Small Soldiers

1998 Directed by Joe Dante

Big Movie.

When missile technology is used to enhance toy action figures, the toys soon begin to take their battle programming too seriously.

Gregory Smith Kirsten Dunst Denis Leary Phil Hartman David Cross Jay Mohr Kevin Dunn Ann Magnuson Wendy Schaal Jacob Smith Tommy Lee Jones Frank Langella Ernest Borgnine Jim Brown Bruce Dern George Kennedy Clint Walker Christopher Guest Michael McKean Harry Shearer Sarah Michelle Gellar Christina Ricci Dick Miller Belinda Balaski

Alternative Title

Маленькие солдатики

action comedy adventure science fiction fantasy

110 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by josh lewis ★★★★ 5

"i think WWII was my favorite war."
a film that investigates the ways we sell war to young boys under the guise of "action" by having action figures literally ingest the brutal policies and tactics of the american military ("how could they be dangerous? everything on 'em are standardized!") due to ludicrously overt corporatism and militarism—the enemy line of "monsters" they create to affirm the existence of the army ones are even pacifists, simply seeking a homeland. dante expertly weaves the cutesy domestic spielberg movie with the use of war movie tropes/imagery to create a microcosm that is at once disarmingly adorable (every wide shot of an intricately designed makeshift vehicle traversing a lawn is hilarious) and genuinely horrifying; as…
Review by Joe ★★★★ 1

"It's a baton death march!"
The big budget children's entertainment of the 1990s is the savage attack on American values of the 21st century. I would have been 10 when I saw this in theaters (I remember it was the first time I heard anyone use the expression "it sucks"), and at the time I was surprised to see the titular soldiers revealed to be the villains of the piece, but I was too young to really appreciate the (barely) subtext about consumerism, capitalism, militarism, and the disgusting babies the three make together. This is about a giant, unambiguously evil corporation selling a false narrative to kids, about heroic soldiers who are actually bloodthirsty dunderheads fighting against evil monsters who…
Review by Chris Richmond ★★★ 7

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

Comparing this to Toy Story just because both have toy characters is like comparing Finding Nemo to Free Willy. I really don't get it. I think the only reason people tend to draw this comparison is the proximity of the two films' release dates.
Small Soldiers works as a fun attack on capitalism, consumerism, the glorification of war and violence, and the intersection of those three concepts.
Making fun of movies like The Dirty Dozen, Patton, and dozens more, Dante satirizes left and right, exposing the Commandos as the single-purpose, bloodthirsty meatheads they are.
Likewise, Irwin's (David Cross) Gorgonites represent the underdogs: non-white, unconventional-appearing peace-lovers designed to teach, rather than solely to entertain.
Cross is great here, as is pretty…
Review by matt lynch ★★★½ 1

"We have met the enemy, and he is you!"
you know that sneaking suspicion you had that corporate/military hegemony was slowly supplanting your rights and accumulating your property?
Review by Elwood B. ★★★★ 4

"We are the Commando Elite. Everything else is just a toy!"
- Chip Hazard

Joe Dante cementing his status as the greatest tiny-creature feature director known to man. It also marks an event, that was long overdue up to that point, which is Jay Mohr getting punched in the face, but maybe that's just me. Otherwise great SNL-star-performances, especially by the fantastic Phil Hartman, in his final appearance (before getting shot by his wife).
Just like Gremlins, the ingredients ratio of fun and severity is perfectly calibrated. Great watch.
Review by Hamushy ★★★ 2

One would think that a movie like Small Soldiers would just be a basic family film featuring toys on a rampage and it certainly delivers on that promise. But more than that, this Toy Story meets The Dirty Dozen cross, utilizes the formula that made director Joe Dante's Gremlins so successful. Joe Dante has an abundance of skill when it comes to fast-paced storytelling as well as a good grasp on satire and meta humor.
After the large military weapons supplier, Globotech Industries, acquires a toy company. Two developers are tasked with creating interactive action-figures consisting of one superior military unit and one inferior unit of monsters, but as a result of underestimating technology these toys turn out to possess…

Recent reviews

Review by pewneekorn ★★★★½

Not only is it hella entertaining but it has themes of capitalism and the brutality of the military... fun :)
Review by kaneusher ★★★½

Visuals: 3/5
Effects: 3/5
Concept: 4/5
Storyline: 3/5
Acting: 4/5
Style: 4/5
Atmosphere: 3/5
Personal enjoyment: 3.5/5 - Pretty good. 👍
Review by EL BARTO ANTIFA ★★★

If you combined the cartoonish violence of Gremlins, the "noble savage" tropes of Avatar and everything about Toy Story you have Small Soldiers which is definitely more worth your time than one out of these three other movies. Sick soundtrack. Stacked cast (the credits mention "Guest voices from Spinal Tap."
Review by kalebhorton ★★★★★

I remember watching this as a kid and thinking it was cool because there was a realism to the magic trick (toys come to life) that made me feel older than I was, which was 10. I also remember thinking it was really cynical about America.
Rewatched it last week or so for the first time in forever. Joe Dante is a genius and of course it was gonna hold up as being funny, but my God: Tommy Lee Jones, Phil Hartman, David Cross, Kirsten Dunst, Ernest Borgnine, Jim Brown, Bruce Dern, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer. That's not a cast. That's just a list of my favorite people.
Anyway a thing I noticed this time that I forgot…
Review by Simulated Yoshi ★★★

It ends with a more explicitly bleak version of the Gremlins 2 CEO thing. 90's Dante has been much more interesting than 80's Dante
Review by Reimerstang ★★★

Who the hell wrote this script lmao.
Review by Reyne Derrick ★★★★½

A film I hold near and dear to my heart as a classic kids movie
Review by Nathan Jones ★★½

I think World War II was my favorite war..
Review by swampthing ★★★★

I mostly watched this in my periphery while I was working bc my boy had it on but it still slaps. What a cast of voice actors and actors, so packed. I watched this over and over again as a kid. Joe Dante just knew what we needed.