Rating: Summary: CRAP! Review: When I saw this film listed, I thought,"Oh, wow! Someone made a flim about Tigerland" Then I saw it! Hmmm? As a "grdauate" of Tigerland (A-2-3, 1968), I don't know what this film is supposed to be, but it DEFINITELY is NOT Tigerland. I can remeber nearly every minute of my experience there from the first ride through the gate to that final feeling of accomplishment...putting the blue behind my brass on graduation day. Um, where was all the stuff I remeember. It certainly had nothing to do with this non-sense. Director or Writers license? Even as fiction, the best that can be said is this film is just boring!
Rating: Summary: Farrell almost saves it Review: I was keen to see a war film addressing the issue that most in the genre try not to be about - the morality of conscientious objection. But psychological material demands a great screenplay, and Ross Klavan and Michael McGruther don't give us one. We never learn who Bozz is, what he really stands for, and what experiences might have driven him to do the things he does. Colin Farrell's knockout performance makes it perfectly clear that something interesting is going on in Bozz's head, and I was waiting for the scene when we'd find out just what. Of course, Bozz is not the kind of character who would ever open up to his buddies, so it would be unrealistic for him to just spill his guts. Flashbacks could have been used, or the actual reappearance of a character from his past - or even just some really subtle dialogue. But Klavan and McGruther seem to have decided that every second word should begin with 'f' (perhaps trying to capture the situation's brutality), or else be unreasonably eloquent. In any case, instead of exploring the psychological territory the story stakes out for itself, it quickly collapses into cliché and mawkishness, and limps to an anticlimax that never really pays off. Schumacher tries for gritty realism with the hand-held camera, 16mm, and documentary style. But ironically, for this kind of cerebral story they're entirely the wrong choices - and in Schumacher's fumbling hands it plays like a studio movie anyway. Still, this was a great effort from Colin Farrell, despite his Texan drawl occasionally straying back to Dublin. He owns the screen whenever he's on it, even in small roles ("Minority Report"). He has the talent and the looks to play hero or villain or anything in between. And "Tigerland" proves he may just be that rarest of Hollywood players - an actor AND a star.
Rating: Summary: Ouch! So close to perfect! Review: Tigerland, stars Colin Farrell as a man desperately trying to get kicked out of the army during Viet Nam, who never even leaves the United States. All war-related action takes place on training grounds and at the base. the film derives its name from the last week of training, a Viet Nam-like set up known as Tigerland. This, however, does not take away from the war-like feel of the movie; it still emits the same tone that most war movies do. This movie does not have to be watched as just a war movie; it can also be watched as a psychological drama. Colin Farrell's character is strongly opposed to the war, and that, more than anything, is what makes him want to keep from going overseas. As the movie progresses, we see more and more that he is in fact not a coward, and that he could actually make a very good soldier; that is, if that was what he wanted. Colin Farrell does an extraordinary job portraying his character, a Texan. His only mistake was allowing his accent to slip on several occasions and allow his Irish one to come through. My only strong objection to the movie is a scene near to the beginning which shows Farrell and his war buddy having sex with two women... I don't really see what this could possibly add to a war movie; Joel Schumacher would probably disagree with me, and say that it served some significance, but I sincerely doubt it.
