‘We have a home here. We think it’s something worth defending...’
George C. Scott instantly enhances any film in which he appears. In many ways, he is one of the most underrated actors of all time. He’s never mentioned in the same breath as Hanks or Stewart, De Niro or Pacino, but his track record speaks for itself. He only graces Taps for all of half an hour and yet he is wonderful nevertheless…
Following the accidental shooting of a local hoodlum, it is announced that the Bunker Hill Military Academy is to be closed down. Inspired by the example of his commander General Harlan Bache (Scott), Brian Moreland (Timothy Hutton), a student cadet major, seizes the leadership of the campus and struggles to maintain control alongside his friends Dwyer (Sean Penn) and Shawn (Tom Cruise).
Yep. Sean Penn and Tom Cruise. Very much in supporting roles and very much fresh-faced. While both of them are good (in what was only Cruise’s second theatrical appearance after making his debut in Endless Love), if you were going to guess, you would say that Hutton is the one of the three most likely to go on to superstardom. While he has undoubtedly had a respectable career, he has perhaps never fulfilled the limitless potential that he displayed here. The early scenes that see him drinking scotch and trading war stories with Scott’s General Bache are truly a joy to behold and it is Hutton who keeps the film grounded when it threatens to derail in the admittedly over-the-top third act.
Taps is not one of the more lauded ’80s movies, but for fans of the era, it comes highly recommended. This is a teen melodrama with a heart and a lot to say about what it means to be a leader. I loved it.