Phantom Soldier

Although I haven't seen every Vietnam war-movie in the world yet, this does rank a bit above average, based on pure entertainment-value alone.

I was fortunate enough to find this non-classic movie on a fairly cheap Scandinavian DVD-release, and immediately had to buy it (based on other good experiences with movies starring William Katt, Wayne Crawford and Reb Brown), and when I finally decided to see it - after three years of sitting on the shelf - I wasn't disappointed one bit.

The story is somewhat as follows: When the American soldiers went home from Viet Nam (that's how they spell it) in 1969, not everyone got out in time. The highly skilled soldier Steve Shepard aka "White Ghost" (William Katt) has lived out in the jungle for 15 years, and has even made a nice tree-house for himself and his Asian girlfriend Thi (Rosalind Chao), who is pregnant with his child. After all this time, the Americans discover that he's still out there, and decide to send out a team of mercenaries to finally rescue him and learn what he knows from his stay in the jungle for all those years - he had gathered a large amount of dead American soldier's dog-tags, and now their families will finally know what happened to their missing relatives.

But something goes wrong, and the commanding officer Major Cross (Reb Brown) unfortunately sends off a team led by a grudge-holding scumbag, Captain Walker (Wayne Crawford), who doesn't intend to get Shepard back alive. Now it is up to Cross to get him out of there himself, and up to Shepard to both keep himself and his girlfriend alive, not only from the evil gang of mercenaries, but also from the equally evil Vietnamese soldiers who are right on their tails.

Now, this movie is really fantastic, it keeps your interest from the very first frame, and has enough interesting ideas and scenes to never let up. The violence isn't as extreme like the other reviewers suggested, but sufficient to keep both action- and gore-hounds satisfied. Lots of shooting, explosions, and even a car-chase in the jungle is always nice!

Bonus: One of the bad guys look eerily like Jesse Ventura (as he did in "Predator"), pretty sure his name's Karl Johnson, but not 100% certain. Also, there were many cool boobie-traps in the jungle, just like in "First Blood".

Recommended only for those who either enjoy all sorts of Vietnam war-movies, or just for those who like extreme action-scenes.. which, actually becomes quite humorous, especially when watching it with friends.

Actor/Producer Wayne Crawford plays a grouchy commando common enough to have a line that finishes with "Cap in your ass!" And with WHITE GHOST there's a lesson on how to use William Katt's BIG WEDNESDAY co-star, Reb Brown (who had resembled a skinny and large version of each other), the right and wrong way - starting with what not to do...

The mission to "rescue" and/or "recover" Katt's titular rogue from the Vietnam jungle, where he's existed, obscured behind a phantom legacy since the unpopular war's closure almost twenty years earlier, is headed by Reb Brown, portraying a very serious, seemingly passive major, addressing a round table of grimacing politicians wanting nothing to do with the near-historic error of Vietnam...

From the conference room to his office, Brown's Maj. Cross delivers lines in a listless CAPTAIN AMERICA delivery. But have patience: there is a reason to smile when, upon hearing the news that Wayne Crawford's group of bully commandoes had screwed up the mission, Brown asks for a plane - by the film's gun-blasting finale, he makes like an awesome STRIKE COMMANDO freed from a CAGE with the kind of screaming UNCOMMON VALOR only he would wield. And in-between the talky intro and the action-packed finale, there's a lot going on in WHITE GHOST, and, at the same time, not much at all.

Those mercenaries... led by Crawford, whose swarthy countenance makes a more believable villain than he was an affable hero in JAKE SPEED... basically trudge around what seems like a giant circle of tree-brush, seeming to get absolutely nowhere. The men include a young moral compass played by ENDLESS LOVE actor Martin Hewitt, who eventually winds up befriending the title character after realizing who the good and bad guys are...

Katt's title yet extremely buried and subtle Steve Shepard teaches the kid a thing or two about preparing guns and bombs for an upcoming attack while providing his own backstory, which includes the usual "we burned villages with innocent women and children," a tragic real life element that's extremely overused in Vietnam flicks...

Before this is an unintentionally hilarious moment showing the mercenaries first scene "in-country" - without having witnessed their arrival, there they are, trudging along, back in 'Nam as if in a nature center during summer vacation, and one guy says: "It smells the same," as another shouts back, "Maybe you're the one who smells!" This is paraphrased, but much of their dialogue's practically as awkward and banal...

