Out of commission, become a pillbox. Out of ammo, become a bunker. Out of time, become heroes.
Today on Classic Movie Review, we are taking on The Beast of War (1988), sometimes called simply The Beast. Nick enthusiastically recommended today’s movie. Thank you for sending it in, Nick.
This movie has a pretty average 7.3 rating[1] on iMDB.com. On rottentomatoes.com, there is no Tomatometer score and a decent 85 percent audience approval[2].
New York Times film critic Vincent Canby said in a tepid September 16, 1988 review:
“The film was directed by Kevin Reynolds – who made his debut with ”Fandango” – and adapted by William Mastrosimone from his own play. There’s nothing terribly wrong with ”The Beast” except that it raises neither one’s interest nor one’s political consciousness. Though it was shot in Israel, it has the look (except for the color of the photography) of a B-picture made in or near Hollywood 50 years ago.”[3]
Much closer to my take on the film, Chicago Tribune movie critic Dave Kehr said on December 2, 1988[4]:
“The Beast is as blatantly uncommercial as a movie can be: Here, in the twilight of the Reagan era, is a film about the perils of a Soviet tank crew in Afghanistan. Glasnost or not, this isn’t a concept likely to catch fire in a year when the Pledge of Allegiance was a burning campaign issue.
What’s more, as directed by Kevin Reynolds and written by William Mastrosimone, “The Beast” turns out to be even more foolhardy than that. Within the first few minutes of this dusty, determinedly realistic war film, it becomes apparent that the Soviets are standing in for the American soldiers in Vietnam, doing battle with a wily army of peasant guerrillas and-despite their tactical superiority-blowing it.
In the last few years, Hollywood has developed its own agreed-upon interpretation of Vietnam – the war was bad, but the Americans who fought in it were victims at worst and heroes at best.” [5]
Actors – The Beast of War (1988)
New
Jason Patric was Soviet tank drive Konstantin Koverchenko. He was born in 1966 in New York City. Patric is the grandson of Jackie Gleason. Talk about getting a bump. His mother was an actress and his father was a playwright.
Patric attended Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey and Saint Monica Catholic High School in California. Early on in his acting career, he was in the fantastic modern vampire film, The Lost Boys (1987). This film was followed by The Beast of War (1998). He was also in Roger Corman’s Frankenstein Unbound (1990), which I haven’t seen, but it sounds good.
Other movies include Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), which is enjoyable despite its inaccuracies, Sleepers (1996), Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997), The Alamo (2004), which I liked, and The Losers (2010). Patric continues to make films and is very active.
Steven Bauer played Khan Taj. Bauer was born in Cuba in 1956. His family moved to the US in 1960 following the revolution. He graduated from Miami’s Coral Park High School. Bauer attended the University of Miami and worked in theater.
Bauer began working on television in 1978. In 1980, he moved to New York and began studying with Stella Adler. In 1983, he got his big break when he was cast in Scarface (1983) with Al Pacino.
Other popular movies include Running Scared (1986), the television movie “Sword of Gideon” 1986, which is virtually the same as Munich (2005), The Beast of War (1988), Gleaming the Cube (1989), Primal Fear (1996), and Traffic (2000).
Bauer is a good actor, and he continues to make movies and work on television. I sure his career would better except that he was married to Melanie Griffith from 1981 — 1989 and undoubtedly suffers from that curse.
George Dzundza played the mad Russian tank commander Daskal. ZUHN-zuh was born in post-war Germany in 1945. His mother was Ukrainian, and his father was from Poland. They were forced to be Nazi laborers. His family migrated from Amsterdam to the US in 1956[6]. Dzundza Catholic Cardinal Hayes High School in New York City.
Dzundza studied at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. His first film was in 1973, and he also worked on television. His first big film was The Deer Hunter (1978). Other films include No Way Out (1987), The Beast of War (1988), White Hunter Black Heart (1990), a based-on director John Huston’s elephant hunt during the filming of The African Queen (1951), Basic Instinct (1992), Crimson Tide (1995) and Dangerous Minds (1995). Dzundza retired from acting in 2011.
Erick Avari played the role of Samad, an Afghani soldier assigned to the Soviet tank crew. Avari was born in India in 1952. His father ran two movie theaters, and his great-great-grandfather was one of the pioneers of Indian film, so it is easy to see where he got his love for acting. In India, at the North Point School, and attended College of Charleston in the US.
