Small Soldiers Review

Small Soldiers

Release Date: 17th September 1998 - Australia

Production Companies

DreamWorks Pictures (present)

Universal Pictures (present)

Amblin Entertainment (copyright holder)

Distribution

Universal Pictures Australia

Genre: Action/Comedy

Rating: PG

Runtime: 106 minutes

Budget: $40,000,000

Box Office Gross: $71,743,823 (Worldwide)

Plot Summary

Alan Abernathy is a teenager whose dad runs the toy store and tries out a new line of action figures called The Commando Elite vs. The Gorgonites. Unfortunately, these were no ordinary toys and the company that manufactures them has installed military microchips into their series of action figures and given them a mind of their own. Alan gets recruited to help the peace-loving Gorgonites battle against the dangerous Commandos. Can Alan defend his home and family and rescue the girl of his dreams before his whole neighbourhood gets terrorised?

Cast

Gregory Smith - Alan Abernathy

Tommy Lee Jones - Chip
Hazard (Voice)

Frank Langella - Archer (Voice)

Kirsten Dunst - Christy Fimple

Jacob Smith - Timmy Fimple

Wendy Schaal - Marion Fimple

Phil Hartman - Phil Fimple

Jay Mohr - Larry Benson

Kevin Dunn - Stuart Abernathy

Ann Magnuson - Irene Abernathy

Denis Leary - Gil Mars

David Cross - Irwin Wayfair

Dick Miller - Joe

Alexandra Wilson - Ms. Kegel

Jonathan Bouck - Brad

Robert Picardo - Ralph, Clean Room Technician

Ernest Borgnine - Kip Killagin (Voice)

Jim Brown - Butch Meathook (Voice)

Bruce Dern - Link Static (Voice)

George Kennedy - Brick Bazooka (Voice)

Clint Walker - Nick Nitro (Voice)

Christopher Guest - Slamfist/
Scratch-It (Voice)

Michael McKean - Insaniac/
Freakenstein (Voice)

Harry Shearer - Punch-It (Voice)

Sarah Michelle Gellar - Gwendy
Doll (Voice)

Christina Ricci - Gwendy
Doll (Voice)

Marcia Mitzman Gaven -
Globotech Announcer (Voice)

Crew

Director - Joe Dante

Writers - Gavin Scott, Adam Rafkin, Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio

Executive Producers - Walter F. Parkes and Steven Spielberg (Uncredited)

Producers - Colin Wilson and Michael Finnell

Co-Producer/Unit Production Manager -

Paul Deason

Casting Director - Denise Chaiman

Production Designer - William Sandwell

Supervising Art Director - Mark W. Mansbridge

Art Director - Brad Ricker

Character Designer/Effects Supervisor/

Puppeteer: Stan Winston Studio - John Rosengrant

Character Designers: Stan Winston Studio -

Mark 'Crash' McCreery, Greg Figiel, Jim Charmatz,

Craig Jablonski and Jason Matthews

Set Decorator - Rosemary Brandenburg

Property Master - Jerry Moss

Costume Designer - Carole Brown-James

Effects Supervisor/Key Animatronic Design/

Puppeteer: Stan Winston Studio - J. Alan Scott

Director of Photography - Jamie Anderson

Director of Photography: Second Unit -

Rexford L. Metz

First Assistant Director - Benita Allen

Second Unit Director/Stunt Coordinator -
M. James Arnett

Special Effects Coordinator - Ken Pepiot

Action Figures and Animatronics Design -
Stan Winston

Visual Effects Supervisors - Stefen Fangmeier
and Jeff Matakovich

Visual Effects Co-Supervisor - Ellen Poon

Visual Effects Art Director - George Hull

Computer Graphics Supervisors: ILM -
Gerald Gutschmidt, Erik Mattson and
Carl N. Frederick (Uncredited)

Computer Graphics Sequence Supervisors:

ILM - Michael DiComo, David Meny

and Sean Schur

Animation Supervisor - David Andrews

Film Editors - Marshall Harvey and

Michael Thau

Supervising Sound Editor - Eric Lindemann

Co-Supervising Sound Editor - Mark A. Mangini

Sound Designer (Uncredited)/Effects 

Design Editor - John Pospisil

Re-Recording Mixers - Robert Litt,

Elliot Tyson and Michael Herbick

Additional Re-Recording Mixer - Ron Bartlett

Foley Artists - John Roesch and

Hilda Hodges

Music - Jerry Goldsmith

Music Scoring Mixer - Bruce Botnick

Review

As a kid, I saw SMALL SOLDIERS for the first time, and before viewing the movie, I didn't know that the main antagonists were the Commando Elite, not the heroes I thought they would be. This film had a neat and creative concept of toys attacking humanity, and each other makes Toy Story look kid-friendly and less violent. SMALL SOLDIERS is not a kids' movie as was advertised by DreamWorks. It's intended for teens, which explains some dark scenes in the finished product.

Joe Dante, known for directing cult classics (apart from his only success with Gremlins), has never done something this similar to his hit film. The special effects are nifty, but some didn't age well. The acting performances are first-rate, but they never stood out so well in the movie. I like how Dante hired some surviving Dirty Dozen members to voice the soldiers while Christopher Guest and his fellow Spinal Tap players portray the friendly Gorgonites. The film even features a heartwarming dedication to the late Phil Hartman, who plays Kirsten Dunst's fictional dimwitted dad.

While clever and funny, SMALL SOLDIERS was almost as good as Gremlins and is worth seeing.

Star rating: (7/10) Good Movie

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