Buffalo Soldiers (2001)

NEUTRAL

Various

78%

2001, Comedy/Drama, 1h 38m

RT Critics’ Score: 73% (UNBIASED)
RT Audience Score: 72%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 6 nominations

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Critics Consensus

Overall, this caustic comedy hits more of its targets than it misses

Audience Consensus

Buffalo Soldiers is like a wild ride through the Cold War, with a cast of characters that are both hilarious and terrifying. It’s a satire that will make you laugh and cringe at the same time, and the DVD transfer looks pretty darn good too. If you’re looking for a movie that will make you question everything you thought you knew about the military, this is it. Just don’t watch it with your thin-skinned friends.

Storyline

1989. The Berlin Wall is about to fall, and the world is about to be made safe for the new world order. But outside of Stuttgart, West Germany, at Theodore Roosevelt Army Base, Specialist Ray Elwood of the 317th Supply Battalion is about to find his own cold war turn white hot. Elwood’s a lovable rogue, a conscript who’s managed to turn his military servitude into a blossoming network of black market deals, more out of boredom than ambition. Officially, there’s his day job as battalion secretary to the inept but caring Commander Wallace Berman. On the side, there’s everything from selling the locals stolen Mop’N’Glo to cooking heroin for the base’s ruthless head of Military Police, Sgt. Saad. When a new top sergeant arrives, with the avowed intention of cleaning the base up, Elwood thinks the new blood is nothing he can’t handle, especially after he lays eyes on the top’s daughter, rebellious Robyn. But that was before he figured in the $5 million in stolen arms that just landed on his lap, Berman’s jealous wife, an insane Turkish drug dealer, and, of course, the resulting lust, betrayal, and murder.

Production Company(ies)
M K2 Productions, C E D Productions, France 3 Cinéma

Distributor
Miramax Films

Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)

Filming Location(s)
Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for violence, drug content, strong language and some sexuality

Year of Release
2002

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Sound mix:

Dolby Digital
Aspect ratio:

2.35 : 1
Runtime:

1h 38m
Language(s):

English, Turkish
Country of origin:

United Kingdom
Release date:

Release Date (Theaters): Jul 25, 2003 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 13, 2004

Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama

Keyword(s)
starring Joaquin Phoenix, Ed Harris, Scott Glenn, Anna Paquin, Gabriel Mann, Leon, directed by Gregor Jordan, written by Gregor Jordan, Nora Maccoby, Eric Weiss, comedy, drama, R rating, Miramax Films, box office gross $353.7K, reviewed by Nell Minow, Slant Magazine, Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel, Bill Muller, Arizona Republic, Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Anton Bitel, Daily Info, Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed, Mark Halverson, Sacramento News & Review, Beth Accomando, KPBS.org, Dragan Antulov, Draxblog Movie Reviews, Andrew Wright, Portland Mercury, drug content, strong language, violence, Elwood, Col Wallace Berman, Sgt Robert Lee, Robyn Lee, Knoll, Stoney, Berlin Wall, military satire, drug dealing, weapons-for-drugs deal, American Army base, 1989, Miramax Films, Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR, Scope (2.35:1), Rainer Grupe, Ariane Moody

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: $2,300,684
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $3,815,828
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,252
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 416,121

US/Canada gross: $354,421
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $587,829
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,288
US/Canada opening weekend: $30,977
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $51,377
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,200

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $15,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $24,878,439
Production budget ranking: 1,255
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $13,397,039
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$34,459,650
ROI to date (est.): -90%
ROI ranking: 1,961

Cast & Crew

Joaquin Phoenix

Ed Harris

Scott Glenn

Anna Paquin

Gabriel Mann

Ray Elwood

Col. Wallace Berman

Sgt. Robert Lee

Robyn Lee

Knoll

Joaquin Phoenix – Ray Elwood
Ed Harris – Col. Wallace Berman
Scott Glenn – Sgt. Robert Lee
Anna Paquin – Robyn Lee
Gabriel Mann – Knoll
Leon – Stoney

Gregor Jordan

Rainer Grupe

Ariane Moody

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Gregor Jordan

Writer(s)
Gregor Jordan, Nora Maccoby, Eric Weiss

Producer(s)
Rainer Grupe, Ariane Moody

Film Festivals
Berlin

Awards & Nominations
1 win & 6 nominations

Academy Awards

Top Reviews

Nell Minow

Ed Gonzalez

Jay Boyar

Tim Robey

Bill Muller

Movie Mom

Slant Magazine

Orlando Sentinel

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Arizona Republic

BUFFALO SOLDIERS
All Critics (114) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (83) | Rotten (31)
January 17, 2004 | Rating: B+

Nell Minow
Movie Mom
TOP CRITIC
You won’t see too much red, white and blue on this DVD transfer of Buffalo Soldiers, but what little there is sure looks great.

January 11, 2004

Ed Gonzalez
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Eventually, the movie’s rampant nihilism catches up with it.

November 13, 2003

Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Joltingly funny.

October 19, 2003

Tim Robey
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The characters, if not sympathetic, are at least interesting and brought to life with authenticity by the talented cast.

October 9, 2003 | Rating: 4/5

Bill Muller
Arizona Republic
TOP CRITIC
It’s a well-done satire that only the thinnest of skins would find insulting.

September 18, 2003 | Rating: 3/4

Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
TOP CRITIC
doing for the Cold War what Three Kings did for the first Gulf war – i.e. following the adventures of a small group of profiteering soldiers in order to satirise the self-interested smash-and-grab attitudes of US foreign policy.

June 11, 2013

Anton Bitel
Daily Info
In the chaotic tradition of “Dr. Strangelove”…

April 29, 2009

Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed
August 7, 2008 | Rating: 3/5

Mark Halverson
Sacramento News & Review
Buffalo Soldiers is like M*A*S*H for the Reagan/Bush era generation that never knew a war like Vietnam. Both films offer a slap in the face to the establishment and display irreverent, savage satire.

June 29, 2008

Beth Accomando
KPBS.org
…a dark, entertaining and thought-provoking film that could be recommended to pacifists and militarists alike.

June 26, 2005 | Rating: 7/10

Dragan Antulov
Draxblog Movie Reviews
May ultimately be a tad too calculated to truly shock, but manages to navigate between bad taste and Sgt. Bilko with skill and infectious glee.

January 21, 2005

Andrew Wright
Portland Mercury…

Plot
1989. The Berlin Wall is about to fall, and the world is about to be made safe for the new world order. But outside of Stuttgart, West Germany, at Theodore Roosevelt Army Base, Specialist Ray Elwood of the 317th Supply Battalion is about to find his own cold war turn white hot. Elwood’s a lovable rogue, a conscript who’s managed to turn his military servitude into a blossoming network of black market deals, more out of boredom than ambition. Officially, there’s his day job as battalion secretary to the inept but caring Commander Wallace Berman. On the side, there’s everything from selling the locals stolen Mop’N’Glo to cooking heroin for the base’s ruthless head of Military Police, Sgt. Saad. When a new top sergeant arrives, with the avowed intention of cleaning the base up, Elwood thinks the new blood is nothing he can’t handle, especially after he lays eyes on the top’s daughter, rebellious Robyn. But that was before he figured in the $5 million in stolen arms that just landed on his lap, Berman’s jealous wife, an insane Turkish drug dealer, and, of course, the resulting lust, betrayal, and murder.

Trivia