Rules of Engagement (film)
| Rules of Engagement | |
|---|---|
 The movie poster for Rules of Engagement. | |
| Directed by | William Friedkin |
| Written by | James H. Webb Stephen Gaghan |
| Produced by | Scott Rudin Richard D. Zanuck |
| Starring | Tommy Lee Jones Samuel L. Jackson |
| Cinematography | Nicola Pecorini |
| Music by | Mark Isham |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date | March 31 2000 |
Running time | 128 min. |
| Languages | English, Arabic |
| Budget | $60,000,000 |
Rules of Engagement is a 2000 American movie starring Samuel L. Jackson and Tommy Lee Jones, directed by William Friedkin. The movie, a military and political drama, is about Marine Colonel Terry Childers, played by Jackson, who is court-martialed for disobeying the rules of engagement in a military incident at an embassy.
The lead writer, James H. Webb, is a former Marine combat officer and lawyer, and is currently the junior United States Senator from Virginia.
Synopsis
The key scene in the movie takes place in Yemen, where an unruly crowd of local men, women and children demonstrate outside the U.S. embassy in Sanaa. Everything hinges on whether (a) the crowd was armed, and (b) the crowd fired first or Colonel Childers exceeded his orders and reacted based on anger or a darker motive.
According to U.S. military law as explained in the film, Childers could be found guilty of murder for killing 83 noncombatants. But if some of them were carrying weapons and opened fire, he may be found exonerated.
The prosecution asserts that Childers' order to fire was based on personal fear, racism, or confusion. The defense and Childers respond that he was in fear for his Marines' lives and was in compliance with his orders and the rules of engagement. The prosecution introduces previous actions by then-Lieutenant Childers in Vietnam to show a history of misconduct, including a witness.
The actions in Vietnam, shown as a flashback in the first few minutes of the film, revolved around an ambush of then-Lieutenant Hodges' platoon by a Colonel Binh Le Cao, a North Vietnamese officer, and his men. While listening to sounds of the ambush, Childers and his Marines captured the Vietnamese officer and his radioman. In order to save Hodges and his platoon, Childers held a pistol to the radioman's head and tried to force Colonel Cao to withdraw his troops from the ambush in exchange for the officer and radioman's freedom. When the officer initially refused to comply, Childers executed Colonel Cao's subordinate. After the Vietnamese officer changed his mind and called off his troops, Childers released him.
During the testimony of Colonel Cao that Childers had illegally threatened him with death in order to save his Marines, the foreign officer admits that he would likely have done what Childers had. This appears to be a potential turning point in the trial and, ultimately, Colonel Childers is found not guilty of the charges of Conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman and murder, but guilty of the minor charge of breach of the peace.
Cast
- Tommy Lee Jones - Col. Hayes Lawrence "Hodge" Hodges II
- Samuel L. Jackson - Col. Terry L. Childers
- Guy Pearce - Maj. Mark Biggs
- Ben Kingsley - Ambassador Mourain
- Bruce Greenwood - US National Security Advisor Bill Sokal
- Anne Archer - Mrs. Mourain
- Blair Underwood - Capt. Lee
- Philip Baker Hall - Gen. Hayes Lawrence Hodges, Ret.
- Dale Dye - Maj. Gen. Perry
- Amidou - Dr. Ahmar
- Mark Feuerstein - Tom Chandler
- Richard McGonagle - Judge Col. E. Warner
- Baoan Coleman - Col. Binh Le Cao
- Nicky Katt - Hayes Lawrence Hodges III
Criticism
The film drew widespread criticism for its portrayal of Arab characters. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee described it as "probably the most racist film ever made against Arabs by Hollywood".[1] Paul Clinton of the Boston Globe wrote "at its worst, it's blatantly racist, using Arabs as cartoon-cutout bad guys".
Film Critic Mark Freeman writes:
- "The Yemeni people are painted in the broadest, most racist terms imaginable. Friedkin lets his camera linger over their angry faces, exaggerating their difference: the robes, the veils, the beards, the bizarre, harsh language, and their keen desire for violence. The omission of key scenes early on only serves to emphasize the horrendous racism of this film when the 'truth' is revealed later. The message of Rules of Engagement is the necessity to kill all those who actively oppose the United States and that the murder of women and children is acceptable in such cases."[2]
References
- ^ Whitaker, Brian. The 'towel-heads' take on Hollywood, The Guardian. Friday August 11, 2000.
- ^ Freeman, Mark. Review of "Rules of Engagement" by Mark Freeman, Senses of Cinema
- Rotten Tomatoes: Aggregate of Film Reviews of "Rules of Engagement" - Cumulative Score of 37%
- Thoughtful review at popmatters.com with references to Saving Private Ryan
- Review of "Rules of Engagement" by Mark Freeman, Senses of Cinema
- Review by critic Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
- Semper Fi, But Why? Stuart Klawans, The Nation, May 1, 2000
External links
