The General's Daughter
The General's Daughter
R | 18 June 1999 (USA)
The General's Daughter Trailers

When the body of Army Capt. Elisabeth Campbell is found on a Georgia military base, two investigators, Warrant Officers Paul Brenner and Sara Sunhill, are ordered to solve her murder. What they uncover is anything but clear-cut. Unseemly details emerge about Campbell's life, leading to allegations of a possible military coverup of her death and the involvement of her father, Lt. Gen. Joseph Campbell.

Reviews
ada

the leading man is my tpye

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ChicDragon

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

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Frances Chung

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

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Bob

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

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CousinBagunca

I can't do The General's Daughter (1999) enough justice. It's an excelent police thriller flick. If you're up to those kinds of movies, you won't regret it. When I say "up to those kinds of movies", I mean those movies where there's no high action scenes or anything, is all about the plot, the acting and what's going on; and that lovely question you ask yourself on any great police thriller: "who did it and why?"

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gfparreira

The plot movie captures the spectator, it is well arranged. But the performances are reasonable and it lacks continuity. I had a good time watching, the action scenes are well filmed. The music and scenarios are also good. Is shows very well how American armed forces are from inside and use a subject very present nowadays.

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indiedavid

As a former soldier, MP and CID Investigator, I cringed throughout this film at all of the inaccuracies in terminology, procedure, protocol, language, etc. The premise was great but the author of the novel and the screenwriter should have consulted an expert before they attempted to tackle such a complex world. Among the issues I can remember from the 30 minutes I was able to watch: 1. An Army installation is called a "post", not a "base". The Post Commander would never make the mistake of calling it a base. 2. A CID Agent in the field would never be unarmed as Stowe's character is. 3. A CID Agent would never reveal their rank when introducing themselves to someone. 4. The installation in the film was extremely small yet had dozens of CID Agents. A post this small may have 1-2 at most. Many have none. 5. A local Police Chief would never come on post and confront a CID Agent about his case. 6. A Colonel in the MP Corps acts as a Battalion Commander and does not conduct patrols or guard duty. 7. A 1st Lieutenant would never be on a guard post alone, if ever. 8. Travolta's character is much too young to have served in Vietnam. 9. JAG attorneys aren't available to be retained by clients. They are assigned.

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Wuchak

1999's "The General's Daughter" takes place at and around a coastal Georgia military base. John Travolta plays an Army investigator who teams up with Madeleine Stowe, a woman he once had an affair with (yeah right), to solve the ugly murder of the daughter of the commanding officer, herself a captain.Whether you like Travolta or not, there's no denying his star power. He easily carries this film as the protagonist from beginning to end. The real cast highlight for me, however, is the stunning Madeleine Stowe (remember her from 1992's excellent "Last of the Mohicans"?). Throughout most of the film Madeleine wears a white sleeveless shirt and form-fitting tan-ish slacks; she's just spellbinding. The film is rated R and for good reason. There are numerous scenes of a naked woman staked out spread-eagled, both alive and dead. Besides murder, the picture features overt elements of S & M and gang rape. This may turn some potential viewers away, but the film is worth sticking with if you can brace yourself for the sordid aspects. How so? Because "The General's Daughter" powerfully shows that sexual abuse must be addressed and not shoved under the rug. Inner wounds must be properly bound and healed, not dismissed with a casual shrug.My wife and I recently saw a fascinating documentary on prostitutes. I never could understand how a woman could have sexual relations (especially oral sex) with some dirty, smelly sleazebag for money. It's gag-inducing to me. With one exception every prostitute interviewed confessed to being sexually abused while growing up. The abuse was never properly addressed and, consequently, no real inner-healing could take place. The abuse literally damned the women to a sordid life of self-loathing and self-destruction. My heart goes out to them! The sleazy sexual elements are so in-your-face in "The General's Daughter" that it's hard to look past it to the meat of the story. The unaddressed sexual abuse of the General's daughter leads to a promiscuous and deviant lifestyle, resulting -- of course -- in misery and (ultimately) destruction.Travolta's character briefly knew the general's daughter before her murder. What compels him to solve the murder and enact justice & vengeance on the direct and indirect perpetrators (aside from the fact that it's his job) is that he clearly saw a genuine gleam of beauty and life in her. Reviewer Steven Quan understandably objects that, if she was as horribly abused as depicted in the story, she wouldn't be so vibrant and perky. But, nevertheless, this vibrancy and inner beauty is authentic. Travolta knows it because he experienced it. It's a glimpse of who she really was or could be, a glimmer of her potential as a woman and a human being. True, most of it may merely be a public veneer, an act she hides behind, but the flimsy root is REAL. Unfortunately it's overshadowed by her raw torment within, inner pain so great that it compels her to ridiculously radical actions.When Travolta finally figures out what and who destroyed the inner beauty and potential of this young woman his righteous anger is potent and palpable.I heard the story was loosely based on real-life events, but can't verify it.The picture was filmed on location in coastal Georgia, around Savannah. There's also a breathtaking shot of West Point, NY, where a small portion of the story takes place.CONCLUSION: "The General's Daughter" is more than just a meaningless detective mystery/thriller. It's thought-provoking and delivers a powerful message. Some won't get it. Some are unable to get it. Others can't get past the sleazy elements. For the rest of us it's a worthwhile, heavy and potent piece of filmmaking. Travolta is at his charismatic best and Madeleine Stowe is spellbinding. I'd give it a higher rating, but the implausible Hollywoodisms stack-up toward the end and the revelation of the murderer and aftermath is weak.GRADE: B+

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