As is the casting of the curly blond haired GREATEST AMERICAN HERO as the WHITE GHOST instead of a brawny, more befitting Chuck Norris type or hell, even Reb Brown would have fit much better in the brazen lead - which would have made it way more accessible to cult movie fans with a bloodlust for steely heroes wielding tons of ultra-violence - which does eventually occur, especially in the Extended-Version Blu Ray...

Although, being a genuinely capable actor, the CARRIE prom king tries his very best, and is no stranger to playing Vietnam vets - Katt leaves and returns from the war in BIG WEDNESDAY (and HOUSE) - but as this legendary "human wraith," a passive-till-pushed survivalist (with girlfriend Rosalind Chao) who one of the mercenaries describes as "Not human," he's out of his element, particularly with the curly, vanilla-colored hair (inches short of a mullet) that bounces to each step as if shampooed daily...

But once all the characters reach the high-octane pinnacle, WHITE GHOST, with little time left, goes wonderfully overboard, and Katt won't go down without a teeth-grinding fight, especially since Wayne Crawford's Captain Walker strives to take him back dead, not alive (still bitter about being "ratted-out" for burning that village)...

And, though dime-a-dozen in the "Missing in Action" style sub-genre, this obscure curio moves decently enough so what fails as a war-related vehicle winds up a semi-decent action flick.

Although the worrying start will have you saying "What the?", this Vietnam yarn (nothing more) quickly redeems itself, and becomes an involving film, where ex vet Katt, below par, is still in Vietnam, where he's so often shacks up with girlfriend Chao. It's now 1987, and an elite team of mercenaries, are ordered by the Pentagon to find and eliminate Katt, where a few complications, arise. The Commander of this squad really has a hard on for Katt, who wouldn't mind seeing his arch enemy squeal before he dies. He's reasons mirror that in the same scenario of back story, done in Heated Vengeance. One of the Commander's squad (Hewitt) who's very much against it, sides with Katt, where our wrong cast lead must take on the elite force and Charlie who come out like ants. They have kidnapped Chao, and for Katt, his work is definitely cut out for him, where it becomes quite of a heavy mission itself. White Ghost has some gutsy moments, among explosions, close calls, and a little love making. The near mine trip scene is tense. It's start has Katt, just roaming through Vietnam, with the ever present Charlie about, his long curly hair, just gleamimg in the daylight, although he's just stepped off the make up truck, though I wouldn't really joke about that. He doesn't say much, but is just sheer wrong for the part, who like me, will have you thinking that, all the way through. That's just the vibe, you'll get. But Katt went pretty much out of action, after The Greatest American Hero, so he pretty much needed the work, discounting Baby and House. On the whole WG isn't a bad Nam' actioner at all, with good plotting, but too an admirable lead up/finale, when an old Vet buddy, goes into save him. The one major fallback here, sadly is Katt. By the way, White Ghost is a term for a Vet who disappeared off the radar, believed to be dead, or not, where in Katt's case, he's pretty much alive.

Oh yeah that's the good stuff 100% pure 80's action movie. It had everything the one man army, a huge body count, Explosions, buckets of blood, slow mo bad guy rag doll death and the Reb Brown yell what more could you want.

This is a true 80's actioner and sadly under appreciated perhaps because this was such a departure for Katt a man best know for the goofy and light hearted Greatest American Hero but he does a great job stepping into the action hero mould. I you love 80's action then you'll love this.

My review was written in December 1988 after watching the movie on TWE video cassette.

"White Ghost" is a competently made war film looking at the legacy of the Vietnam War from a fable-like viewpoint of the legendary titular U. S. soldier still over there avenging his comrades 15 years later.

William Katt assumes the Tarzan-type central role, sending a signal back to Washington (in vintage code) while fighting on solo (with spooky white kabuki makeup) in what is now a Vietnam/Cambodia border war. Major Cross (burly Reb Brown) sends in Wayne Crawford and a band of mercenaries to find Katt; wrinkle is that Crawford and Katt previously were at odds when serving together as Green Berets.

Film succeeds in capturing the morbid spirit attending the unresolved conflict, culminating in a Pyrrhic victory here as Katt hands over scores of collected dog tags to Brown in the finale.

Pic was lensed on Zimbabwe locations, ably doubling for Southeast Asia, and has good action footage directed by B. J. Davis, a graduate from the stunt director ranks. Film originally was planned for release by American Distribution Group, but that firm merged with Spectrafilm and pic ended up direct-to-video via TWE.