The Soldier

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Allan C Writer, producer, director James Glickenhaus was known for taking familiar genre films and doing his own low-budget take. His prior film, THE EXTERMINATOR, was his take on the DEATH WISH urban revenge picture, SHAKEDOWN was his take on the buddy-cop film, SLAUGHTER OF THE INNOCENTS was his take on the serial killer genre, and so on and so forth. His versions are usually more violent and have more of a gritty edge to them, and that is the case here with his take on the Cold War spy picture. Ken Wahl plays a secret agent known only as “The Soldier” and is tasked with tracking down a stolen nuke that’s set to blow up a Saudi oil field. It’s a serviceable spy plot, and THE SOLDIER delivers some solid action sequences, but Glickenhaus’ limited budget is better suited to exploitation flicks shot on the slimy streets of 1980s NYC than a James Bond-like globe-trotting spy picture. When a dozen oil drums in the middle of a sand dune is meant to represent a vast Saudi oil field, that felt like a pretty big stretch (not to mention some pretty terrible use of stock footage). Still, Wahl is good in the lead, Glickenhaus delivers some exciting action sequences, and best of all, the film features an early score by Tangerine Dream (THIEF, LEGEND, RISKY BUSINESS). Overall, THE SOLDIER is not exactly a Cold War classic, but it is kind of a fun, scrappy cousin to Frederick Forsyth that’s at least as entertaining as FIREFOX and definitely better than THE EIGER SANCTION.  Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/25 Full Review Audience Member A kick-ass movie when you're 8 years old and but doesn't age too well. If you like acting cardboard, Ken Wahl is your man. Regardless, the film has decent pacing and a lot of redeeming qualities in the action scenes. And the Tangerine Dream soundtrack is wicked too. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 09/27/20 Full Review Audience Member Another bad movie with some great scenes. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member probably sucks, but I remember digging it in high school Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Years before the Kuwait war this movie came out. They mention what ifs. Kuwait was talked about. That plus the special group who are used. Makes for good suspense. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/12/23 Full Review Audience Member Watchable but kinda silly Ken Wahl action joint in which his codename is 'The Soldier', which makes me think they ran out of fucking codenames, y'know? Rental unless you're just a Wahl completist. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Soldier

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