Until the half way point Death of a Soldier is a watchable, albeit ham fisted dramatisation of the murders of three female civilians by an American GI in Melbourne during WW2. The script and characterisations are cliched and one dimensional among other frustrations. The culprit himself is apparent early in the piece, his whacky depiction of 'insanity' straight out of a Looney Tunes cartoon.
Outraged locals turn on the US troops on sabbatical, including the resident Australian forces. A ridiculous gun battle takes place when a GI laden Puffing Billy train pulls into a platform of Aussie soldiers, an incident which never happened and in itself, had it occurred, would warrant its own movie, for the body count and fallout would have outstripped the central story ten times over. Truly, one of the most unfathomable, credibility stripping scenes I've witnessed in any movie, ever.
It's here I lost all interest, my intelligence insulted enough. Surprised the likes of James Coburn, Bill Hunter and Maurie Fields agreed to be part of this shark jumping panto that could have been a worthwhile exploration of the war experience and tensions on the home front..
Outraged locals turn on the US troops on sabbatical, including the resident Australian forces. A ridiculous gun battle takes place when a GI laden Puffing Billy train pulls into a platform of Aussie soldiers, an incident which never happened and in itself, had it occurred, would warrant its own movie, for the body count and fallout would have outstripped the central story ten times over. Truly, one of the most unfathomable, credibility stripping scenes I've witnessed in any movie, ever.
It's here I lost all interest, my intelligence insulted enough. Surprised the likes of James Coburn, Bill Hunter and Maurie Fields agreed to be part of this shark jumping panto that could have been a worthwhile exploration of the war experience and tensions on the home front..