Name: Retro Film Review: The Pentagon Wars (1998)
Item: The Pentagon Wars
Rating: 60
Author: @drax

(source:tmdb.org)

It is difficult to imagine that today, but not so long ago most people had unshakeable belief in US military omnipotence. Americans had the wisest strategies, most effective tactics and most efficient logistics while their servicemen were half-deities equipped with perfect weapons. This perception, established in First Gulf War and carefully maintained by Hollywood and American media, was validated through American military interventions in Bosnia and Kosovo. By a strange twist of fate, the latter coincided with the time when The Pentagon Wars, 1998 cable television film directed by Richard Benjamin, appeared in my country's video stores.

The film is based on the book by Lt. Col. James Burton, who is also the film's protagonist (played by Cary Elwes). As an Air Force officer he was sent to Pentagon in the beginning of 1980s. His task was to assess Pentagon's weapons testing and R&D programme. His superior, Maj. Gen. Partridge (played by Kelsey Grammer) introduces him to "Bradley" - new armoured vehicle, which is supposed to become standard piece of American mechanised infantry equipment. Burton attends the test which must determine whether "Bradley" can withstand enemy fire. Experiment is successful, but some details are suspicious to Burton. He expresses his doubt and demands that Partridge authorises new test. Instead of that he is subjected to the series of bureaucratic tricks and stonewalling. Burton decides to investigate the background of "Bradley" project and, to his utmost horror, learns that the vehicle had been in the process of R&D for more than a decade without any significant progress. But the brass nevertheless insists on putting the last design into production, ignoring the experts that warn that the "Bradley" is slow moving, under-gunned, undermanned vehicle utterly vulnerable even to the most primitive kinds of enemy anti-tank weapons. Burton invests all of his energy to conduct proper testing and prevent disaster in the making. All that leads to many absurd and tragicomic situations.

Like in many films based on true events, complex issues of The Pentagon Wars are presented through oversimplified dramatic conflict. That conflict, including its predictable resolution, is used at the expense of film's realism. For most people in late 1990s this film looked like product of Hollywood's fiction. Only the appearance of Caspar Weinberger, Reagan's secretary of defence (played by director Richard Benjamin) reminds audience that what they see is based on real history. Benjamin, whose directing career left much to be desired, handles the plot and characters confidently, while the dark humour entertains the audience. Cary Elwes is good in the role of determined idealist, while Kelsey Grammer provides very convincing and sometimes frightening embodiment of military bureaucracy.

The most valuable thing about The Pentagon Wars is the way in which this film educates audience about some issues usually ignored by Hollywood and mainstream media. Like few films before and after, this film shows inner workings of American government and military together with their often fatal connections to business interests. The picture isn't very flattering for the world's greatest military power - its top officials come out as spineless incompetents, more interested in securing lucrative commissions and top jobs in the companies whose interests they promoted. When the political considerations come into pictures - keeping bases open in strategic districts or securing votes of workers employed in armaments industry - it is very difficult even for military brass to think in terms of what military was primarily supposed to do. In such circumstances what started as simple, cheap, effective and easily understandable concept degenerated into incomprehensible mess costing taxpayers ridiculous amounts of money and nearly causing unnecessary slaughter of American soldiers during First Gulf War. The story of The Pentagon Wars ended on a positive note, but the mentality criticised by this film remained unchanged. Unfortunately, manifestations of such mentality are today seen in the news instead of cable television films.

RATING: 6/10 (++)

(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.films.reviews on June 3rd 2004)