Tom Majchrzak I served from 1983-1993,7+ years in the European theater (mostley Germany)and this was and IS an ongoing market.While most of Germany's Army bases are closed,I WAS THERE. This is a true account of how things were and didn't ever scratch the surface of what went on. I also served in Operation Desert Storm and that kind of looting also only scratched the surface.I have personally seen things sent home you would not believe. The reason this was iced for 2 years was it was taken as true and it was. The US didn't need this bad PR at the time.The sad part is the loss of the two towers have more BS and mystery that will be never solved. I truly believe this was based on a true story as I have seen it first hand and lived it. I drove a semi their and had many customers in many varied products.I am proud of my time served, but not of some of the things I had to do.Only after all these years do I feel this should be told as it STILL goes on only under a better guise. I do feel liberated getting this out.May my soul rest as many many others like me will NEVER admit this and take it to their graves.Sgt Zak (as I was known) 108th MI and 123rd SPT-1st Infantry .

wulfstan The author has taken Robert Stone's haunting "Dog Soldiers" and moved it to peacetime, Europe, and the tiresomely predictable FTA perspective of a minor English prof. It is 3.2 beer at best. Stick to "Mash" or "Catch 22" for this kind of thing."Buffalo Soldiers" is a term of honor coined by the Plains Indians to describe brave black soldiers they met in battle of the US Cavalry on the 10th Cav and other black units because of their nappy hair. Apparently the author hasn't a clue about what the term means.The cast does its best, but the stereotypes kill the film early on. It is tedious, never generates any real tension, and is as predictable as a Roadrunner cartoon. The only difference is they are a lot more fun to watch.

svicious22 This was an OK movie, at best, outside the context of the book. But having read and enjoyed the book quite a bit it was a real disappointment in comparison. I don't recall ever seeing a movie that took so many liberties, large and small, with the book that inspired it. For example, the Hawaii "happy" ending at the conclusion was absurd and a bit of Hollywood in the worst sense. And the portrayal of Stoney was a complete joke relative to the badass he was in the book.The book was so much deeper, nuanced and philosophical (even beyond the usual book/movie dichotomy), you got a much better feel for, and understanding of, the time and place depicted in the movie. In comparison the movie was flat and felt phoned in. The cast was OK, some decent actors but nobody doing their best work. If you want to have any hope of enjoying the movie, DO NOT read the book first.

ExpendableMan Having been surrounded by a massive amount of media hyperbole since his A-list graduation performance in Walk The Line, now couldn't be a better time than to go back and re-evaluate some of Joaquin Phoenix's earlier work, especially Buffalo Soldiers, an edgy black comedy with a strong anti-authoritarian vein pulsing through it that has been more or less ignored. That could easily be put down to the fact it is a movie about American soldiers organising drug operations which was released two days prior to the September 11th atrocities but it would be a real shame if it were forever to be consigned to the drawer marked "forgotten." Coming across like a darker version of Sergeant Bilko, the film is set on an American military base in Germany just prior to the collapse of the Berlin wall and the end of the cold war. With no enemy to fight and little to do, Sergeant Elwood (Phoenix) the camp clerk and his motley crew (including a pre-Crash Michael Pena) pass their days running drugs on the black market and running circles around hapless camp commander Colonel Berman (Ed Harris). Everything seems safe and structured until the stoney-faced career soldier Sergeant Lee turns up and becomes determined to scupper all Elwood's plans...To label the resulting film as anti-American may be a tad harsh however. Elwood and his crew may be devious and self-centred but they are human nonetheless. The top brass come in for a kicking too; Harris's Colonel Berman being portrayed as so much of a career driven apple polisher he fails to notice the fact that his own clerk is in charge of a major drug operation and having an affair with his wife right under his nose but this certainly makes a change from the clean cut heroics or "We're just trying to do our job" determination of regular war films. Giving the characters so much depth also makes the drama more effective and while not everyone may disagree with Elwood's actions, it's hard not to feel for him when an underworld kingpin refuses to sympathise with the death of one of his men.Bleak as that scene may be it is all the more effective for what comes before it. The sight of a three man tank crew getting stoned then inadvertently causing havoc when they try to find the rest of their unit is a riot and Elwood's playful game of cat and mouse with Sgt. Lee provides many funny incidents, not least of which is a scene where Lee has an entire platoon unload machine gun clips into Elwood's prized Lamborghini.At the heart of it all is the main Phoenix himself. His acting abilities really shine and Buffalo Soldiers is a good indication of why he was handed the job of portraying Johnny Cash as he handles both the sombre and the humorous equally well. That he is backed up by a witty and edgy script helps things no end and in these days where the US is more keen than ever to have us believe their armed forces are comprised of square-jawed patriots, it is a tremendous relief to see someone give us a differing view; an army made up of individuals from every corner of life, each with their own attitudes to their profession, not all of which may be as tasteful as the top brass would like.