The Beast of War (1988)

Director:

Kevin Reynolds

Writers:

William Mastrosimone (screenplay)
William Mastrosimone (play)

Release Date:

29 September 1988 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Tagline:

War brings out the beast in every man.

Plot:

During the war in Afghanistan a Soviet tank crew commanded by a tyrannical officer find themselves lost...

Plot Keywords:

Tank | Battle | Commander | Village | Main Character Dies

Awards:

1 win

Cast

George Dzundza	...	Daskal
Jason Patric	...	Konstantin Koverchenko
Steven Bauer	...	Khan Taj
Stephen Baldwin	...	Anthony Golikov
Don Harvey	...	Kaminski
Kabir Bedi	...	Akbar
Erick Avari	...	Samad
Chaim Girafi	...	Moustafa (as Haim Gerafi)
Shoshi Marciano	...	Sherina (as Shosh Marciano)
Yitzhak Ne'eman	...	Iskandar (as Itzhak Babi Ne'Eman)
David Sherrill	...	Kovolov
Moshe Vapnik	...	Hasan
Claude Aviram	...	Sadioue
Victor Ken	...	Ali
Avi Keedar	...	Noor
Osnat Mor	...	Young Girl
Rami Heuberger	...	Helicopter Co-Pilot (as Ramy Heuberger)
Avi Gil-Or	...	Khahzaman
Roberto Pollak	...	Shahzaman
Beni Baruchin	...	Afzal

Directed by
Kevin Reynolds

Writing credits
William Mastrosimone		(screenplay)
William Mastrosimone		(play "Nanawatai")

Produced by
Christopher Dalton	....	associate producer
John Fiedler	....	producer
Gil Friesen	....	executive producer
Dale Pollock	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Mark Isham

Cinematography by
Douglas Milsome

Film Editing by
Peter Boyle

Casting by
Ilene Starger

Production Design by
Kuli Sander

Art Direction by
Richard D. James		(as Richard James)

Set Decoration by
Shimon Allon		(as Shimon Alon)
Doron Efrat

Costume Design by
Rochelle Zaltzman

Makeup Department
Peter Frampton	....	makeup artist
Zvia Grego	....	hair stylist
Zivit Yakir	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Rudy Cohen	....	production supervisor
Christopher Dalton	....	unit production manager
Omri Maron	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mark Illsley	....	second unit director
Sarit Kedem	....	second second assistant director
Haim Rinski	....	second assistant director (as Haim Rinsky)
Bob Roe	....	first assistant director (as Robert Roe)

Art Department
Zvika Aloni	....	assistant property master
Ya'acov Ben Shuan	....	props
Zvika Chen	....	art department coordinator
Gila Cohen	....	set dresser
Shimon Cohen	....	props (as Shimeon Cohen)
Tal Gotshel	....	drafter
Gil Ifergan	....	props (as Gil Ifargan)
Beni Karni	....	set dresser
Amiram Lichter	....	set dresser
Oshmi Michael	....	painter
Yoram Shayer	....	property master
Eli Zion	....	props

Sound Department
Stefna Borges	....	assistant sound editor (as Stefna Smal)
Pat Brennan	....	assistant sound editor
Paula Connor	....	assistant sound editor
David Crozier	....	sound mixer
John Frankel	....	sound re-recording mixer
Joe Gallagher	....	assistant sound editor
Derek Holding	....	sound editor
Dean Humphreys	....	sound re-recording mixer
Gerry Humphreys	....	sound re-recording mixer
David Lis	....	boom operator
Ian Munro	....	boom operator
Alan Paley	....	sound editor
Peter Pennell	....	supervising sound editor
Paul Smith	....	sound editor

Special Effects by
Gil Arad	....	special effects assistant
Peter Hutchinson	....	special effects supervisor
Stephen Hutchinson	....	special effects assistant
Pini Klavir	....	special effects assistant
Yoram Pollack	....	special effects assistant
Yossie Safrani	....	special effects assistant
Shmulik Sherf	....	special effects assistant
Andrew Smith	....	special effects assistant
Hagai Yochanan	....	special effects assistant

