maybe because Cota has been to Vietnam already, but I think it is because of the way he treats the platoon. He's still a tough, stubborn son of a bitch, but you can tell he is putting the men through the grinder because he wants them to survive as opposed to any propagandistic, gung ho reasons. Hauser only has maybe three scenes, maybe only ten minutes of screen time, but in that short period he owns the picture, completely taking away everyone else's badass card because well, no one is as badass as he is. Nothing against Farrell, who is superb in the film, but Hauser is Tigerland's MVP.
TRIVIA: The book Bozz is reading in the beginning of the movie is Dalton Trumbo's Johnny Got His Gun, a famous anti-war novel. They never explain it in the movie, but Bozz reading the book definitely makes a bad first impression to his superiors and other, more gung ho members of his platoon.
BEST LINE:
Miter: You know what I am, Bozz? I'm a butcher.
Bozz: Yeah, we all butchers, Miter.
Miter: No, I'm a real butcher.
Bozz: Shit, you haven't killed anyone yet.
Miter: Damn it, Bozz, I mean a real butcher. Back home, I cut meat.
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