I wanted Buffalo Soldiers to be a much better film than it is. Adapted from Robert O’Connor’s best-selling novel, the movie tells the story of the American military in peacetime and the exploits of one scheming ex-con-cum-requisition clerk’s scams to make a quick buck at the expense of the military apparatus.
The charming Private Elwood, played by Joaquin Phoenix in his first starring role, has his finger in many pies at the same time. He sells supplies to the highest bidder on the German black market and cooks up heroin on the side in order to supply the army of slackers with their daily fix. While the setting at the end of the Cold War serves as an excellent illustration of the curious things that continue in the U.S. military (which is reputed to “lose” over a billion dollars of equipment a year), the plot does not go far enough to justify it.
Following a hilarious scene involving a tank crew trying to follow orders while fighting the influence of heroin, the film begins to lose its potential for scathing commentary and quickly delves into John Hughes territory. When the new base commander starts to give Elwood problems, Elwood retaliates by dating his daughter (Anna Paquin). From here the film follows the predictable course of any frat-house comedy where the troops must rally against the oppressiveness of the crusty dean.
The actors do a good job, but don’t have much to work with in terms of a script, with choice lines like, “You’re only taking me out to piss off my dad-you’re crazy!” The romance sub-plot is the rotten core of the film, and its bland sweetness lies in direct opposition with the self-serving callousness that is the essence of Elwood’s character.
As a result, the film becomes a watered-down version of any good movie. It’s not cute or funny enough for a romantic comedy, not biting enough for satire, and doesn’t have enough action for fans of the genre. While the film was made with international funding and could therefore represent an alternative to the usual glut of summer blockbusters, in the end it’s still Hollywood crap that Buffalo Soldiers seeks to emulate.
Instead of offering a scathing commentary about the wisdom of placing the most powerful military complex in the world in the hands of ex-cons, bureaucrats and high-school drop-outs, all we get is a lame Ferris Bueller’s Day Off set against the backdrop of the crumbling Berlin Wall.
