Director John McTiernan has made some pretty good movies. No one can ever accuse him of making a truly bad movie. The only message in his better films are ‘don’t f**k with the tough guys.’ He’s an action director - plain and simple. He practically redefined the genre with "Predator" and his hard as nails follow up, "Die Hard," the following year. Each raised the bar for their respective stars, Arnold Schwarzeneger and Bruce Willis. "Basic" doesn’t do it for John Travolta. Which is too bad because Travolta is always good even in bad films. This is not to say that "Basic" is not without merit. The pacing is brisk, the other performances credible. But the twists and turns - that may have seemed clever on the printed page - are anything but when translated to the screen.

Sgt. Nathan West (Samuel L. Jackson), a legendary DI, takes a squad of trainees into the Panamanian jungle for a survival lesson. But something goes wrong. He disappears. A chopper rescue team witnesses one GI carrying a wounded buddy through the brush while taking fire from an unseen assailant. The first, Dunbar (Brian Van Holt), is put in the slammer while the second, Kendall, is put in the hospital to recover from his wounds. The Post Commander, Peter Wilmer (Tim Daly), brings in former Army buddy Tom Hardy (John Travolta), now a DEA agent, to help overeager Lt. Julia Osborne (Connie Nielsen) question the men. Hardy is a master interrogator who just happens to be under investigation himself - for bribery. "Basic" turns quickly into a Q & A with conflicting stories told in flashback. Rumors about a rogue contingent of ex-special forces types dominate tales about drug smuggling, revenge, and murder. What happened to the other trainees played by the likes of Taye Diggs and Roselyn Sanchez? Are they alive or dead? - And if dead? - Where are their bodies? Is Hardy guilty of taking bribes? Could he be involved in some weird way with what happened in the boonies? He trained under West and professes no love for him. And what about the relationship Lt. Osborne once had with the good doctor at the hospital, Colonel Bill Styles, another former buddy - of sorts - of Hardy? Does it sound like too much is going on for this movie’s own good? I would say so!

"Basic" becomes a Rashomonlike story where nothing is as it appears. Just when you’re hooked - as I was at the beginning - the wounded Kendall, who turns out to be a General’s son, begins spouting something about the ‘8.’ When the ‘8’ is explained (as the rogue soldiers or something else) the scene begins to stick out like an overlooked typo that hints at something that never materializes. This so called typo is italicized and compounded further until it undermines any sense that "Basic" may have had.

"Basic" is an unsuccessful hybrid of genres that embraces ideas from movies as diverse as "Rashomon" and Agatha Christie’s "And Then There Were None" to "The Usual Suspects." Seeing John Travolta strut his stuff may be reason enough to see "Basic" if - and only if - you are a hardcore John Travolta fan. Everyone else in the film, from Samuel L. Jackson and Connie Nielson down to Harry Connick Jr. as the good doctor, give him a run for his money but it’s not enough to make you run to the theater to spend your hard earned bucks.

Copyright 2003

"Predator" (1987) - Arnold Schwarzenegger does battle with an Alien in the jungles of South America who uses Earth as his feeding ground. Top notch action with Carl Weathers, Jesse Ventura, and Bill Duke among others.

"Die Hard" (1988) - The original with Bruce Willis as NYC cop John McClane who goes up against high tech terrorist thieves in a high rise in LA. With special effects and stunts galore. Also a great showpiece for Alan Rickman as the bad guy!

"The Hunt for Red October" (1990) - Alec Baldwin originated the role of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan in this cold war thriller about the stalking of a Russian sub commanded by a submariner who may - or may not - be ready to defect. Sean Connery is perfection as the Russian Sea Captain.

"Die Hard with a Vengeance" (1995) - Bruce Willis plays NYC detective, John McClane, for the third time ("Die Hard II" was directed by Renny Harlin). Samuel L. Jackson is the everyday working class stiff who gets caught up in a plot hatched by a maniac (Jeremy Irons) who intends to blow up the city unless McClane meets his demands. This has the same dynamic as "Speed" which came out a year earlier.

"Nomads" (1986) - I don’t know why I like this movie, but I do! Pierce Brosnan is an anthropologist who gets caught up in hallucinatory dream cycle after he helps a crazy drifter who seems to belong to a group of nomadic homeless people. There’s more atmosphere than drama but there… is… this… hal…lu…cin…a…tor…y…-----…about it.

"Medicine Man" (1992) - Sean Conney makes this more entertaining than it has a right to be. He’s a research scientist trying to replicate a cancer cure in the Brazilian jungle. Lorraine Bracco is given a superficial role as his superior who’s come to check up on him.