The Last American Soldier

Entire Story in Fewer Words Than Are In This Sentence:

-Capitalist Widower Depopulates Southeast Asia

Homoeroticism:

Obviously the main romance of the film is not between the main character and his wife who is hastily killed off to advance the revenge plot. The romance mainly erupts between the hero’s two groupies, a pair of Cambodian Guerillas. The two never leave each others’ side and even willfully and nonviolently allow themselves to be captured and tortured in an enemy prison camp just to stick together. When one is slain in combat near the end of the film, the other values grieving the loss of his “friend” more than his own safety.

The villain of this piece, a Russian Commander named Vlassov (as performed by usually small-role staple of Filipino trash cinema David Light), is clearly gay as he’s much more interested in pursuing the hero he refers to as a “Commander” and keeping his men grouped tightly around him at all times than women. Actually, the only time we really see him smile is when he’s torturing the sweaty hero and when he is massacring women and children of an innocent and largely straight and co-ed Thai village. Just look at the delightful wink he gives one of his subordinates when he signals him to start firing mortar shells at the screaming women. On top of that, he is definitely in love with the film’s hero (imagine a sweaty Sylvester Stallone who neither exercised nor bathed regularly). Those in doubt need only notice the “shocked” expression he displays in his close-up when the hero comes “back from the dead” to pay him a surprise visit. He’s not angry – he’s delighted that the fun isn’t over.

Corpse Count:

Holy Hell! Forget about trying to keep up as this film is all but a celebration of death and all things violent. At least 270 human beings meet their end in this film, including about 150 by the hero’s hand personally, and the vast majority of said deaths occur during the climactic 10 minute final...