Stunts
Andy Bradford	....	stunts
Tracey Eddon	....	stunts
Nick Gillard	....	stunts
Paul Heasman	....	stunts
Frank Henson	....	stunts (as Frank Hansen)
Wayne Michaels	....	stunts
Paul Weston	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Ze'ev Aloni	....	lighting technician (as Zeev Aloni)
Gal Altschuler	....	grip (as Gal Alsholer)
Eitan Ben Arie	....	second assistant camera (as Eitan Ben Ayre)
Shlomo Avidan	....	still photographer
Itzik Ben-Aroya	....	key grip (as Itzik Ben Aroya)
Loui Bochaim	....	lighting technician
Dana Christiaansen	....	director of photography: second unit
Noam Eisenberg	....	grip (as Noam Isenberg)
Gili Getter	....	lighting technician (as Gil Getter)
Jean-Claude Jakubowitz	....	best boy (as Jean Claude Yakobovitz)
Avi Koren	....	first assistant camera
Moshe Levin	....	camera operator: second unit
Shmulik Levy	....	grip
Beni Malee	....	assistant camera
Beni Malee	....	camera operator: second unit
Alan Martin	....	gaffer
Douglas Milsome	....	camera operator
David Namir	....	assistant camera (as Dudi Namir)
David Namir	....	second camera operator: second unit (as Dudi Namir)
Amnon Nuriyani	....	grip (as Amnon Nuriani)
Eli Rachamin	....	grip
David Rosenbaum	....	lighting technician
Micha Sabach	....	grip
David Saranga	....	grip
Moche Schiff	....	assistant camera (as Moshe Shiff)
Moche Schiff	....	camera operator: second unit (as Moshe Shiff)
Ronen Shechner	....	assistant camera
Ra'anan Spiro	....	grip

Casting Department
Dalia Hovers	....	additional casting (as Dalya Hovers)
Zigler Zeev	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Michal Bentzel	....	wardrobe
Etti Kenner	....	wardrobe (as Ety Kanner)
Tami Romano	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Rita Ackland-Snow	....	assistant editor
Chris Blunden	....	first assistant editor (as Christopher Blunden)
Yehiel Gurfinkel	....	apprentice editor
Elinor Hardy	....	apprentice editor (as Elinora Hardy)
Julia Harrington	....	assistant editor
Jake Hodges	....	assistant editor
Catherine Hodgson	....	assistant editor
Joe Illing	....	assistant editor
Steve Maguire	....	assistant editor

Music Department
David Anderle	....	music supervisor
Stephen Krause	....	scoring mixer (as Steve Krause)
Richard McIlvery	....	scoring stage manager

Transportation Department
Shlomo Admoni	....	driver
Haim Aroas	....	driver
Itzhak Hezi	....	driver
Gadi Itzchak	....	driver
Meir Sigura	....	transportation manager (as Sigura Meir)
Gaby Weismann	....	production driver
Gershon Winstien	....	driver

