The Soldier (1982) Embassy Pictures/Action-Thriller RT: 90 minutes Rated R (language, graphic violence, mild sexual content) Director: James Glickenhaus Screenplay: James Glickenhaus Music: Tangerine Dream Cinematography: Robert M. Baldwin Release date: September 3, 1982 (Philadelphia, PA) Starring: Ken Wahl, Alberta Watson, Jeremiah Sullivan, William Prince, Joaquim de Almeida, Peter Hooten, Steve James, Alexander Spencer, Ron Harper, Klaus Kinski, Ned Eisenberg, Zeljko Ivanek, Jeffrey Jones, David Lipman, George Strait (as himself) . Box Office: N/A
Rating: *** ½
High among the guiltiest of my guilty pleasures is hack filmmaker James Glickenhaus. For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the name, his credits as writer-director include the exploitation vigilante flick The Exterminator (1980), 1985’s The Protector (one of Jackie Chan’s early efforts to break into the US market) and Shakedown (1988) with Peter Weller and Sam Elliott.
He also made The Soldier, a kick-ass blend of violent action and international intrigue starring Ken Wahl (The Taking of Beverly Hills). As much as I like Glickenhaus, I’ll be the first to admit he falls short in the storytelling department. In terms of narrative, his movies tend to be messy and convoluted. But boy, does he know how to stage a great action sequence! Remember that awesome chase through Times Square in Shakedown?
The Soldier gets a bit confusing at times, but it’s not impossible to follow if you pay attention. I realize it’s a lot to ask from audiences looking for nothing more than an entertaining but disposal B-movie, but it’s worth it. I first caught it one night on HBO in the early 80s (July 21, 1983). It was one of those fortuitous nights when the line-up consisted of two movies I hadn’t seen (the other being 1981’s Tarzan the Ape Man). I was hooked from the moment I recognized the setting of the movie’s opening scene. It’s Logan Circle, located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, right here in Philadelphia. Logan Circle is lined on both sides by the flags of every country in the world. That’s where my father, brother and I would stand in the autumn cold to watch the Thanksgiving Day parade every year. It’s the first time I ever recognized a location in a movie. I thought it was so cool.
In keeping with the political climate of the Reagan-era, the Soviets are the bad guys in The Soldier. In the movie’s opening scene, an elite team of CIA agents led by “The Soldier” (Wahl) take down a gang of KGB assassins. It doesn’t stop KGB official Ivan (Sullivan) from proceeding with his plan against the US. He and a few of his comrades sneak into the country and steal plutonium from an armed convoy. They create a nuclear device and plant it on a Saudi Arabian airfield then where they threaten to detonate it unless Israel withdraws its settlements on the West Bank within 96 hours. If the bomb goes off, it will contaminate 50% of the world’s oil supply rendering it unusable for 300 years.
In order to avert an oil crisis, the President (Prince, The Gauntlet) considers starting a war with Israel. The head of the CIA (Harper) has an alternate solution. He assigns the Soldier, who normally works outside the usual channels, to the case. He might not know about the KGB being behind the situation, but they know about him thanks to a bug in the CIA head’s office. It doesn’t take long for them to (1) make an attempt on the Soldier’s life and (2) kill the only person (the CIA head) who knows of the Soldier’s existence, effectively leaving the spy out in the cold. The Soldier and his men ultimately team up with Mossad agent Susan Goodman (Watson, The Keep) to try and diffuse the already volatile situation before the clock runs out and it blows up in everybody’s faces.
The movie’s narrative shortcomings don’t really matter because Glickenhaus makes up for them with some pulse-pounding action sequences. I really like the chase sequence, set on the ski slopes of Austria, where the Soldier tries to outrun two armed Russians. Is it possible that part of CIA training involves learning to shoot an automatic weapon while jumping through the air on skis? Based on The Soldier, that would certainly seem to be the case.
Another part I find interesting is the scene where Glickenhaus shows a Russian baddie building an explosive device involving a light bulb, dish soap (I think) and gasoline. I don’t know if this actually works in real life, but isn’t it kind of irresponsible to show such a thing in great detail? I’m wondering if this scene is why it took so long for The Soldier to come out on DVD/Blu-Ray.
My only real complaint about this movie is that actor Klaus Kinski (The Little Drummer Girl) is WAY underused. He’s only in it for a few minutes as the Russian agent who sets the Soldier up on the ski slopes. He does his usual expert job at projecting a sufficient amount of menace, but he really should have had a bigger role. Or even better, he should have played the main bad guy! How cool would that be?
I’ve never been terribly impressed with Wahl or his body of work, but he does a passable job as “The Soldier”. Watson does okay as well, but I’m wondering if the romantic subplot was really necessary? It’s only one scene and Watson gets to deliver one of the worst sexual come-ons I’ve ever heard. When Wahl tries to shy away in the bedroom, she says “Don’t be so f***ing coy. I mean, we’re on the eve of destruction and you’re acting like some nervous child.” Don’t these words just set your heart aflutter?
The score by Tangerine Dream is terrific. It gives the action sequences a more electric feel. The supporting cast includes a few familiar names/faces like Steve James (the American Ninja movies), Joaquim de Almeida (Desperado), Zeljko Ivanek (The Sender), Jeffrey Jones (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) and a brief appearance by country superstar George Straight.
I really like The Soldier a lot. It may not be the greatest film ever made. It definitely has its share of flaws and plot holes. It works great as a pure kick-ass action flick though. For me, it’s one of the greatest unsung grindhouse movies of the 80s.
