Platoon Leader

10/1/19881h 37m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ War is hell. This was worse... ~

Overview:

West Point graduate lieutenant Jeff Knight meets cynicism when taking command of sergeant Michael McNamara's tour veterans platoon in a Vietnamese trench camp. Unlike his predecessor, who hid till the end of his tour, Jeff takes charge, experiences the manual doesn't allow coping with all realities and gets wounded. He returns, now fully respect by men and superiors. Besides the Vietcong, the platoon wrestles with the inscrutable villagers, which the G.I.'s officially protect, but also fear as some collaborate with them, other covertly with the Cong, either way subject to bloody reprisals.

Director:

Aaron Norris

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Key words:

vietnam war
vietnam
vietcong
us army

Cast

Michael Dudikoff

~ as ~

Lt. Jeff Knight

Robert F. Lyons

~ as ~

Sgt. Michael McNamara

Michael DeLorenzo

~ as ~

Raymond Bacera

Jesse Dabson

~ as ~

Joshua Parker

Rick Fitts

~ as ~

Sgt. Robert Hayes

Tony Pierce

~ as ~

Jan Shultz

Daniel Demorest

~ as ~

Duffy

Brian Libby

~ as ~

Sgt. Roach

Michael Rider

~ as ~

Pvt. Don Pike

William Smith

~ as ~

Major Flynn

View full cast & crew

Reviews (1)

Wuchak
Written 6 year(s) ago
~~
One of the lesser Vietnam flicks of its era, but has some positives

A Lieutenant fresh out of West Point (Michael Dudikoff) is assigned to command a platoon at a remote outpost in the jungles of Binh Dinh province, Vietnam. His cynical men don’t respect him until he returns after being wounded and has a little more wisdom at jungle warfare.

"Platoon Leader" (1988) was based on the memoir by James R. McDonough and mixes the plot of “The Green Berets” (1968) with style more akin to “Platoon” (1986). But this is noticeably low-budget by comparison and typical of 80’s Dudikoff or Chuck Norris flicks. (Think of the contemporaneous “Braddock: Missing in Action III” by the same director, Aaron Norris, Chuck’s brother).

Despite some dubious acting and a story that coulda been more compelling, there are worthwhile elements (like a couple of unique pieces on the soundtrack) and even some moving moments. Dudikoff is effective in the titular role as is Robert F. Lyons as the more-experienced NCO.

The film runs 1 hour, 36 minutes, and was shot on a farm in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, which is a decent stand-in for Southeast Asia.

GRADE: C