Rating: 
Summary: As good as the book!
Review: I read the book this movie was based on, the book was great! I was interested in seeing the movie but was sure the movie wouldn't do it justice since most movies are a chop job on a novel. I was happily surprised to find the movie was every bit as good as the novel!
Rating:
Summary: Decent movie, but enjoyable DVD edition
Review: In Short: Enjoyable special edition of the Travolta hit from this past Summer. The commentary track is a dissapointment, though.The Movie: I actually liked director Simon West's first film, the action thriller "Con Air". It certainly wasn't anything that was Oscar-worthy, but it had a visual style that I found interesting, and it certainly kept with the "Michael Bay" style that directors that work with producer Jerry Bruckheimer("Armageddon") are known to have mass quantities of. John Travolta stars in this film (based on the bestselling novel) as millitary investigator Paul Brenner, who we first meet as he's working undercover, using a very funny Southern accent while trying to catch some nasty arms dealers. He meets Captain Elizabeth Campbell one night while trying to fix a flat tire. Soon though, he finds himself investigating her murder after her body is found on the army base. More is soon revealed as the woman is revealed to be the daughter of the General(James Cromwell). Finding himself with a new partner in his old girlfriend, Sarah Sunderland(Madeline Stowe), the two interview many of the base's occupants, including another suspicious offer (James Woods), and find that there's more to the woman's past than they first thought. Although not all of the characters are terribly well-developed (especially Stowe's), they generally do a fine job with the roles they're given. Travolta especially gives another very strong and actually, quite smart performance coming after another excellent job in "A Civil Action". Travolta also has some fine battles of conversation versus Wood's character that are some of the movie's highlights. The movie does an above average job of presenting average material. It's material that's not terribly new or original, but the performances are good, and as I said before, West (along with cinematographer Peter Menzies, Jr., who also filmed such movies as "Die Hard 3" and "Hard Rain") is able to build an intensely watchable visual style. Pace is generally good, but sometimes the movie does get a little slow. "The General's Daughter" is one of those films where the performances and direction help to make otherwise so-so material entertaining. The DVD VIDEO: Although this isn't quite the best disc I've seen from Paramount in terms of image quality, it's certainly still a very excellent effort. With the exception of a few small problems, this is a really strong, really beautiful looking transfer. The 2.35:1 anamorphic image contains very strong, bold colors that look excellent on this DVD, and detail is excellent throughout. The image captures the sort of sun-soaked, warm feel of the scenes very well. Flesh tones are natural and accurate with no problems. Contrast is very good as well. Images remain well defined and pleasingly bright throughout, and even the night scenes or dimly lit scenes in the movie contain a good amount of detail. The only flaw that I noticed with this image was the occasional instance of shimmering, although these instances were not terribly distracting. Aside from a few small flaws, "The General's Daughter" is another example of how Paramount has turned around since earlier this year and has really been doing consistently strong work on each of their DVD efforts. SOUND Although many scenes in the "General's Daughter" revolve around intense scenes of dialogue, there is also a fine helping of action, and these scenes give the sound mix a chance to do some strong work. Most of the action scenes make effective use of the surrounds and make for a highly enveloping and highly enjoyable experience. Excellent score by Carter Burwell("Three Kings", "Being John Malkovich") sounds rich and clear and dialogue has no problems either, coming through crystal clear. MENUS:: Heavily animated main menus take the viewer nicely into the movie. There is also animation when you make a choice on the main menu. EXTRAS: Commentary: This is a commentary track from director Simon West. The commentary does sound very much like the director is reading something that he's written while watching the film (which "Mrs. Doubtfire" director Chris Columbus also did for the commentary on that film), although I'm not sure that this is the case. Still, it's a somewhat interesting commentary track at times, with West pointing out a lot of the details of the production, with notes that I found quite interesting, such as discussion towards the begining of the track about how West and cinematographer Peter Menzies, Jr. made their choices for the style of lighting. West also touches again a couple of times on the visual style that he and Menzies were able to achieve on this picture. I say it's a dissapointing commentary though (and I don't say that about too many commentaries), because although West does provide some interesting details when he speaks, it becomes apparent early on in this track that this is going to be one of those commentaries that contain its fair share of pauses between discussion. Although some sections of the commentary contain a fairly decent amount of discussion, there were some pauses during this talk that were long enough to make me wonder if the commentary was still going on, which I found dissapointing. It seemed as if the pauses became more frequent as the track went on. Other things that West touches on during the discussion are his thoughts on the various actors as well as how some of the effects were done. He also offers a number of entertaining and informative stories about what went on during the filming of certain scenes throughout. What became a little annoying was the fact that West falls back occasionally on simply commenting on what's going on on-screen, and that gets a little dull. Don't get me wrong: I appreciate greatly that Paramount put a commentary track as an addition to this DVD, but really, it's definitely not one of the better commentaries I've heard this year. Deleted Scenes: These are 5 deleted scenes that are 10 minutes in length.Two make up the romantic element between John Travolta and Madeline Stowe's characters. Director Simon West decided that this part of the story should not be included in the final film, and before the scenes begin, we hear him tell why. The others are fairly interesting additions showing more of Travolta's investigation. The 2nd Stowe/Travolta scene is an alternate ending to the film. Behind-The-Scenes Featurette: More of a "documentary", I'd say: this is a 20 minute "behind-the-scenes" look at the making of this movie. The usual elements are of course included: we get interviews with the majority of the cast as well as director Simon West. There are some interesting details offered about the production, such as the intense heat and conditions that had to be contended with during filming as well as a look at some of the sets that had to be built for this movie. We also get a sneak peek at some of the special props that were brought in for this picture. I really liked a lot of how this documentary takes the viewer for a "behind-the-scenes" look at how a lot of the filming was done, with sequences that show the various cameras used at work. Of course, there are also talks about the characters and the relationships that they have, and interviews with the actors generally fill out the details on who they play and what they do. A very nicely done documentary and a fine addition to the DVD. Trailers: The teaser and theatrical trailers are included. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Final Thoughts The movie isn't too bad, and the image/sound quality is very enjoyable, but the commentary track I felt was dissapointing. The documentary and the deleted scenes do make nice additions, though. Worth a look as a rental.
