Toy Soldiers (1991)
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A group of rebellious students must use their resourcefulness to survive when their elite boarding school is seized by terrorists.
The story
When terrorist Luis Cali and his mercenaries seize the Palace of Justice in Colombia, they eventually enter the United States to capture the son of a federal judge. They target Regis High School, a prestigious prep school for wealthy teenage boys. After taking the campus hostage and rigging it with explosives, the terrorists hold the students and faculty captive. While the authorities are forced to keep their distance to avoid provoking the gunmen, a group of mischievous students led by Billy Tepper begins to use their wits to gather intelligence and find a way to save their classmates.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Terrorist Luis Cali invades Regis High School to capture Phil Donoghue, the son of a federal judge presiding over his father's trial. After killing a campus officer and faculty member, Cali rigs the school with C-3 explosives and takes the students hostage. The authorities, including the FBI and US Army, are forced to stay back. Under Billy Tepper's leadership, the students gather tactical info and Billy covertly communicates with the outside. During the standoff, Joey Trotta attempts a rescue, overpowers a guard, but is killed. In a desperate move, the authorities launch a rescue mission while Billy and his friends sabotage the detonator's remote receiver. They lead the students and the headmaster to a secret basement. In the climax, Luis holds Billy at gunpoint and attempts to detonate the explosives, but Billy's machinations cause only a toy airplane to activate. The FBI Hostage Rescue Team and army commandos converge, and a commando kills Luis. The students are freed, and the surviving terrorists are arrested.
- First release year
- 1991
- Runtime (minutes)
- 111
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English; Spanish
- Directors
- Daniel Petrie Jr.
- Writers
- David Koepp · writer; Daniel Petrie Jr. · writer
- Cast and characters
- Sean Astin · William "Billy" Tepper; Wil Wheaton · Joseph "Joey" Trotta; Louis Gossett Jr. · Dean Edward Parker; Keith Coogan · Jonathan "Snuffy" Bradberry; George Perez · Ricardo "Ricky" Montoya; T.E. Russell · Henry "Hank" Giles III; Shawn Phelan · Derek "Yogurt" Case; Knowl Johnson · Phil Donoghue
- Genres
- action; thriller
- Themes
- resourcefulness; bravery; adolescent angst
- Tone and mood
- suspenseful; action-packed; slick
- Premise and plot tags
- hostage situation; school setting; teenagers; terrorism
- Source material / true-story basis
- Toy Soldiers by William P. Kennedy
- Reception
- The film received mixed or average reviews, with critics praising its pacing and novelty while criticizing its predictable plot and 'dopey' screenplay. It was noted for being well-tailored to teenage audiences despite its preposterous storyline.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 44% · review count: 18; Metacritic · score: 46% · review count: 20
- Awards and nominations
- Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture · Youth in Film Awards · 13th Annual · Nominated
- Production trivia
- The film was pitched as 'Die Hard Meets the Dead Poets Society'.; The remote controlled plane used by the teens was the 'Roun' to-it', an attraction from Texas Longhorns football games.; The U.S. Army assisted with the climax for a symbolic fee, lending four Black Hawk and one Apache helicopters.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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