Toy Soldiers (1991)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Daniel Petrie Jr.

Writers (WGA):

William P. Kennedy (novel)
Daniel Petrie Jr. (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

26 April 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Years of bad behaviour are about to pay off.

Plot:

When terrorists sieze control of a boarding school, a group of trouble-making boys decide to resist them.

Plot Keywords:

Student | Trial | Hostage | Boarding School | Terrorist

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Sean Astin	...	William 'Billy' Tepper
Wil Wheaton	...	Joseph 'Joey' Trotta
Keith Coogan	...	Jonathan 'Snuffy' Bradberry
Andrew Divoff	...	Luis Cali
R. Lee Ermey	...	General Kramer
Mason Adams	...	FBI Dep. Asst. Dir. Otis Brown
Denholm Elliott	...	Dr. Robert Gould - Headmaster
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Dean Edward Parker
George Perez	...	Ricardo Montoya
T.E. Russell	...	Henry 'Hank' Giles III
Shawn Phelan	...	Derek 'Yogurt'
Michael Champion	...	Jack Thorpe
Tracy Brooks Swope	...	Jennifer (voice)
Max Manwell	...	HRT Commander
Joe Inscoe	...	Agent Grimes

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Iceland:16 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Miller School of Albemarle - 1000 Samuel Miller Loop, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA

Company:

Island World

Trivia:

William 'Billy' Tepper, then lead character played by Sean Astin, is named after actor William Tepper, who starred in the Jack Nicholson-directed film, Drive, He Said (1971).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: After the terrorists drop the judge from the helicopter at the beginning, you can clearly see he's wearing a black parachute.

Quotes:

Dean Parker: I'm not going to expel you. Three schools have done that and it's obviously done nothing for your character... I'm going to do much worse. I am going to keep you here until you graduate. It'll probably take years at this rate.
William "Billy" Tepper: I might wear you out before then.
Dean Parker: Oh don't you worry about wearing me out. I'm going to wear you out.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Masterminds (1997)

Pure Escapist Entertainment

I remember seeing this when it first came out in theatres and wondering why it wasn't a bigger hit at the time. Writer/director Daniel Petrie Jr. and his co-writer David Koepp have done an excellent job of taking a basically far-fetched comic-book plot and then getting us to go along for the ride. The acting is generally good all-around, with special kudos going to Andrew Divoff as the smooth, suave villain. Smart, fast paced, action-packed and exciting....a perfect popcorn picture.