Rating: 
Summary: General's Daughter
Review: Great movie. Buy it if you like a combination of suspense and action
Rating: 
Summary: Good Actors Wasted...
Review: ...in a truly distasteful setting. There was very little effort made to impart real human emotions to the various characters in this film. Try as they might, Travolta and company cannot make up for what's lacking in both the script and direction...substance. Even more insulting, the film is edited for people who have a five second or less attention span. Check out the first ten minutes of this film and see if any shot is held for that long before cutting to another. There's one excellent scene between James Woods and Travolta, but otherwise it's disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: RUN-OF-THE-MILL THRILLER OFFERS FEW SURPRISES
Review: It's "A Few Good Men" meets "8MM" in "The General's Daughter," the latest John Travolta vehicle that offers up more cliches than any one person should have to digest. Clumsily done, the film offers some solid performances, but the lagging pace and flat dialogue are its ultimate undoing. Film doesn't go anywhere soon, and a ridiculous ending doesn't help any. Film should have been titled "A Few Good S&M Men." Not bad, but very far from original; it's all been done before.
Rating: 
Summary: Contrived military drama.
Review: It's fair to compare this with "Three Good Men", just another branch of service involved here, Army not Navy. (Also, in Three Good Men the incident takes place in Cuba, outside of FBI jurisdiction and what might be termed as a hostile environment). Nonetheless, they are both about an investigation, but 3GM ends up in the courtroom for a suspenseful finish, while General's Daughter ends with special effects. It boils down to a question of tatse, if you like SFX centre stage and acting on the side this movie fills the bill. As good as I think Travolta is, and he really isn't bad in this movie either, he delivers a cooky cutter performance. The location or venue is interesting - an army special ops training ground (attention has been paid to make the film realistic). Further, the film does have its moments of suspense, but it becomes pretty clear how it will end - early on. Travolta plays a sergeant who happens on to a murder while investigating arms smuggling from the base. He's a sort of Rambo character in the CID division (Criminal Investigation Dept), and his beligerant attitude with senior officers is somewhat amusing if not realistic. He meets the girl who is murdered, naturally likes her, finds somethings upseting about her in his investigation, and goes gunning for the murderer with a few "Sirs" thrown in to remind us of his rank! It's worth seeing, once.
Rating:
Summary: Great entertainment with a good message!
Review: I put this movie above all my other favorites of all time. The General's Daughter is thrilling and leaves you guessing until the end. Above all, I believe the movie sends out an excellent message that needs to be taken by our society and the military: it is a message that is not fabricated as many think, but one I know from personal experience needs to be taken by many people. From my experiences, this movie gives an accurate picture of the military. Shots of nudity and sexual scenes are not anything one would have seen in a movie ten years ago, but certainly adds to the plot of this movie. All of the actors give great performances. This is a must see film!
Rating:
Summary: Better than advertised
Review: I decided to watch this movie because of the original books author rather than the negative reviews that I had read. Parts of the movie are disturbing but less so than some other movies of this genre. Although the plot is somewhat contrived and although this will not become a classic, it is a good evening's entertainment with a good cast,photography and score.
Rating:
Summary: Well Made---Slickly Done... Entertainment Dammit!
Review: A bunch of people did not like The General's Daughter. I am not one of those people, and I liken the performences and cinematography to that of A Few Good Men, and that's saying a lot. he film, I give it four stars, but the DVD of it is awesome, with scenes from the book that (I believe) should've been in the movie, and commentary--everything you could ask for. However, this was not as good as the book, but if you did indeed like this film, and haven't read the book--please do so... It's awesome, and I think the ending in the novel was better than the film's.
Rating: 
Summary: Bizarre and, frankly, offensive...
Review: I often wonder what it is that attracts high-profile stars to this sort of drivel. When they can pretty much pick any script they want, and they choose stuff like this. I don't get it. The film's biggest (or at least most obvious) problem is that the whole movie is so over-the-top atmospherically. Like A TIME TO KILL, the makers of this one seem to think that everyone in the Deep South wanders around with a film of sweat covering their entire body 24 hours a day. Doesn't anyone in this picture have a damn air conditioner? Not to mention the fact that every shot is bathed in an orange haze like it is perpetually 6:00 in the evening. Doesn't the sun ever move in the south? Beyond that, the story is totally ridiculous. The title character's motivations are frankly absurd and the explanation for her death is bizarre without purpose. As well, the identity of her killer will be immediately apparent to anyone who is familiar with Roger Ebert's "Law of the Economy of Characters" which states that any character who has no other purpose to the story in a murder mystery is automatically the killer. And let me ask this: What were the filmmakers thinking by including such a grotesquely graphic rape/murder in a big-budget summer action film? If they had been attempting to make a serious portrayal of the effects and aftermath of a rape/murder they might have gotten away with it. But THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER is supposed to be entertainment. It's all about context -- There was no point in showing this sort of realistic brutality here other than exploitation. Just offensive.
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