Why is it that 'Taps' seems such a weak film?
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bingoboss — 15 years ago(May 31, 2010 09:12 AM)
Yes the premise was implausible. I remember watching this in the theater when I was a kid - I always saw the film as a cautionary tale aimed at young men. It was extremely upsetting to watch, and I saw it several times because I thought it was the best movie I'd ever seen. It takes an idea - violence only leads to more violence - and plays it out to the logical conclusion. (I've re-watched it as an adult and only saw the film's shortcomings that have been pointed out elsewhere - for that reason I probably won't watch it again.) I'm not saying this is an after-school special or anything, but I think it was an effective film for its time. The actors are all excellent.
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gabby_bm — 15 years ago(June 20, 2010 12:12 AM)
I think the weakness comes from the lack of examination of the characters. We're allowed into Hutton's Morlan, but that's it. Everyone else is just a pawn to be moved throughout the movie.
But most importantly is the message of idol worship and how easily children can be led (misled) by an ideology- especially when combined with peer pressure. The younger kids will die trying to emulate the older kids despite their fear. The older kids will indulge themselves with a casual disregard of morality in favor of some new ideology that fosters acceptance and a sense of being special in an otherwise un-special existence.
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Desertman84 — 14 years ago(October 10, 2011 09:33 PM)
Well,we have to consider that Taps was done 30 years ago.Normally,a film done 30 years earlier will have a lesser impact and would normally be less appreciated at present UNLESS it was a classic or legendary film.
Besidse,Taps did not fall into that category.But to fair,I think that it was still a good film the year it was released.
With regards to the theme,I presented it well with regards to how cadets can fall into the so-called military ideologies and false sense of idealism especially when they have yet to realize what the real world is all about. -
ralfy — 14 years ago(November 21, 2011 08:41 AM)
It's not so much the actors or even the probability of such an event, but that there wasn't much from media, reactions from townies, visits from politicians, the willingness by the board members to just talk with the cadets, etc.
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cmeyer38 — 14 years ago(December 15, 2011 05:37 PM)
I think the film is weak because the whole premise seems to imply that the General was the only adult to oversee the situation. Even if the other teachers and officers had left, by golly they WOULD HAVE COME BACK!! So the general's influence would not have been the only adult influence over the boys. So all of this action never should have happened.
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kaskait — 11 years ago(July 26, 2014 10:13 PM)
When I first saw this filmyears and years agoI did nothing but laugh through it. And I was the target audiencepre-teen/teen. It was so over the top and the performances so corny, I just laughed. To the annoyance of my friends who were crushing big time on Hutton.
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jgroub — 10 years ago(July 30, 2015 07:18 PM)
I know I'm 9 years late to this post, but yeah, I have to agree. I was the age of these kids when I saw it 30-odd years ago, and I liked it for that reason. I think I also saw it after Tom Cruise had exploded, in Risky Business and All the Right Moves and such, and he actually does a helluva job here.
But revisiting it 30 years later, you're right, there's not a lot going on here. Sean Penn is wasted. I didn't care too much about the school or the characters. The filming did seem off. I also don't think it would have been handled in real life the way it was in the movie.
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