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Year:   1999
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Movie:  4/5
DVD:    3/5

Teaser

Warrant Officers Paul Brenner (John Travolta) and Sara Sunhill (Madeleine Stowe) investigate the rape and strangulation of Captain Elisabeth Campbell (Leslie Stefanson) at an Army base in the Deep South. The simple "who did it" quickly complicates to "how" and "why" as the two Criminal Investigation Division officers must tangle with civilian authorities and the Army "good ol' boys" network.

Movie

This is a movie with depth. Brenner and Sunhill are two people with a certain shared history who are thrown together to solve this case. They have only 36 hours before the FBI and media become involved, making this a fast paced movie. It becomes a real mystery once Campbell's past is revealed and we start to wonder what really happened and just who are the bad guys here. An intriguing movie.

Actors

John Travolta and Madeleine Stowe are fine actors, but they didn't have any chemistry in the movie. Part of the reason is that Director Simon West deleted some of those scenes so that the movie focuses on the case. Leslie Stefanson had the toughest role as she had to portray a likeable character that comes to a horrible end. It must have been tough playing a naked and dead rape victim lying spread eagled on the dirt all night long.

DVD

"The General's Daughter: Behind the Secrets" is a twenty minute promotional documentary. Theatrical and teaser trailers are standard. The audio commentary by Director Simon West is informative but dry. He stuck to the facts and didn't liven his narration. There are four deleted scenes, the only noteworthy one is the alternative ending which seemed a bit cheesy and I'm glad it wasn't used.

Recommendations

It's a good movie and I recommend it highly. A good mystery with a military theme.
Copyright (c) 2003 Kevin C. Wong
Page Created: November 30, 2003 Page Last Updated: November 30, 2003