Rating: Summary: Needed help, and badly. Review: Tigerland (Joel Schumacher, 2000) You know, I still havent learned. Joel Schumacher nailed the hide to the wall three times early in his career, in St. Elmos Fire (1985), The Lost Boys (1987), and Flatliners (1990) (well overlook the overly sappy Cousins, a remake of a much finer French film, in the middle there). Then came Dying Young, and the end of Joel Schumachers career as a credible filmmaker. Did I learn after two Batman flops, two John Grisham adaptations, and the horrors that were Falling Down and 8MM? Nope. I still felt the need to rent Tigerland, mostly because many people considered it one of the finest films of 2000 and one of the most realistic war movies ever made. This despite that fact that, well, it isnt really about the Vietnam War. Tigerland is a training camp in the American south to which many soldiers headed off to the Vietnam War were sent before shipping out. It was created to give the new recruits a taste of what Vietnam would really be like. The film was shot on location, so you cant fault his veracity there. The movie centers on Private Bozz (Colin Farrell, in his third war movie in three years), a guy who seems like he would have been a conscientious objector had he known the open was open to him. To each side, Bozz has an archetypehis best friend, Paxton (Matthew Davis, recently seen in Blue Crush) and his worst enemy, Wilson (Shea Wigham). The story, what there is of it, follows the three of them as they go through training. Despite our having seen such things work in films like Full Metal Jacket, the pacing of this movie comes off a little too slow for the subject matter. This is not helped by the characters, who are shallow to the extreme, flesh renditions of single emotions put there to advance a viewpoint. While the script does manage a fine ironic ending, what builds up to it certainly wasnt one of the finest films of 2000, nor the finest war movie of the last decade, as some have claimed. **
Rating: Summary: What you didn't know about the Vietnam War Review: Other than the story being Hollywoodized it is the real story and drama of the anguish and inner battle fought by Soldiers of that time. A very important part of the Vietnam War. I was there at the time portrayed by the movie. Each man had to decide if his patiotism and sense of duty would carry him through a war that had then been decided as unwinnable and that our country was pulling out of. They had not run to Canada or dodged the draft but would they be able to stand the horror of war in such a political climate. Most knew life ended after Fort Polk and could feel the Grim Reaper following him. It may be boring or slow moving at times, but that's exactly the way time was at Fort Polk and Tiger Land. I wish more money had been spent, and the movie made on larger film. I would love to see it on wide screen. If you like War Movies or have an interest in the Vietnam War it's a must see. It may turn out to be the "All Quiet on the Western Front" of the twenty first Century.
Rating: Summary: The Real Deal Review: One of the best war movies ever. It's a grunts' eye view of training and soldiering, a far cry from the politicians' propaganda and posing. This is a soldier's movie for the same reason that Country Joe and the Fish used to sell out concerts near military bases to young soldiers who knew they were being fed [misinformation] by the higherups. The style of the movie can also be studied by aspiring filmmakers and Schumaker's commentary is a seminar in itself. I've already seen it and I'm buying it for study purposes and to show friends -- what more can I say?
Rating: Summary: Great movie! Review: Before I watched this movie I thought of it as basically a vehicle by which the new actors featured in it (especially the now rather famous Colin Farrell) were introduced to the world. I was sort of right, except that this movie doesn't resonate as one put together only as an excuse to cast some new hot sexy men. "Tigerland" is a thoughtful, emotional, entertaining, and surprisingly funny film. The fact that its characters are played by actors so talented that people couldn't help but notice is a credit to good casting. After viewing this movie I understood completely the hype surrounding Colin. He is not only magnetic and appealing, but also an extremely talented actor. All the actors in this film are extremely talented. Every perfomance is a brilliant one. And the director takes a good turn with this movie. As I was about to rent the DVD, I was pretty sure that I would consider this a good movie, but I did not expect to love it and value it as much as i ended up doing. This is one of my favorite movies and one I will never grow tired of thinking or talking about.
Rating: Summary: Leaves you wanting More................ Review: This movie starts off with Bozz(Colin Farrell)back from the stockade as punishment for bad behavior.He doesn't want to be in the war and he knows alot of his fellow soldiers aren't prepared .He becomes friends with Paxton who narrates the story of his friendship with Bozz and what they dealt with while training to go to Vietnam.I thought this war movie was pretty great and definetly left me wanting to know what happens to the central character as well.Awesome actors and story more directors should make movies like this one!
Rating: Summary: Well Made Military Training Movie Review: It's about soldiers being being given advanced infantry training in the U.S. before being shipped to Vietnam. Some are draftees, some enlisted. The lead character, Boz, wants to be a human being. The whole movie takes place in the U.S. It's about how the soldiers are abused and what they did to get out of the Army. Very intense and entertaining. I didn't like the ending. A good study of what happens to normal people undeer extreme stress. Also a good thermometer of attitudes and moral (bad) in the army during the Vietnam war era. I'm tempted to say that, overall, the plot lacks credibility, ... The actors and characters were all very intriguing.
Rating: Summary: A Movie that Introduces you to Colin Farrell Review: The movie is really about the friendship of Boz and Paxton. Colin Farrell performance should have been nominated for and Oscar as Boz, it is that dead on. I could feel the heat and the tension of these young warriors as they are trained to go to a war that had torn our country apart. This is why I go to the movies to see great films like this. Candace Serviss
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