Date: Fri 02-Aug-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: CHRISL

Illustration: C

Quick Words:

Playing-Courage-Fire-Denzel

Full Text:

(Now Playing on "Courage Under Fire," 8/2/96)

Now Playing-

Washington's Strength Continues

By Trey Paul Alexander III

Denzel Washington never ceases to amaze me. His impressive portfolio of screen

characters from the last several years has displayed a level of diversity

reserved only for the top talents of the trade. His single Academy Award win

came for a stellar supporting turn in Glory as a soldier in an all-black

regiment during the Civil War, and he inarguably deserved another Oscar statue

for his intense, ranging performance as the title character in Spike Lee's

Malcolm X .

The list goes on and on, alternating from ambitious artistic triumphs to

mainstream hits: Philadelphia , The Pelican Brief , Much Ado About Nothing ,

Crimson Tide ... Just about the only constant in those varied films is

Washington himself, and the finding that you will never walk away from a movie

saying, "Oh, I've seen him do that before."

Though Washington has already taken several fictional tours of duty ( A

Soldier's Story , Glory and Crimson Tide ), his latest provides him a fresh

context to explore. In Glory , he personified the individualist, distrustful

of authority and lacking a belief in the cause. Crimson Tide revealed almost

the exact opposite persona, a military intellectualist fully convinced of the

effectiveness of the service when functioning under proper procedure. This

summer, Washington gets into uniform once again, but this time he portrays a

man less sure of his ideals than either of the above two mentioned.

Courage Under Fire , playing at Crown Cine in Danbury, reunites Washington

with director Edward Zwick, the man who helmed Glory . It could easily be

typified as a movie of firsts: the first Hollywood picture with a Gulf War

setting; the first Hollywood picture to seriously tackle the issue of women

serving in combat; and the first Hollywood picture of the summer with more

than two words in its title (just kidding... wanted to see if you were paying

attention).

Although these phrases ring true, the film does not gain its distinction from

these traits, but rises to the ranks of excellence by wrestling with such

basic narrative conventions as the search for truth and the consequences

(positive and negative) of its discovery.

Lt Col Nathaniel Serling (Washington) bears an oppressive burden. Decorated

several times over by his government, Serling is nonetheless haunted by a

fatal fault on the arid, darkened plains of Kuwait, an error which took

American lives. Now back on US soil, Serling (prompted by his superiors) has

avoided revealing the full details of that mission and becomes preoccupied

instead with investigating solders' files to ascertain whether they deserve to

receive service medals. His latest case has the politicos salivating over the

positive PR potential: it involves a Medevac pilot who would become the first

female combat officer to be given a Medal of Honor.

It is believed Capt Karen Walden (a surprisingly effective Meg Ryan)

selflessly sacrificed her life in order to save the members of her own crew

and another downed chopper. As Serling delves into her case, however, he finds

that the stories of various witnesses do not complement each other;

inconsistencies abound. Was Walden a hero, or is her story of courage just a

concerted effort to sell a lie? Putting together the pieces of the Walden

puzzle serves as a catalyst for the exorcism of Serling's own demons, and he

painfully learns he cannot ignore the truth of his own Gulf War service, nor

can he let the questions of the Walden file go unanswered.

Courage Under Fire , rated R for war-time violence and profanity, is a

thought-provoking film that is more about the timeless issues of moral

integrity and the necessity to remain committed to the truth, than the

contemporary topic of women in combat. At the end of the year, Washington may

well garner another Oscar nomination for his outstanding, subtle work here.