Military mystery marred by men's meandering menace

"The General's Daughter"

Directed by: Simon West

Starring: John Travolta, Madeleine Stowe, James Cromwell

Rated: R

Murder in a military milieu.

There have been a number of films over the years that have used this premise as a backdrop. "A Few Good Men," "A Soldier's Story," and most recently, "Courage Under Fire" have exploited the fertile dramatic ground that plays the general rules of society against the unwritten codes of conduct found in military organizations.

Director Simon West borrows from these films and others in his latest effort, "The General's Daughter," a film that is frustrating in its broad-stroke approach and fairly distasteful or is it just politically incorrect as Rush Limbaugh's dittoheads (a.k.a. didiots) might assert? in its blatant hostility toward women in the military.

Where "Courage Under Fire" examines the possibility that a female might be just as suited to lead a battalion of soldiers as a man, "The General's Daughter" seems to float the idea that maybe the men here aren't to be blamed because, after all, the victim was a woman.

A woman in the military.

No good can come from that, and they can prove it. It's the age-old, self-fulfilling prophecy, I guess.

This will come as no surprise to anyone who has read Nelson Demille's novel on which this film is based. In the book's introduction, DeMille pulls no punches in admitting that he was upset by news coverage of the Persian Gulf War that featured interviews with "women doing men's jobs."

John Travolta, now enjoying his second lifetime in show biz and always rising to any occasion, is every bit his affable self here. He plays Warrant Officer Paul Brenner, a member of the U.S. Army's Criminal Investigation Division, who is called upon to look into the rape and murder of Capt. Elizabeth Campbell. Capt. Campbell was with the Psychiatric Operations Division. "Our job is to (mess) with people's minds," she told Brenner in one of their brief encounters. What Brenner didn't realize was the fact that this Campbell was the daughter of the much beloved and soon-to-retire into the political arena Gen. Joseph Campbell.

Gen. Campbell himself summons Brenner but admonishes the investigator to notify his office before making any arrests. He points out that he would rather have a soldier than a police officer on the case. Brenner assures the general that his first loyalty is to the Army, but as the investigation proceeds, the lines get somewhat blurry.

Helping Brenner with the case is CID rape counselor Sarah Sunhill, played by Madeleine Stowe, who also happens to be his old flame. (This kind of plot device can't be a clich?. Everyone's used it!)

While the general and all the other Army brass at hand want this affair solved quietly and privately, Brenner and Sunhill get immersed in the case and find there's more than one weasel in the hen house. They feel the need to expose everyone involved (and really, EVERYONE is involved) in order to vindicate the memory of Capt. Campbell.

Legendary screenwriter William Goldman ("Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "No Way to Treat a Lady," "Marathon Man") is listed in the credits, but I'm assuming he was called in during the making of this mess to try and weave some sort of plot or character development into a script that seems to have been honed with a chain saw.

Director West is probably better suited to the kind of film he made last, "Con Air," which was at worst a bombastic action shoot 'em up and at best an enjoyable guilty pleasure.

The approach used in that film was fine, for that sort of film, but here a more subtle touch is needed.

There are far too many scenes in "The General's Daughter" that begin with Travolta or Stowe bursting onto the screen with some new earth-shattering piece of plot material that seems to have just fallen from the sky. A better director, working from a better-written script could have made these things interesting, even compelling, but even Goldman's adept touch couldn't gloss over this screenplay that must have been green-lighted because of the popularity of DeMille's novel.

If you want a prime example of how a military murder mystery can be presented in riveting style, go to the video store and rent Norman Jewison's film version of Charles Fuller's Pulitzer Prize winning play, "A Soldier's Story."

DeMille and West should have studied that fine piece a little more in depth.

(Jim Wunderle works at Associated Video Producers and is a Springfield free-lance writer and musician.)

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