Rating:
The Info
Directed by: Simon West
Written by: Christopher Bertolini, William
Goldman (novel by Nelson DeMille)
Starring: John Travolta, Madeleine Stowe,
James Cromwell, Timothy Hutton, James Woods
Produced by: Mace Neufeld
The Nutshell
Two military investigators have to find the reasons behind the bizarre murder of the general's daughter.
The Review
The General's Daughter is the kind of film that audiences love and critics hate. A mystery that hands you all of its answers on a silver platter complete with concise explanations from characters as to "why they did it", this film will not withstand the scrutiny of whodunit aficionados. Starring John Travolta, The General's Daughter is the kind of film that Hollywood is an expert at making; empty, insulting, glitzy and a waste of time.
The story centres on the bizarre death of General Joseph Campbell's daughter, Captain Elizabeth Campbell. She is found pegged to the ground, naked, and strangled. John Travolta and Madeleine Stowe, as Warrant Officers Paul Brenner and Sara Sunhill, are called in to investigate. From the start, their investigation is shrouded in menace, as everyone they talk to seems to be hiding something. From the General to his second-in-command Colonel Fowler to Elizabeth's boss Colonel Moore, everyone is a possible conspirator. As Brenner and Sunhill come up against bureaucratic diplomacy issues, masked officers who seem to want to hinder their investigation and a pile of possibly misleading clues, they will discover a shocking tale of rape, weird sex and cover-ups which make the plot more than a little stretched.
Director Simon West, who also helmed the fun Con Air, goes a little overboard with Daughter. Every scene is either darkly lit, or else someone gives someone else a shifty, covert look with his eyes. The Captain's murder is overblown and sensationalized, with multiple shots of her naked body, and a graphic sexual flashback to her past. Her story, once revealed, is a disgusting tale of sex and brutality that is supposed to show her state of mind, but really just shows her chest. Stories concerning sex and violence are often poorly rendered on the screen (think of the vile 8mm), and this one is no exception. West could take a lesson from David Fincher, who set the standard for darkness with Se7en, a far superior film. The script, by Christopher Bertolini and William Goldman, contains some amusing highpoints (any scene with James Woods, for example), but is mostly patriotic, bombastic swill. The progression of the investigation is also poorly written, as characters either find clues by pure chance (hey, look, I looked up and happened to see a bag full of the Captain's clothes!) or because someone planted them (some missing medical files placed in Brenner's car). Brenner makes some incredible leaps of logic without any apparent reason, and simply pulls us along for the ride. The film also contains a lot of plot developments that are common to lesser films; Brenner heads the investigation, and finds himself saddled with rape investigator Sunhill, who (surprise, surprise!) used to be his lover! This provides countless reminiscences about their past, conversations which are supposed to give their characters some background, but simply take up time.
James Woods manages to pull yet another inferior out of the cinematic gutter simply by his awesome presence. Appearing in maybe three scenes, Woods, as Col. Moore, is all static electricity and wit as he locks mental horns with Travolta's Brenner. Their amusing banter is very similar to Woods' showdowns with Clint Eastwood in True Crime (the only good thing about that film), and his dialogue throughout the pathetic Vampires. Travolta does an adequate job as Brenner, attacking his role with his usual gusto, overacting but enjoying it. Stowe gets to do some men-bashing as Sunhill, while Cromwell plays another sad old man. Others like Timothy Hutton really don't do much of anything but look like they have secrets, and are mostly ineffectual in their roles.
The General's Daughter is sensationalistic garbage, but has enough of a professional look to it to keep it from being a total loss. Cinematographer Peter Menzies Jr. gives each scene a lot of attention, perhaps too much attention, but has created a disturbing, dark setting for the film. Combined with a strong cast, this film will nicely satisfy your basic desire to see a big budget summer blockbuster. Anyone looking for an intelligent, thought-provoking mystery would do better renting a Hitchcock classic, or Se7en. Anything but this.
Copyright - Tim Chandler
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