[.ca] Private Benjamin (Full Screen) (ISBN 6304696558)

From Amazon.com:
A pampered socialite (Goldie Hawn) is so distraught after the wedding-night death of her husband (Albert Brooks) that she up and joins the Army. She whines, she pouts, she brings the corps down, until, of course, she gets with it. Eileen Brennan received a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role as the butch Captain Doreen Lewis, Benjamin's nemesis. Funny and winning, the film takes an odd turn when Benjamin is assigned to the international theater and gets involved with a dour Frenchman (Armand Assante). Of course, it's all part of Benjamin's growth as a person, and the part confirmed that Hawn had gone from a go-go girl to a "you go" girl. --Keith Simanton

THERE ARE WORSE WAYS TO PASS AN EVENING THAN WITH THIS FILM:
This 1980s feminist fable is about the pampered and weak JAP (Jewish-American Princess) Judy Benjamin, who wants nothing more than to be married to a rich and successful man and be able to spend lots of money. She has been cared for by men for her entire life and has no skills, independence, or serious ambitions. After she is widowed, she falls for a recruiter's sales pitch and joins the Army, believing that it will be like going to a spa and will help her recover from the emotional blow of her husband's death. There is great comic potential here, but the movie lacks the sort of sharp writing that would have taken it to the next level. Nonetheless, it obviously strikes a cord with many viewers. The first half of this film is inoffensive, sitcom-grade material. (In fact, a sitcom based on the film ran from 1981 to 1983.) Goldie Hawn's alternately cutesy/whiny act during basic training gets tiring quickly -- she's like a child who keeps begging for our attention -- and the film rarely manages to capitalize on the comic potential of the situations. Still, it does set up well how her parents' visit to the Army base reminds her of their degrading treatment of her, making her resolve to be the best soldier possible. We cheer for her to succeed. She does, of course, becoming a strong and independent woman in the Army. The second, more serious half of the movie is somewhat more satisfying, as we watch Private Benjamin fight not to let her new French beau Henri bully her into reverting to her shallow, weak, pre-Army self. Her romance with the despicable Henri is the most interesting part of the film, in part because Arman Assante plays his part so well: charming but condescending and unfaithful. The picture quality on the DVD is average for a film from 1980. The DVD includes the trailer and short biographies of the major actors. The film is captioned in several languages and can be heard with French dubbing. It does not include a widescreen version, just pan-and-scan.

Great Film! Poor Treatment!:
Along with "Foul Play" this is one of Goldie Hawn's finest hours, playing a rich, pampered widow who is duped into joining the army. An hysterical comedy who's format has been returned to time and again, but never quite to this effect. Eileen Brennan is equally fantastic as the tough army officer you love to hate. I've been awaiting the release of this film on DVD for some time (along with Foul Play which hasn't yet been released), and it's here that I felt disappointed. For one, the only released version of this is in Standard Pan & Scan. I know some of you out there still cling to this outmoded format, but for the rest of us, this is unacceptable. At the very least, it should have been dual sided, with Widescreen on one side and Standard on the other. Secondly, they've done nothing with soundtrack other than present in Dolby Stereo 2.0. I realize that with some older titles, they don't bother to remaster the soundtrack in 5.0 (let alone DTS - the Ultimate sound format for your buck!), but I still think it's very lame that they do this. Anyway, there is a trailer, at least, but don't expect any deleted scenes, bloopers, or any other fancy features. The film can also be heard in French, but Spanish would also have been nice (there are at least Spanish subtitles). They've priced this relatively low (I guess because they knew what a lame job they did with it), but I'd have preferred a bit more of a higher price if it meant little more effort on their part for this truly classic comedy. Let's hope that "Foul Play" offers a lot more when it's finally released.

