Buffalo Soldiers (2001 film)
Buffalo Soldiers | |
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Directed by | Gregor Jordan |
Written by |
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Based on | Buffalo Soldiers 1993 novel by Robert O'Connor |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Oliver Stapleton |
Edited by | Lee Smith |
Music by | David Holmes |
Production companies |
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Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 98 minutes |
Countries |
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Language | English |
Budget | $15 million[2] |
Box office | $2.3 million[3] |
Buffalo Soldiers is a 2001 black comedy war film directed and co-written by Gregor Jordan, based on the 1993 novel of the same name by Robert O'Connor. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Ed Harris, Scott Glenn, Anna Paquin and Dean Stockwell. It follows a group of American soldiers stationed in West Germany during 1989 just before the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Buffalo Soldiers had its world premiere at the 26th Toronto International Film Festival on 8 September 2001, and was theatrically released in the United Kingdom by Pathé Distribution on 18 July 2003.[4] The film began a limited release in the United States on 25 July 2003, followed by a wide release on 8 August 2003, by Miramax Films. It earned five nominations at the 6th British Independent Film Awards, including Best British Independent Film and Best Actor for Phoenix.[5]
Plot
In 1989,
A three-man Army tank crew, under the strong influence of the heroin that Elwood cooked for the MPs, unintentionally kills two soldiers in charge of a weapons truck convoy by randomly crashing through a gas station's fuel pumps and detonating them. Elwood stumbles across the trucks, discovers and steals the weapons, and hides them in medical equipment boxes stored at a missile base. When later harassed by Lee for his extravagant barracks room, Elwood's attempt at
Elwood sells the stolen weapons to a Turkish gangster, accepting a large amount of raw opium as payment. However, to save Knoll from being killed by Saad in a fight, Elwood is forced to make Saad a business partner in cooking the opium. In order to retrieve the weapons from the missile base and collect the drugs, Elwood sells out Berman so a competing infantry regiment can easily capture their positions during a mobilization/defense operations exercise. Later, Berman reluctantly tells Elwood he has been relieved from Brigade Command but this has given him time to reflect — he will retire from the Army and buy a vineyard in California.
On 9 November, the night the
In the aftermath, the Army's top commanders posthumously award Lee a Silver Star and also decorate Elwood, who is transferred to a new assignment in Hawaii. He tells his new commanding officer, who is just as dull-witted as Colonel Berman, that Robyn remains his girlfriend and she will be visiting soon. The film ends with Elwood submitting a requisition order for more supplies.
Cast
- Joaquin Phoenix as Specialist (SPC) Ray Elwood
- Ed Harris as Colonel (COL) Berman
- Scott Glenn as First Sergeant (1SG) Robert E. Lee
- Anna Paquin as Robyn Lee
- Gabriel Mann as PFC/2LT Brian Knoll
- Elizabeth McGovern as Mrs. Berman
- Michael Peña as Garcia
- Leon Robinson as SPC Stoney
- Dean Stockwell as Major General Lancaster
- Brian Delate as Colonel Marshall
- Glenn Fitzgerald as SGT Hicks
- Idris Elba as Kimborough
- Haluk Bilginer as The Turk
- Sheik Mahmud-Bey as SGT Saad
- Roger Griffiths as Simmons
Production
Filming took place in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Several former US Army bases that had recently been handed back to German control, like the depot at Siegelsbach, were used as locations. The US Army declined to support the film, so military vehicles had to be rented from commercial companies and private collectors, and though a US tank platoon, it is equipped with Leopard 1 tanks.
Release
The world premiere was held at the 2001
Reception
Buffalo Soldiers has a rating of 73% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 115 reviews with an average score of 6.55 out of 10. The consensus states "Overall, this caustic comedy hits more of its targets than it misses."[9] The film also has a score of 56 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 35 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[10]
References
- ^ "Buffalo Soldiers". bfi. Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
- ^ "Buffalo Soldiers (2003)". The Numbers. Archived from the original on 16 July 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
- ^ "Buffalo Soldiers (2001)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
- ^ Minns, Adam (13 June 2003). "Buffalo Soldiers finally gets UK release". Screen International. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
- ^ "Winners & Nominations | The Awards 2003". BIFA. 24 October 2003. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
- ^ "26th Toronto International Film Festival Coverage: Day Three". Digital Hit. Archived from the original on March 11, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- ^ Scott, A. O. (July 25, 2003). "Film Review; A Portrait of the Army, but Few Heroes in Sight". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 24, 2018. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- ^ see Scott Laderman/Tim Gruenewald (editors): "Imperial Benevolence: U.S. Foreign Policy and American Popular Culture since 9/11", most of opening chapter "Camouflaging empire", University of California Press 2018)
- ^ "Buffalo Soldiers". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on April 21, 2015. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- ^ "Buffalo Soldiers". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
External links
- Buffalo Soldiers at IMDb