A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries (1998)

Good movie but grossly overrated

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Let the cyber reader beware! Reading the summary as well as the first User Comment about this movie, "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries, which I viewed recently [2004], stunned a 4-letter word out of my mouth. These two viewers seem blissfully unaware of any knowledge of James Jones or his times. Nor do they show even a basic appreciation for film or narrative methods. If they cannot support their assertions about the film--that it is "emotionless" for instance--with some reference to accepted standards of drama or acting, we must assume that they know no better. My question is this: why does such an important site for movie-lovers accept such limited summations of films to remain on the site?

I guess it's a hard task to make a film based on a novel, let alone an autobiography; not only should the director remain faithful to the spirit of the book, but also events must be presented from the writer's point of view. A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries has partly failed from that aspect. Moreover, most of the characters are not fully developed, while events are scattered within the movie, occurring with almost no linkage between them. That's probably due to the director's attempt to fit all the details of the book in a 2 hour film and thus I think that filming a mini series would have been more appropriate...Be that as it may, I loved this movie for these reasons:1. EXCELLENT photography and good representation of the 60s and 70s.2. Superb acting by the whole cast3. It's quick-paced, sentimental and even funny whenever appropriate, just at the right time. 4. Deals with issues one can easily relate to.If you get a chance to see A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries, don't miss it!8

If you're into a nice, structured movie, with no plot holes, and plenty of character development, this movie should not be on your list! A lot of times, characters do things, and you just don't know why, and don't really care because of this. I'm not that big into watching movies that have the above criteria, if it makes up for it in other ways. Kris Kristofferson is nothing but his usual self(ugh), Leelee is good, the boy who plays her effeminate friend is VERY good, Barbara Hershey is kind of funny(only sometimes), but the one redeeming character in this "mess" of a movie (with a very anti-climactic ending) is Channe as a little girl, played by ---- Luisa Conlon ----. One question: WHY HASN'T THIS GIRL BEEN IN ANY OTHER MOVIES?!! If you rent this movie for no other reason, (except maybe for the effeminate American boy living in France w/a British mother) watch this actress. I truly call her an actress because this girl KNOWS how she looks on camera, and TRIES to make herself look a certain way when she's acting. She TRULY seduces the camera with her skills. Too bad she's only in the first half of the film. -Sep

This movie does a great job at reflecting the spirit of the sixties and seventies. The cast is brilliant. It's an honest story about family life and the growing pains it may encounter. A must see!