Mountain FogRETROSPECT: THE BEAST (1989)
May 28th 2009 09:06
With Afghanistan’s geopolitical significance in the post 9/11 world, modern history has seemingly forgotten the brutality the small country endured during the Soviet Union’s almost ten year occupation of the 1980s. There have been few instances in modern times where the concept of total war was taken to such brutal extremes, with the Soviets deliberately targeting civilians and children in an attempt to hamper the efforts of the fleet footed Mujahideen resistance.
But despite the tactics and superior weaponry of the Soviets, they ultimately fought a desperate, demoralising and losing battle in Afghanistan, and the conflict is now often referred to as ‘Russia’s Vietnam’. In this context, then, it’s surprising that there haven’t been more films made about the Soviet-Afghan War. Then again, when a film of the quality of The Beast is made and fails to find a wide distribution, recalcitrance by filmmakers to revisit the conflict is perhaps understandable.
The Beast opens with the frightening attack on an Afghan village by a Russian tank platoon. It’s 1981, the second full year of the war, and the Soviets are ramping up their assault on the regional elements of Mujahideen resistance. This attack is no different, as homes are destroyed, wells poisoned and animal flocks mown down by machinegun fire. But after the attack, one tank commander’s determination to punish a hiding Mujahid fighter leads to he and his crew being separated from the rest of their column, lost without radio communication in a sprawling and deserted valley.
The commander, Daskal (an almost unrecognisable George Dzundza), is a frightening brute who intimidates the tank’s crew with his manipulation, the only dissent coming from the educated voice of the driver, Koverchenko (Jason Patric). Daskal is particularly cruel to the one Afghan communist onboard, Samad (Erick Avari), encouraging the crew to constantly humiliate the struggling radio operator, despite the protestations of Koverchenko.
It’s a sorry excuse for a team of professional fighters, and their bickering only makes the tank an easier target for a pursuing band of Mujahideen fighters, led by the grieving Taj (Steven Bauer), and all determined to exact revenge against the floundering Russians for the wanton destruction of their village.
Although ostensibly an action film, The Beast has a deceptive amount of subtext flowing through its frames. Written for the screen by William Mastrosimone, the script is based (bizarrely) on the writer’s own stage play, originally called Nanawataii. While this presents The Beast with a few pacing problems and some overly talky scenes, it’s also a good indication of the amount of human drama contained within the film. Both the tank crew and the group of Muhahideen fighters are troubled by internal conflict, and this allows the filmmakers to dig into a number of rich themes.
Rendered on screen, The Beast is a handsome looking picture. Courtesy of Douglas Milsome’s expert photography, the white dust of the plains and passes almost blows out of the screen, and the action scenes have an engaging verisimilitude, hinting at the more unvarnished camera techniques that would come to infiltrate mainstream cinema in the 1990s. This crystal clear cinematography is in league with some fantastic production design that, in look at least, sells the American cast as a rather convincing bunch of Russians. The titular tank itself is a genuine Russian T-62 and the filmmakers make the most of its deadly menace.
The filmmakers do a great job of conveying the frightening power of a modern battle tank in The Beast.
The Beast is apparently director Kevin Reynolds’ favourite from his own oeuvre, and it has to be said that he was rarely in such good form. The action set pieces are handled with aplomb, the special attention invested in the geography of these scenes paying off handsomely in a series of nail-biting climaxes. His work in the many intimate scenes is of equally high quality, and the director never allows these numerous character-driven moments to drag too much at the pace of the film.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle for a fresh audience trying to get into The Beast is one typical of films of its era. The choice to retain the American actors’ accents for their parts as Russian tank operators was very much according to the Hollywood wisdom of the time, but it’s a technique that would be well out of place in today’s films. It has the effect of erecting a barrier between The Beast and its audience, one that can take some time to get over.
Not helping are the frat-house performances from Stephen Baldwin and Don Harvey as the tank’s loader and gunner respectively, which leave the duo as the most unSoviet of Russians. Thankfully, they barely register alongside the underrated Jason Patric as the film’s central protagonist of Koverchenko, and a slimmed-down George Dzundza, who absolutely dominates the picture in the role of the maniacal Daskal. The conflict between the two carries much of the film’s drama as the desperate crew devolves into violent recriminations to solve their differences and swigging their own brake fluid for part-time stress relief.
With the generally high level of quality on display in The Beast, it’s remains perplexing as to why the film didn’t do better business upon its release in 1989. Ultimately, this is an antiwar movie, and perhaps distributors were tired of such fare after Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and in the face of Oliver Stone’s then forthcoming Born on the Fourth of July. But The Beast’s failure to find a wide distribution doesn’t take away from its quality as a fantastic tale about a seemingly forgotten conflict.
Check out a clip from The Beast below (in 4:3 unfortunately - the DVD is in the film's original widescreen aspect ratio):
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
A mighty fine review my friend.
Jason Patric is so under discussed when it comes to able performers, IMO he is every bit as capable as any in his generation. (Rush, Narc, Your Friends and Neighbors etc)
Funny you say that frat boys Baldwin and Don Harvey, "hardly register' I had totally forgotten they even make an appearance in the film.
It still astounds me Kevin Reynolds helmed this underseen gem when you look at the rest of his filmography. Similar to Schumacher doing Tigerland...they are of such an exceptionally high standard in comparison to what came before and after.
Comment by Cibbuano
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Cib - that's true. Out of this mess came the Taliban, and then came the Americans in 2001/2002; in that respect, the Soviet/Afghan war retains a real relevance.
Comment by Damo
How did I miss this when it came out.
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Would it be reasonable to say Reynolds was unfairly tainted by the whole Waterworld fiasco?
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Dave, I think Reynolds downfall is indirectly related to Waterworld. If my memory serves me correctly, he and Costner had a falling out over the editing of the picture and that more than the actual film damaged his career. I would be a little indifferent to his work except for The Beast - although not perfect, it is definitely his best film that I've seen (although I haven't seen 187 - will have to check out when I can!)