Small Soldiers (1998)

Director:

Joe Dante

Writers (WGA):

Gavin Scott (written by) and
Adam Rifkin (written by) ...

Release Date:

10 July 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The few, the proud, and the small.

Plot:

When missile technology is used to enhance toy action figures, the toys soon begin to take their battle programming too seriously.

Plot Keywords:

Toy | Computer | Action Figure | Military | Battle

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

David Cross	...	Irwin Wayfair
Jay Mohr	...	Larry Benson
Alexandra Wilson	...	Ms. Kegel
Denis Leary	...	Gil Mars
Gregory Smith	...	Alan Abernathy
Dick Miller	...	Joe
Kirsten Dunst	...	Christy Fimple
Jacob Smith	...	Timmy Fimple
Jonathan Bouck	...	Brad (as Jonathan David Bouck)
Kevin Dunn	...	Stuart Abernathy
Ann Magnuson	...	Irene Abernathy
Wendy Schaal	...	Marion Fimple
Phil Hartman	...	Phil Fimple
Archie Hahn	...	Satellite Dish Installer
Robert Picardo	...	Ralph, Clean Room Technician

Also Known As:

The Commando Elite (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some menacing action/violence and brief drug references.

Runtime:

108 min | USA:110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Philippines:G | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12/9 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:AL | Norway:11 | Portugal:M/12 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 N. Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The Gorgonites (Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest, and Michael McKean) are reunited is this movie after they played together in A Spinal Tap Reunion: The 25th Anniversary London Sell-Out (1992) (TV).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Christy is knocked down by the girl dolls and falls onto the floor, her shirt rises slightly to reveal her belly. In the next shot, her shirt is down.

Quotes:

Major Chip Hazard: Damn the torpedoes, or give me death.

Movie Connections:

Features "WWF Raw Is War" (1997)

Soundtrack:

Rock And Roll (Part 2)

The Good & Bad Of 'Small Soldiers'

BAD NEWS - Typical Hollywood family in that the film features stupid parents, annoying teens who are too worldly for their age and think they get no respect from their parents. Also, there are the usual anti-military messages and anti- Republican cheap shots. The story has The Commandos (military, which means bad guys, of course) against the Gorgonites (peaceful, different-looking creatures.)

GOOD NEWS - A very clever animated-live action computer animated film (at least for 1998) in which the toys come to life and look real. Once the action starts, it's a very interesting story with fun special-effects, some good, funny dialog and some neat references to past films. Sometimes it's tough to catch them all.