Avari began in film in 1961. Avari has acted as more than twenty-five different nationalities and at least one other species. His best-known films are The Beast of War (1988), Encino Man (1992), Stargate (1994), where he was archaeologist Daniel’s father-in-law, Independence Day (1996), The Mummy (1999), The 13th Warrior (1999), Planet of the Apes (2001), Mr. Deeds (2002), For Love or Money (1993) The Glass House (2001) and Three Days of Rain (2002).
On television, Avari played his character from Stargate (1994) as a recurring role on “Stargate SG-1” 1998—2001. He worked extensively on television, including comedies and “Star Trek” spinoffs. He also worked extensively on the stage.
Story – The Beast of War (1988)
A small village of mud huts is shown adjacent to a desert terrain that could easily be Tatooine. In the village are women, children, and older men. The villagers hear the sounds of jets in the distance. Bombs begin to explode in and around the building.
The year is set as 1981, and four Soviet T-55s roll towards the town. The tanks continue the attack on the village as the people run hither and fro. One of the younger men runs up the hill to a recoilless rifle. He shoots at the tank but misses. Don’t miss if you are shooting at a tank.
The village women attack the tank with rocks. The stoning goes as well as can be expected until a poison gas grenade is dropped from the escape hatch of the tank. In her rage, one woman doesn’t notice the gas and dies on top of the tank.
The crew of the tank gets out wearing gas masks and search the building. They poison the town well, blow up huts, use flamethrowers people, and shoot the goats. The Soviets collect a little food and drop their guard for a second. An Afghani with a Molotov cocktail destroys one of the tanks.
One tank commander, Major Daskal (George Dzundza), shoots a man coming towards his tank with a molly and shoots the man that destroyed the other tank. Koverchenko (Jason Patric) runs to the burning tank to help, but it is too late. The wounded attacker tries to shoot Koverchenko, but the gun doesn’t fire. They capture him alive.
Daskal orders the prisoner to be placed under the tank tread. Samad (Erick Avari) questions the prisoner but gets no information. The women start to attack again, but Samad orders them to stop as one of the tankers fires into the air.
Sherina (Shoshi Marciano) attacks Samad and calls him a traitor. She says the man is to be her husband. Koverchenko, under orders, drives the tank over the man. The women raise hell.
Daskal’s tank is far behind the other two as they make their way across the desert back to the highway. Daskal orders a right turn at a fork and sends his tank deeper into the wilderness.
A group of Mujahideen fighters watches the lone tank turn into a broad boxed canyon. The fighters head back to get help.
A group of men led by Taj Mohammed (Stephen Bauer) return to the death and destruction of the village. Taj has lost his family. He and his uncle Akbar (Kabir Bedi) say revenge is in order. Taj finds the half-crazed Sherina and gives her an orphan baby for care.
Gunfire and motorcycle are heard as Taj’s cousin, Moustafa (Chaim Girafi), comes to the village. There is some bad blood between the cousins as Moustafa has to disarm before he is allowed to talk. When Taj finds a hidden gun, Moustafa says to have faith in Allah and keep a hidden gun. He tells of the lone tank that they have seen going into the Valley of the Jackel. Taj calls Moustafa a thief, and they speak of an ancient grudge.
Moustafa goes to speak to the Khan but is told that Taj’s father is dead. Sherina says Taj’s older brother was killed under the tank, making him the new Khan. Sherina brings out an RPG launcher, which Moustafa takes, saying he knows how to destroy the tank. Taj finally decides to lead the revenge party.
The Soviet tank rolls further into the high-walled valley. The tank’s radio cannot transmit. Samad doesn’t know where they are, and the map is partially destroyed. Daskal relieves him of his duties and says the logbook should be given to Koverchenko.
Koverchenko wants to know why the man they ran over with the tank laughed. Samad says he was happy that he was going to paradise. Suddenly the tank comes under attack from the combined revenge party. The Soviets get the tank moving and fires a round high above the attackers. Moustafa doesn’t know how to use the RPG and wastes a round. Akbar has a leg wound.
Moustafa takes off with his motorcycles while the rest follow the tracks on foot. They find a watering hole, and one man starts drinking. Taj finds the canister of Soviet poison and stops anyone else from drinking.
Daskal blames Samad for not throwing the canister far enough away and ruining his plans. Daskal orders a frag round fired at the men near the water. The round misfires, and they have to escape from the tank.
As they are hiding, Daskal finds out that Samad touched the shell. He orders gunner Anthony Golikov (Stephen Baldwin) back to unload the hot shell. Golikov has never done the job before. Samad volunteers, and then Koverchenko says he will do it. Kaminski (Don Harvey) is ordered to watch the attackers.
