A Soldier's Story Reviews

Gripping, thanks to spotless direction and Rollins's inspired work, but nothing new to relay. Charles Fuller's powerful play (a Pulitzer Prize-winner, based on Melville's Billy Budd) was adapted by Fuller himself for the screen, and the power of the stage presentation is not diminished (which means it's not particularly cinematic, either). The action takes place at Fort Neal, Louisiana, a base for black soldiers during WWII. Sgt. Waters (Adolph Caesar), a tough African-American topkick and manager of the baseball team, is coming back to the base drunk one night when he is shot to death by a .45-caliber weapon. That's the only clue to his death. Capt. Davenport (Howard E. Rollins, Jr.) is the black Army attorney who is sent to investigate the murder. The white officers on the base, as well as the black soldiers, are astounded at the choice, and Davenport finds that he's not getting any help in his search for the truth. Some of the black troops blame the Klan, while others suggest it might have been one of the white soldiers who rankled at Waters's attitude. A series of flashbacks establishes Waters and the relationship he had with all those around him as Davenport begins his interrogations. What makes this such a good film is the multilayered complexity of the script. Fuller has taken a basic Agatha Christie-type plot and bathed it in social issues; A SOLDIER'S STORY is an insightful period drama as well as a totally engaging character study. The picture does become a trifle talky at times, thus betraying its stage origin, but Fuller's words are almost always interesting and powerful and make worthwhile listening. Caesar's performance stands out. With the addition of two musical treats: "The St. Louis Blues March," one of our favorites, over the credits, and Patti Labelle in a cameo as Big Mary, wailing away and tearing down the house as usual.