Pouting Princess:
Judy is in an extremely vulnerable state and when she calls into a radio show to understand why her life is in turmoil, an army recruter asks to meet her. When she arrives, she is obviously confused and wants to escape from her problems. An assignment in Europe, getting into peak physical shape and living in her own condo sounds just too tempting. The reality of the situation is not so tempting. $458 a month hardly makes up for your husband dying on your wedding night. When she arrives at boot camp and says: "Is green the only color these come in? Where are the yahts?" You just fall in love with her character. The disturbingly insensitive Captain Doreen Lewis is a comic treat all by herself, yet even with a whip in hand, not even she can compete with the pouting princess. Doreen wants to toss Judy right back into the arms of her parents. However, when Judy's father tells her she is not intelligent enough to make her own decisions, something changes. Private Benjamin decides to stay. Some of the great comic moments are when Goldie is cleaning the bathroom with her electric toothbrush. I have stayed at an army base in Germany and trust me, they could have used a bit of toothbrush cleaning. My thoughts were that in the army, everything was spotless. Not! So, this movie was even funnier since I could totally relate to some of the experiences Judy had to go through. Another reason to respect our men and women in the military! While this is mostly a comedy, there is some romance, with a sadistic twist. You know there is going to be trouble when Judy asks: "Am I making sense?" And her French Fiancé says: "No, and that 's what I love about you." You start to get the feeling that Judy is the only one who really knows what she wants and that no one else is listening. Judy starts off running from her problems and ends up running from her problems. There are no real solutions presented, except to run. And maybe sometimes if you think about it, running is just a good idea. Comic Entertainment at its finest!

Goldie joins the army:
Goldie Hawn plays the part of Judy Benjamin, a young socialite who is widowed on her wedding night. Distraught and with no purpose to her life and no skills to speak of she appeals to the listeners of a radio show to help her. One of the respondents is an army recruitment officer who, having convinced Judy that army life really consisted of yachts and condo's and sunbathing in California, manages to get her to sign up for 3 years. This is where the comedy really starts as Judy, who has never had to lift a manicured finger, gets a reality check and discovers that being in the army is not like being on holiday. Goldie Hawn is made for this kind of role, and as usual delivers the goods. There are some genuinely 'laugh out loud' moments as she struggles to adapt and make friends. Unfortunately the film seems to run out of steam half way through. Whereas the first half is true comedy, the second half has very little in the way of humour to offer. Having met a French gynaecologist who she falls for, she wangles a posting to Paris to be with him. This is where the humour disappears as Judy leaves the army to be with him and he turns out to be a control freak that turns Judy into a clone of his ex girlfriend. It's almost like watching two separate films. This is a film that has stood the test of time and is still worth watching for the hilarious first half, just be prepared for the laughs to disappear.

An overhyped so-so movie that's really forgetable:
A spoiled Judy Benjamin get's married to an ugly ... guy with an even uglier hairdo (white people can't wear fro's without looking ridiculous). He dies of a heart attack on their honeymoon as they make love on the bathroom floor. A smooth talking Army recruiter hears her sad tale on a radio talk show and offers to help her. After smooth talking her in his office, she signs up. Sounds like a real good story right? Well...... Judy's arrival at Ft Biloxi is funny as are other boot camp scenes... Once Judy decides to tough out basic, it just isn't a comedy anymore. She actually starts to get annoying. After being given an ultimatum from her CO, (jump or screw) Judy jumps from the airplane. She cries \owolf\c and gets an assignment in Paris. It all goes downhill from here. She meets up again with a snobbish Frenchman that she met in Biloxi (yeah I know). Well he's a communist and the Army wants her to stop dating him. She decides to marry him, then changes her mind once she's out of the Army. The final scene is her running happily down the road in a wedding dress acting like a 16 year old. This movie is a lot like Full Metal Jacket in that after boot camp, everyone shuts it off. Bill Murray's 'Stripes' is a good example of 'interest after the boot camp scenes'. Maybe that's why the old TV show 'Private Benjamin' only dealt with boot camp type training.