Koverchenko, Golikov, and Daskal go to the tank. Daskal gives Koverchenko grief for being kind to their Afghani allies. They get the shell out without a problem. They booby trap the round with a grenade. They drive away in the tank, going deeper into the valley.
The revenge party continues to follow the tracks until one man finds the shell. It blows his arm off—Taj and Moustafa fight about leaving the man behind. Moustafa finally shoots the wounded fighter.
Around sunset, the women arrive from the village and find the second dead body.
The revenge band finds a crazy holy man dancing around a large fire. The holy man says that Taj is David sent to destroy the beast or goliath, AKA the Soviet tank.
The Soviets have stopped the tank for the night. The men are working on the tracks of the tank. Koverchenko and Samad play chest. Samad teaches about the three obligations: hospitality, revenge, and sanctuary for all who ask. Koverchenko tells Samad to get away from Daskal as soon as possible.
Golikov and Kaminski get into a fight. Daskal finds out that Kaminski has been drinking the brake fluid from the tank. Daskal tears the page about Kaminski’s mistakes out of the logbook. Kaminski tells Koverchenko he had better watch out going forward.
A grenade drops by the tank and explodes. The revenge fighters start firing on the tank. Daskal gets the tank cranked, and all the other men load through the escape hatch. A fire is burning on the outside of the tank, and they can’t see the enemy as they flee. Taj fires the RPG at the tank and misses badly.
When the tank has gone a safe distance, they stop. Golikov has a face wound. The men setups some detection devices around the tank in the night. Daskal tells the men they are safe in the tank.
The detection device begins to pick up about 20 targets. They load a frag round and fire all weapons in a 360-degree arc. Daskal sends Samad out to verify the dead. Daskal orders Koverchenko to kill Samad. He refuses. All they have killed is a herd of deer.
Somehow, they find a river. The tank is leaking oil, and Daskal orders them to prepare for a submerged crossing. Samad prepares to do his prayers. Daskal orders him to stop and check the depth of the river. When Samad walks into the water, Daskal kills him with a machinegun burst.
Koverchenko yells at Daskal and begins writing the incident in the logbook. The tank minus the dead man makes it across the river. Daskal doesn’t like Koverchenko because he is an intellectual. Daskal tells of fighting Nazis in Stalingrad at the age of 8. He said they lowered him onto the tanks where he planted a Molotov Cocktail. He got the nickname tank boy.
The men have a heated talk about leaving the tank behind. Daskal catches them, and Koverchenko explains all of the reasons that the tank is in trouble. Daskal accuses Koverchenko of mutiny and has the other men tie him to a large boulder. They place a grenade under Koverchenko’s neck as a booby trap. Koverchenko pleads to the other men saying Golikov is next to be turned on. The tank drives away and leaves him behind.
Akbar is limping badly from his wound and is far behind the other fighters. He finds Sherina and the other women from the village following the tank tracks. The women want to fight the tank and have C4 plastic explosives and grenades. He orders them back to the village.
A pack of dogs find Koverchenko and start chewing at his feet. The grenade falls loose and kills most of the dogs. Koverchenko is not hurt because the blast happened below the rock where he was tied.
Taj makes the hard decision to leave his wounded uncle behind.
The tank is running pretty well in the open when Daskal spots Kandahar Road. They think they are home-free. With their gas almost gone, they see a vast gorge blocks their way. Daskal has led them to the right location, but the missing part of the map has caused them not to know what was ahead.
Koverchenko is being baked alive on the rock when the village women discover him. Sherina and the other women start pelting him with stones. Finally, he says Nanawatai, which is the request for sanctuary. The women stop the attack.
Sherina starts throwing rocks again, but the revenge party shows up and stops her. Moustafa, Sherina, and all the other men want to kill Koverchenko. Taj is intrigued by why the tank left him behind.
The revenge party and Koverchenko spend the night in a cave. They debate about what to do with their prisoner. Taj collects food and lets Koverchenko eat first. Taj eats last.
Moustafa says Taj broke the RPG. Taj gives it to Koverchenko. Through sign language, they have Koverchenko fix the RPG. Again, using sign language Koverchenko says he will help destroy the tank.
The tank crew uses bushes to camouflage their tank. When a Soviet helicopter flies near Daskal fires a flare. The helicopter lands. Kaminski and Golikov get on the helicopter. Daskal orders them back to the tank. The Soviet pilot says they were scouting for water. He also tells Daskal that the only way out of the valley is back the way he came. They get fuel from the helicopter and set up a planned resupply drop.
