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Tigerland | Year: 2000 Classification: War Country: USA Language: English Directed: - Joel Schumacher Actors/Actresses: - Colin Farrell - Matthew Davis - Clifton Collins Uncharacteristic Schumacher film The director of Tigerland, Joel Schumacher, is best known for big budget action hokum, such as The Lost Boys, Flatliners, and Batman and Robin. Tigerland is the antithesis of these movies. It is not slick, opting for a docudrama style that focuses on characters and story. The plot concerns an American training camp for soldiers who will be shipping off to Vietnam. We've seen this type of story before (e.g., Full Metal Jacket) - young soldiers are broken down by the army and then built back up as killing machines, but Tigerland remains fresh, largely due to the talented cast. Tigerland stars Irishman Colin Farrel in his first large role, and he gives a star making performance. His character (Roland Boz) is anti-army and anti-authority, and he does not see the sense in having people fight wars who are emotionally not equipped to handle it. He invariably clashes with his superiors as well as his peers (they are punished for his misbehavior). However, ironically, he ends up helping several of them, particularly Miter, outstandingly played by Clifton Collins Jr. (who also excelled in 2000 as the gay drug dealer Frankie Flowers in "Traffic"). Tigerland asks many big questions regarding war and bravery, but it wisely does not provide easy answers. The DVD includes a commentary track by Joel Schumacher. This track is extremely interesting, as Schumacher describes how he had a small budget and how he managed to do what he needed to do for the film. The DVD also includes Colin Farrel's screen tests, which are fascinating. Farrel is a compelling actor who currently has a number of high profile films in the can, including "Hart's War" with Bruce Willis and the Steven Speilberg/Tom Cruise film, "Minority Report." Expect great things from him. Damn Good War Movie This film probably deserves 4.5 stars, but I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt on account of Colin Farrel's portrayel of Bozz. I'll start of by saying this: If you liked Joel Schumacher's other films, chances are, your not gonna be a great big fan of this one. It's shot entirely in 16mm which gives it the feel of a documentary. I must say, generally, I'm not a fan of anything NOT 35mm, but if this were shot any other way, I don't think I just would have gotten the full affect of it. I'm also very impressed that Schumacher decided to go with this than any other mainstream film like "8MM" which, no offense to Mr. Schumacher, well, sucked. The film's main character is Bozz, portrayed by Colin Farrel, wonderfully. Bozz is a badass who was drafted and doesn't believe in war. His commanding officers tell him time and again that he could be on of the best soldiers if he chose to, but he just doesn't agree with putting another human being through that kind of punishment. One scene that really got to me was when a sergeant is teaching the "soldiers" how to get information from "Charlies". They attach two wires to the man's testicles and let 'er rip. This was one of the, if not the, best acting in the entire movie. Just the way Farrel talks, and his facial expressions are enough to make you stand and clap. I wanted to comment on Colin Farrel's excellent acting, and I'm sure you've read about the plot numerous times already, so I'm going to discuss the features of the DVD. We'll start off with, to me, the most attractive feature added, Colin Farrel's screen tests. In these, you can hear a little bit of his Irish accent, and the video is quite poor. On the other hand, it's a good insight on what he had to get through, and how much more his acting had evolved. His acting is superb is the screen tests, but just not as good as in the movie itself. I'm usually more attracted to a director's work than an actor's, but there was just so much said about Farrel that I couldn't not buy this DVD. The transfer is also decent, and if you buy this, know that it's not supposed to be squeaky clean, and without grain and chroma noise. The havoc of 16mm really added a lot to the film itself, almost as if the video had an uncredited starring role. Also on this DVD is an audio commentary from the director which is pretty good. Another thing that would have been awesome on this DVD is a commentary with the stars, mainly Farrel. There's also a making of "fearurette". Key word here is "Featurette" just not enough there to satisfy me. The DVD is finished off with trailers and TV spots, and an unafvertised trailor for the upcoming "TORA! TORA! TORA!" special edition DVD. The DVD isn't flawless, but if your a war fan, or just looking for a look at one of the upcoming stars in the industry, this is the way to go. The DVD is well-rounded and the screen tests were definitely worth it. The film is worth a look regardless or whether or not you buy the DVD. You've a SUPPOSE THEY GAVE A WAR Set in 1971, TIGERLAND is a harsh, gritty, ultimately tragic look at the agonies of training to go to war. Director Joel Schumacher who must like working with Colin Farrell (Phone Booth, Veronica Guerin) uses a documentary style to enhance the realism of this brutal movie. Farrell burst onto the scene in his fierce portrayal of Boz, a flippant anti-war, anti-authority figure who ultimately turns out to be a fierce and strong leader. Matthew Davis (Below, Urban Legends) gives an equally impressive performance as Boz' friend, Paxton, an idealistic college grad, who wants to write a book about the war. Along with these two leading roles, the supporting cast is equally superb: Thomas Guiry as the misguided Cantwell; James McDonald as the sadistic Sergeant; Clifton Collins Jr. as the emotionally drained Miter, and Cole Hauser as the troops' leader at Tigerland. The sparse musical score is likewise laudable. Buy Tigerland at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Tigerland Search with the Priority Search Engine on Tigerland This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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