A Soldier's Sweetheart is a 1998 television film directed by Thomas Michael Donnelly and starring Kiefer Sutherland,[1] Skeet Ulrich, and Georgina Cates. It is based on a short story by Tim O'Brien, "Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong."[2] The story was part of his book, The Things They Carried (1990).
| A Soldier's Sweetheart | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Written by | Tim O'Brien Thomas Michael Donnelly |
| Directed by | Thomas Michael Donnelly |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Gary Chang |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Marianne Moloney |
| Producer | William S. Gilmore |
| Cinematography | Jacek Laskus |
| Editor | Anthony Sherin |
| Running time | 112 minutes |
| Production companies | Showtime Networks Moloney/Donnelly Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | Showtime |
| Release | November 8, 1998 |
Cast
edit- Kiefer Sutherland as Rat Kiley
- Skeet Ulrich as Mark Fossie
- Georgina Cates as Marianne Bell
- Daniel London as Eddie Diamond
- Louis Vanaria as Bobbie D
- Lawrence Gilliard, Jr. as Shoeshine
- Christopher Birt as Lt. Mitchell Sanders
- Tony Billy as Soldier #2
Production
editThe film was shot in New Zealand, at Studio West in West Auckland.[3]
Release
editThe film is only available on VHS, and a petition has been set up at IMDb urging the companies that own the rights to the film to consider reissuing it in DVD format.[4] It was also premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival in 1998. The film received a theatrical release in Belgium in 2010.
Reception
editBob Batz from Dayton Daily News gave A Soldier's Sweetheart a very positive review, stating: "The film, based on Tim O'Brien's award-winning short story Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong, is a brutal, often bloody story of the Vietnam War and how it changed many of the men - and women - who were part of it. It is filled with excellent dialogue and has enough plot twists to keep viewers riveted to their easy chairs for the entire two hours."[5]
Ken Eisner from Variety magazine also gave the film a good review, concluding: "Just when you think all the basic Vietnam stories have been told, helmer Thomas Michael Donnelly puts a new spin on America's lost cause by viewing it from a female angle. Striving for mythic levels — although there's plenty of scary grit to it — "A Soldier's Sweetheart" taps into an aspect of warfare that transcends gender. Subject, then, is a difficult one, but extremely well-mounted pic could resonate with women if Paramount can find a way to package it for theatrical release".[6]
A Soldier's Sweetheart was nominated for two awards. One Primetime Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special"[7] and one Golden Reel Awards for "Best Sound Editing - Television Movies of the Week - Dialogue & ADR".[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "A second Sutherland goes to war" - Toronto Star
- ^ "A `SOLDIER'S'STORY MAKES FOR A GREAT CABLE MOVIE" - Dayton Daily News
- ^ "Our Story". Studio West. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
- ^ "A Soldier's Sweetheart (1998) for DVD Release" - Petition Online Archived July 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Batz, Bob. "A 'SOLDIER'S' STORY MAKES FOR A GREAT CABLE MOVIE". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
- ^ Eisner, Ken (22 June 1998). "Review: 'A Soldier's Sweetheart'". Variety. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
- ^ "51st Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Emmys.com. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
- ^ "Awards". IMDB. Retrieved 17 May 2017.