Volunteers (1985) / Notes

 

God, I wish I could say I thoroughly enjoyed Volunteers (1985), considering it has Hanks, Candy, Wilson, Thomerson, and Watanabe make up a seemingly game cast. It is directed by Nicholas Meyer, whose films such as "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan", "Time After Time", and "The Seven-Per-Cent Solution" were right up my alley. I recall that Volunteers was a VHS rental on television at my cousin's birthday party in the late 80s. None of us kids watched it. We did later get into "One Crazy Summer", though. Hanks, for one thing, is just not particularly likable. He's a bit of a heel. He only joins the Peace Corps because he owes a bookie $28K and the bookie's muscle wants to destroy him for bluffing at cards for big winnings. He manipulates a Thai village to build an impressive bridge so a druglord/warlord could have access for opium movement. He trains villagers to bet at cards. Watanabe is Hanks' lackey and loyal patsy who seems to have a Southern accent. Hanks seeks after Wilson (they had sparks on set and later marry but never star in another film as a potential couple), more or less a sexist pig in a white suit with this aristocratic, snobby baritone and style. Yes, at the end, Hanks does the right thing by blowing up a bridge before "the Commies" with their "people's army trucks, jeeps, and weapons" and a druglord's own company on the way. Candy, who seems so weakminded and subservient to idealism Hanks slaps one side of his face and he pledges allegiance while another slap has him declaring the Red China doctrine waging war against "imperialist Yankee swine". The "River Kwai Bridge" influence is quite obvious. Thomerson as a knife-wielding, camouflaged, wild-eyed lunatic in battle fatigues and face paint opposite Hanks provides some entertainment, I guess. Since I brought up the problematic lens when watching "Bachelor Party", I think how the Thai people are portrayed in this film, Volunteers often played as a comedy and satire by Meyer with Hanks still pulling out the madcap wink-wink goofy side of him at times (he and Watanabe read subtitles used on screen when Hanks is nearly finger-nail stabbed by the warlord's constant companion/assassin), will perhaps cause the audience of today to cringe. This is set in 1962 with Hanks' morally dubious Yale graduate eventually securing the affection and love of Wilson, of course, and Candy eventually "snaps out of it", helping them blow up the damn bridge. Watanabe is spirited and full of energy but he was often cast as a clown, so he might also be viewed through the audience of today as problematic. I feel like as I watch a lot of movies from my childhood this year, "problematic" will be very much consistent and applied like some surgeon general warning.