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Review by Dustin Putman
½ star out of 4
"Basic," a military-set thriller, starts off as a mildly intriguing,
atmospheric little mystery, tediously segues into flashback after
flashback of different people's points-of-view, turns wildly implausible,
then more unbelievable yet, and concludes with one of the most infuriating
final scenes of any motion picture in recent memory. Directed by John
McTiernan (2002's "Rollerball"), the film seemingly exists for only
one solid reason: to cruelly play with, and jerk the chain of, every
audience member foolish enough to be swindled into a theater showing
this pompous joke. 95 minutes of my life hasn't been so thoroughly
wasted on a movie since 2002's "Extreme Ops."
When a Ranger training exercise in the hurricane-swept Panama jungle
turns disastrous, only two seeming survivors are found: Dunbar (Brian
Van Holt) and Kendall (Giovanni Ribisi). When Pete Wilmer (Timothy
Daly), the head of the Army base, suspects that official inquisitor
Lt. Julia Osborne (Connie Nielsen) is going to have trouble getting
to the truth, he calls upon an old friend to assist. Enter Tom Hardy
(John Travolta), a Jack Daniels-swilling DEA agent who used to work
alongside the Ranger's feared-to-be-dead commander, Sgt. West (Samuel
L. Jackson). As Hardy and Osborne investigate the suspicious goings-on,
starting by interviewing Dunbar and Kendall--who tell largely divergent
stories--they quickly discover getting to the bottom of the truth
is oftentimes more difficult than expected.
The truth is so difficult to reach, in fact, that viewers walking
out of "Basic" may not even remember what some of the disclosures
were. Written by James Vanderbilt (2003's "Darkness Falls") with little
internal logic or care for his characters, the film plays itself out
like a nasty prank a friend might play on you. As the friend laughs
about how sneaky they were, you likely won't find the humor in it.
While tightly thought-out twists in a story can be immensely satisfying
(see 1999's "The Sixth Sense" and 2001's "The Others" for prime examples),
they must treat its viewers fairly. In "Basic," so many twists and
corkscrews arise, only to be debunked as false, that when the final
truth is revealed, you have long stopped caring. Nevermind that the
immensely frustrating surprise ending makes little to no sense, a
veritable slap in the face that leaves some plot threads dangling
and others deemed worthless in the long run.
The actors, some of them very good, are at a loss with shallow material
that does them no favors. As the head-sure, buff Tom Hardy, John Travolta
(2001's "Domestic Disturbance") commands the screen and has gotten
into excellent shape for the role, but his new physique is put to
no worthwhile use. With a gratingly oddball accent that crosses a
Georgia plantation owner with a 1920's Brooklyn moll, the usually
reliable Connie Nielsen (2003's "The Hunted") is way out of her league
as southern Lt. Julia Osborne. And as the allegedly gruff Sgt. West,
Samuel L. Jackson (2002's "Changing Lanes")--usually the epitome of
cool--slums through what is almost an elongated cameo. Meanwhile,
playing some of the Rangers, Giovanni Ribisi (2000's "The Gift"),
Brian Van Holt (2000's "Whipped"), and Roselyn Sanchez (2003's "Boat
Trip") take turns going over-the-top.
Technically and aesthetically, "Basic" is a keeper. The cinematography
by Steve Mason moodily lights the rain-soaked exteriors with memorable
effectiveness, and the music score by Klaus Badelt (2003's "The Recruit")
does its job. Everything else, on the other hand, is akin to a bad
cable movie gone worse. Director John McTiernan, who has made a watchable
film in almost a decade (aside from "Rollerball," he has also been
responsible for 1999's "The 13th Warrior" and "The Thomas Crown Affair"),
reaches what could only be described as final proof that whatever
talent he once had as a filmmaker is now nonexistent.
In that the same event is shown over and over from different viewpoints,
"Basic" has been compared to Akira Kurosawa's "Rashomon," which is
like comparing "Pokemon 2000" to "The Wizard of Oz" as equal family
entertainment. Because none of the points-of-view turn out to be true--and
the real way it happened is never even shown, only told--and the flashbacks
take up at least half of the running time, the picture's entirety
is deemed nothing more than pointless drivel. Look up the word, "bamboozled,"
in the dictionary, and for years to come one is likely to find a picture
of audience members angrily exiting a theater showing "Basic."
Copyright © 2003 Dustin Putman
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out of 4
