Word: soldiers
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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While reading your article on NATO [Dec. 11], I could not help thinking that I had heard it all before. The confident bluster, the statistics, the little soldier having his say, etc. Then it dawned on me. When I was very young, I heard just about the same claptrap about the awesome Maginot and Siegfried lines-and we all know just how useful they turned out to be as defenses against a determined and ideologically motivated enemy. Perhaps the only hope lies in men like General Haig, who is only "cautiously optimistic"-and no more...
...northern Iranian town of Tabriz, a group of soldiers suddenly found themselves confronting a large but peaceful group of anti-Shah demonstrators in the local bazaar. As the chanting marchers approached, one soldier said he was going to join them. He was immediately shot by one of his comrades, who in turn was attacked by the angry crowd. The soldier who had fired was saved by the quick intervention of a colonel, who took off his own pistol and offered it to the demonstrators, shouting: "We are the same people. Why do we kill each other?" After that, most...
...pace picks up, the rude puns start flying and everyone starts to loosen up. Julie Martz and Amy Gould as Doto and Dynamane have some nice moments together as they steadily abandon their resolve to die for "Master" and start appreciating the reasons to live presented by the hunky soldier boy. Gatson plays the philosophical guard charmingly, acting like a guy on his first date who isn't sure when to shut up and just kiss the woman. His flowery lines are delivered in a soft Southern accent which makes them seem all the more incongruous and funny...
THESE WORDS ring hollow. As Thomas Mendip, the disenchanted soldier of fortune, Harper's ability to simultaneously remember his lines and deliver them with conviction is limited indeed. When he is inspired, the impact of his existential query is startling, but more often than not he appears to concentrate exclusively on maintaining his accent. While much of the plot revolves around him, he never suitably explains or justifies his involvement in the whole business--or his determination to be hanged. Harper's characterization is too indifferent to convince observers that he cares about his fate or that of anyone else...
...with hurricane force. While his vocal range is narrow, his delivery of the lines is imperious in tone and cloudless in clarity. Heroic in bearing, he also conveys a sensual relish in the blood sport of war. Best of all, he tempers Coriolanus' abrasive arrogance by showing the soldier's moral consistency. After his mother has urged him to placate the plebs, he counters...