Other crew
Yonathan Agin	....	location staff
Eitan Alon	....	location manager
Gil Alon	....	location staff
Leah Anu	....	unit nurse
Bruce Bahrenburg	....	unit publicist
Itzchak Bareli	....	assistant armorer (as Itzhak Bareli)
Shmuel Bejerano	....	accountant (as Shmulik Begerano)
Irit Binyaminy	....	script supervisor (as Irit Binyamini)
Avinoam Caspi	....	tank crew
Ronit Chayun	....	assistant production coordinator
Eli Chen	....	production assistant
Moshe Chingali	....	caterer
Riki Cohen	....	unit nurse
Dale Ditlove	....	assistant: Dale Pollock
Dale Dye	....	technical advisor (as Capt. Dale Dye)
Mark Ebenhoch	....	technical advisor: military
Radia Eilon	....	tank crew
Ariel Elcha	....	tank crew
David Faran	....	tank crew
Iftach Gabay	....	location staff
Ilana Ganem	....	location staff
David Gol	....	coach: Pushtu
Meir Goldenberg	....	tank crew
Victoria Heslin	....	assistant: John Fielder
Omri Hoyslich	....	location staff
Samantha C. Kirkeby	....	production assistant (as Samantha Kirkeby)
Avihu Lehanon	....	location staff (as Avihu Levanon)
Shlomo Levi	....	tank crew
Nava Levin	....	production controller
Orna Maimon	....	production secretary
Dawood Moosa	....	script translator
Moshe Moshe	....	tank crew
Danny Orkin	....	location staff
Avner Peled	....	military coordinator
Itzhak Polombo	....	tank crew
Baruch Rafiah	....	production assistant
Shneor Ratzkowsky	....	auditor (as Shneor Ratzkovsky)
Charlotte Rose	....	production coordinator
Dorit Schachar	....	accountant (as Dorit Shachar)
Youval Shachaf	....	tank crew
Meir Shavit	....	tank crew
Yaacov Shilian	....	tank crew
Robi Shimron	....	tank crew
Yoav Shneor	....	military coordinator
Yosef Shriber	....	tank crew
Nissim Shriki	....	location staff
Yitzhak Shriki	....	assistant location manager (as Shriki Itzchak)
Offer Studinsky	....	tank crew
Kathleen Switzer	....	assistant: Kevin Reynolds (as Kathleen A. Switzer)
Enrico Tapya	....	tank crew
Haim Vaknin	....	tank crew
Carmit Vardinon	....	production secretary
Alan Wiseman	....	armorer
David Ya'acov	....	tank crew
Moshe Zanani	....	location staff

Production Companies

• A&M Films
• Brightstar Films

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1988) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures of Canada (1988) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1988) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2001) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1989) (USA) (VHS)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video (1989) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Video Trade (????) (Finland) (VHS)
• Videosonic Arts (1990) (Greece) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services

Also Known As:

"The Beast" - Canada (English title) (imdb display title), USA (video box title)

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Pashtu

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:18 | USA:R | Australia:M | Singapore:PG | Iceland:16 | West Germany:18 | South Korea:18 | Portugal:M/16 | Finland:K-16 (1990)

Filming Locations:

Israel

Company:

A&M Films

Trivia:

The Mujahideen's motorcycles are single cylinder 500cc M20s made by BSA.

Goofs:

Continuity: The hand grip on RPG has black tape over the serial# in cave but not during the closeup just prior to Koverchenko's shot at the tank.

Quotes:

Moustafa:Such unmanliness makes revenge unclean. Move aside and I will kill them all!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Syphon Filter 3 (2001) (VG)

Soundtrack:

STREETCAR HEADED EAST

Moby Dick, with Ahab in the whale...

This neglected and largely unknown anti-war film, ranks as one of the best of the genre. Since other posters have commented extensively on this movie, I'll limit myself to a few comments about those elements others have not addressed.

In it my understanding from material I read at the time the movie was in release (I saw it in Los Angeles when I was living there in the late 80s) that the actors who portrayed Afghanis learned and delivered their lines phonetically. The fact that the "Russians" sound like Americans, and the Afghans are speaking the language without subtitles is a brilliant dramatic device. Virtually no one is going to understand what the Afghanis are actually saying, but it is possible to get the gist from the context and from body language. This has the effect of alienating the viewer from the freedom fighters and making them tend to identify with the Russian tank crew. The movie then operates subversively against this natural tendency throughout the remainder of the story.

The hunting of the tank by the Mujahadeen has an almost mythic quality, except for the fact that the T-62 is real and it has a human crew. And leading that crew is the tank commander whose entire life was shaped by his experiences in "The Great Patriotic War" against the Nazis when, as an 8-year-old, he was used by Russian troops in Stalingrad to help kill German tanks. The commander is as monomaniacal as Ahab, but instead of pursuing the whale, he is it's animating spirit.

There are a lot of layers to this movie -- it will definitely repay repeat viewings.