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Laramie Movie Scope:
The General's Daughter

A tense thriller and puzzling whodunit

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by Robert Roten, Film Critic
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June 20, 1999 -- "The General's Daughter" is a slick and sick thriller with some great actors saddled with playing inconsistently-written characters.

The basic plot has to do with a general's daughter, Capt. Elizabeth Campbell (Leslie Stefanson), who is found dead at a military base in the south. Campbell appears to have been raped and strangled. She is found nude and staked to the ground with tent pegs.

Called in to investigate the case is military investigator Warrant Officer Paul Brenner (John Travolta) and Warrant Officer Sara Sunhill (Madeleine Stowe of "Short Cuts" and "12 Monkeys") a specialist in rape investigations. Brenner and Sunhill are put under pressure from the general, Lt. Gen. "Fighting Joe" Campbell" (James Cromwell of "Babe" and "L.A. Confidential") and his assistant, Col. Fowler, (Clarence Williams III) to conclude the investigation quickly and to keep everything under wraps.

Of course it turns out there is not just one cover-up, but multiple cover-ups going back years in the military relating to this case. It turns out there are a lot of people who want all the details of the case hushed up. There are huge quantities of dirty laundry and deep dark secrets at the base and in the nearby town.

It is not enough that Brenner and Sunhill are turning over rocks to see what crawls out. The camera forces us to look closely under the rocks and examine the grubs in sickening detail. We see violent rapes, beatings and murder in excruciating detail, when it could have been conveyed in a less voyeuristic manner.

As usual, James Woods ("Ghosts of Mississippi") lights up the screen when he appears as the dead woman's boss, Colonel Moore. The scenes between Travolta and Woods sparkle with deft acting and clever dialogue. Stowe and Travolta also work well together. The acting is excellent the dialogue is very good in the rest of the film, too. The great director John Frankenheimer also appears in the film as General Sonnenberg. Unfortunately, Frankenheimer ("Ronin") is not directing this film, Simon West ("Con Air") is.

The problem I have with this film, as I mentioned earlier, is the motivation of the characters. I don't see the establishment of motivation for the actions of some of the main characters. Some characters admit guilt when it is not in their best interest to do so. Others behave as if they have no human emotions, while others seem to have a different personality every time they are on screen.

The film works well enough if you accept the actions of the characters without trying to figure out why they are acting so strangely and inconsistently. I couldn't really do that, however. I kept thinking how artificial and arbitrary the story line seemed, and how most of the characters were so unbelievable. The puzzle of who did the murder is handled pretty well. I couldn't guess who it was, but thinking back, I guess that's understandable. This film rates a C.

Click here for links to places to buy this movie in video and/or DVD format, the soundtrack, books, even used videos, games and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

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Copyright © 1999 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.
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Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at my last name at lariat dot org. [Mailer button: image of letter and envelope]