The revenge party sees the tank heading back out of the valley. Taj draws the attack plan in the dirt, setting the final attack at the opening of the valley. The tank has to follow the valley floor while the revenge party cuts over the ridge to get ahead.
The tank crew travels all night. In the morning, the engine is overheating, but Daskal drives them towards the poison waterhole. The helicopter has landed, and all of the crew are dead from drinking the poisoned water. They fill the tank with the foul water.
Daskal sees the revenge party along with Koverchenko moving towards them. Daskal prepares the tank for battle. The tank won’t start, and the machine gun is out of ammo. They manually crank the turret towards the attackers. They manage to fire an anti-tank round at the attackers. However, the round goes over their heads. Koverchenko takes the RPG, but the tank finally cranks and flees.
Moustafa and his men loot the helicopter and give up the tank chase. Koverchenko, Taj, and his crew follow the tank. One of the revenge crew is killed by a tank round. They move along the ridge above the tank. The tank crew sees the men on the ridge but can’t hit them due to the elevation. The tank shoots its last round at the attackers.
Koverchenko and Taj get ahead of the tank and set up the RPG ambush. The tank almost kills the two men before Koverchenko runs it down and fires the RPG. The shot destroys the main gun, but the three men inside are safe.
The tank keeps going toward the pass, and Taj prays that the tank be destroyed. Suddenly, an explosion high on the ridge sends an avalanche down, stopping the tank. Sherina and the women appear from where they caused the rockfall.
The tank has lost a track and can’t escape.
Koverchenko sees fuel leaking from the tank and makes a firebomb. The bomb catches the tank on fire as Koverchenko shouts for “Tank boy” to come out. In the tank, Daskal wants the men to kill themselves. Kaminski and Golikov get the grenade away from Daskal. All three tankers surrender.
Moustafa and his men show up, loaded with gear from the helicopter. Golikov begs on his knees to be spared. Moustafa tries to kill him, but Koverchenko asks sanctuary for the men. Taj keeps the truce, and Koverchenko signals that he has killed the tank as he promised.
Koverchenko tells Daskal that the Soviets are the Nazis now and you can’t be a good soldier in a rotten war, echoing Vietnam. The three Soviet tankers walk out of the valley with Daskal in the rear.
Sherina and the other women come screaming down the road and put an end to Daskal with rocks.
Taj gives Koverchenko an antique rifle. Sherina returns covered in blood, carrying Daskal’s jacket. She asks Taj for forgiveness, which sends him into a rage.
A Soviet helicopter flies over, and the Afghanis hide. The helicopter sling loads Koverchenko and his present into the air. Moustafa almost shoots Koverchenko, but Taj stops him.
Summary – The Beast of War (1988)
It is clear that this movie is about America in Vietnam, rather than the Soviet Union in Afghanistan.
If you like this movie, you should check out Man in the Wilderness (1971) with John Huston and Richard Harris. If you might desire a more modern version of the story, try The Revenant (2015).
Erick Avari played Kasuf in Stargate (1994). He was the father-in-law of archaeologist Daniel when his daughter Sha’uri married the off worlder. Israeli actress Mili Avital played Sha’uri. Avital bears an uncanny resemblance to Shoshi Marciano from today’s movie.
This movie came out in 1988. The Soviet Union read Russia, invaded Afghanistan in 1979, and fought there until 1989. During this period, the USA was a secret ally to the Mujahideen. The Mujahideen was a group of Muslim warriors from the Pashtun area. They are known from the 19th century when they fought against the British Empire. At this time, this movie came out; we wanted the Soviets to lose and the Afghans to win.
Thanks to history and Charlie Wilson’s War (2007), we understand the problem with training and leaving this group behind. The USA entered Afghanistan in 2001, and I guess we are still there. So, this movie has the wrong side winning and is out of tune with current geopolitical goals.
Afghanistan has been called the “graveyard of empires”[7] for so long the name’s origins are lost. When I think of fighting in Afghanistan, I think of the quote from Rudyard Kipling’s poem “The Young British Soldier” that began this film. The last reframe reads:
When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier. [8]
World-Famous Short Summary – Don’t piss off the women.
Beware the moors.
[1] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094716/
[2] https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_beast_1988
[3] https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/16/movies/reviews-film-russians-and-afghans.html
[4] https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-12-02-8802210543-story.html
[5] https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-12-02-8802210543-story.html
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Dzundza
[7] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/29/world/asia/afghanistan-graveyard-empires-historical-pictures.html
[8] https://www.poetryloverspage.com/poets/kipling/young_british_soldier.html
