Revenge - 1990

New World Pictures, Rastar Films

Directed by Tony Scott

Cast:

• Michael “Jay” Cochran – Kevin Costner
• Tiberon “Tibey” Mendez – Anthony Quinn
• Miryea Mendez – Madeline Stowe
• Caesar - Tomas Milian
• ”Texan” - James Gammon
• Rock Star – Sally Kirkland
• Amador – Miguel Ferrer
• Ignacio – John Leguizamo

Story: “Jay” Cochran has come to the end of the line with the Navy. The F-14 pilot has turned in his papers and is ready to take a vacation to his cabin in Mexico to try to discover what he wants to do with the rest of his life. His friend and tennis partner, Tiberon (spanish for Shark) Mendez has invited him to his estate, to play tennis and go hunting. “Tibey” is a powerful man in his district and is heavily involved in the local politics. At home, he has a beautiful young wife named Miryea. She wants children, he does not. They have an arranged marriage and she is a trophy wife for Tiberon, but she is his wife. Cochran soon realizes two things: She is very bored in her marriage, and he is falling in love with her. Despite the danger of being with another man's wife in a Latino culture, Cochran and Miryea begin an affair that can only have one ending. When they are caught together at his cabin, Tiberon has Cochran beaten, his cabin burned, and his wife given to a brothel. Left for dead, Cochran is determined to find Miryea, at any cost.

Review: So much for Shakespeare being the only true writer of tragedy, or was that the Greeks? No matter, this film is a true tragedy with the roles being portrayed with an air of believability rarely witnessed in today's films. Set in the Latino culture where men of wealth are expected to have female “friends” but their women are to remain faithful, the real drama her lies in the danger of violating this taboo. Kevin Costner's portrayal of the Navy pilot and Vietnam veteran who has spent the last twelve years of his life piloting fighter jets is remarkable. He is the man without a vision of his future, a man seeking meaning in the world and hoping to find the reality of his life. But with no purpose in his life, he quickly becomes enamored of the beautiful Madeline Stowe, the bored and unhappy wife of his “best friend”, played by Anthony Quinn. Quinn is the wealthy and dangerous maker of politicians, and an associate of many people in power, but he is also both hated and feared by the common people. Around these three principles are Miguel Ferrer, John Leguizamo, and Sally Kirkland, an impressive trio of character actors who lend a hand to Costner in his search for Stowe. This is not a film with a happy ending, and the question you must ask yourself at the end is who is responsible? Rated R for violence, nudity, language, and sexual situations, this is definitely not for the teens or the children, and while I have a copy, I will leave it to you to decide to include it in your collection.

The General's Daughter - 1999

Paramount Pictures, Neufeld Rehme Productions, MFP Munich Film Partners GmbH & Company I. Produktions KG

Directed by Simon West

Cast:

• Warrant Officer Paul Brenner – John Travolta
• Warrant Officer Sara Sunhill – Madeline Stowe
• Lt. General Joseph Campbell – James Cromwell
• Col. William Kent – Timothy Hutton
• Col. George Fowler – Clarence Williams III
• Capt. Elizabeth Campbell – Leslie Stefanson
• Col. Robert Moore – James Woods
• Police Chief Yardley – Daniel von Bargen

Story: An Army Criminal Investigations Division Agent, Warrant Officer Paul Brenner, is undercover investigating the illegal sales of weapons to a civilian at Fort MacCallum. He is about to arrest the civilian when his suspect attempts to murder him and is killed in the process. As he is finishing up reporting to the local sheriff, he gets a call. When he arrives at a training area on the fort, he sees the body of a young woman lying staked to the ground and MP's all around. He has met her before, she helped him change a flat tire the night before. Also on the scene is a CID rape counselor and investigator, WO Sara Sunhill, with whom Brenner has had previous relations. Soon they discover the victim is none other than the daughter of the soon to retire General Campbell. As the two investigators probe into the crime, they discover a trail of coverups that lead back to West Point, the academy where the General's Daughter attended. Suspect after suspect is investigated until the truth is revealed, a truth the Army did not want revealed.

Review: Just how far should the military be allowed to “take care of it's own”? That is the underlying question in this fictional account of a rape covered over for the “good of the service”. Or was it? Travolta is at his best in this suspenseful thriller that places him between the proverbial rock and hard place. Is he a soldier first or a police officer? James Woods is equally good as the Commander and friend of the victim, and his position as the head of Psychological Warfare group makes him an interesting foil for the questions the investigator must ask. Madeline Stowe presents an interesting character as the skilled rape investigator who uncovers the perpetrators with a “minimum of effort”, and her conversations with Travolta (the character's ex-lover) bring out an interesting sub plot to the film. While the other actors in the film are adequate to the plot, the main conflict lies with Travolta and Stowe, so the remainder of the cast plays “second fiddle”. With scenes of nudity, sexual sadism, language and violence being strung throughout the film, it is well deserving of the R rating. While not particularly collectible, this film should be seen by any lover of a good drama with a surprising ending.