Tank (1984)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Sadly Over-hyped

One of the worst movies I've ever seen

Best movie ever!

While that is unheard of today, back in the 80's it wasn't so. Movies and popular culture didn't have that PC dogma. While this movie is...a jingoistic ballad for the Reagan era. Tank does have a great antagonist. Even the 80's produced despicable villains who you enjoyed hating. Not one of these overly polite "villains" who kill you with kindness and have the consideration of today's good guys. Garner and Spradlin are not at fault here. Garner's Master Sergeant Carey, and Spradlin's Cyrus Buelton actually gave performances above their salary. Not Oscar worthy, but that's not this kind of material and I think they saw that going in. It's everyone else who just delivers these perky and wooden performances that probably reflect their enthusiasm. Or salary. The "plot" begins with M.Sgt. Carey visiting a bar and chatting it up with a prostitute. Well, Carey's not a local and is unaware of local politics. When the deputy abuses a local pro (who lives in a cliché'd trailer), Carey chivalrously doles out repercussions to him. Well, the next morning, the big hoss sees that he's been dis-respected. Since Euclid has his face marked up, metaphorically, the Sheriff's "face is marked up." Well, that just encourages degenerates to start sassing their hoss.Apparently, Buelton fancies himself a surrogate father who views his subjects as belligerents. And enjoys that. Buelton runs his district like Caligula, Tiberius, Nero, and a 4 foot Napoleon combined! Well, things escalate as Buelton's petty ego demands extortion, and retribution. I love how Buelton; being a Sheriff, doesn't know much about law except what he chooses to know and enforce. Buelton has Carey's son, Billy framed to get to Carey and shows Carey who's the "massa" at a inmate labor farm. In a not-so-veiled threat to inspire compliance from Carey. Well, Carey's wife complicates matters by hiring a lawyer who is promptly incarcerated and Buelton provoked into upping the ante to show Carey he means business. While this story seems far fetched, it's supposed to be based on an incident with Patton. I couldn't see execs green-lighting a project like this today on this scale. But if you like these far fetched 80's films. I recommend writers take note of how a villain is should be portrayed. Tank did succeed in making Buelton so ruthlessly sadistic, that you yearned for Buelton to get his come-uppance. But that's all it succeeded in doing it. The result is far less gratifying. Short story long:What the movie's morality is saying; is that when you play by the rules, and the law doesn't, you have carte blanche to see that you get the justice you deserve. As long as you have ten grand, a wife of suspiciously infinite kindness, and a Sherman Tank at Fort Benning. This is sadistic film-making at it's best.

Destruction! By tank. Revenge! By tank. Sadistic southern sheriff… yep let's roll over him with a tank! James Garner plays Commander Sgt. Maj. Zack Carey who moves to an army base with his wife and son in the south, but gets on the wrong side of the local sheriff when he knocks out the deputy in bar quarrel. Too proud to let it slide they want payback, so they frame his son with a drug charge and imprison him. Carey would now do it the sheriff's way to get his son out of prison, but circumstances change when that isn't followed leaving his son to be convicted serving three years. So Carey gets in his own prized Sherman tank to bust out his son while heading for the state border in search for actual justice. Ludicrous, but amusingly dreamt-up boot-kicking patriotic nonsense of standing up. What starts off quite serious (where I thought it might culminate in pushing "Rambo: First Blood" territory), ended up as chaotically gung-ho and comedic in a very mechanical, but spirited sense. Relatively well-made with spacious cinematography and an upbeat music score contributed by Lalo Schifrin. Material-wise the wit is there, but it's a little deeper in its perspective themes, in which it really does moralise its intentions --- as what eventuates is a tug of war involving sappy dialogues and silly humour. The early sequences build some intense confrontations -- where Garner and Spradlin's authority figures go at it each other in their own personal war. But soon that is all forgotten when Garner goes for a pleasant ride with his tank and ends up on sort of a road trip with what seems like all of America are riding the heroic underdog home. Go you good thing! One thing that's for sure is that in one sequence Jenilee Harrison looks good behind the tank's machine gun. An excellent Garner is suitably likable and G.D. Spradlin nails down his bastard role as Sheriff Cyrus Buelton. Also there's a very good support cast lined-up with Shirley Jones, Dorian Harewood, James Cromwell, C. Thomas Howell and John Hancock.

Garner's performance and quiet, comic authority carry this otherwise dull film about a sergeant major who owns his own Sherman battle tank, which he uses to rescue for son from the clutches of a redneck sheriff.

James Garner portrays a military officer who has one very unique distinction. He owns his own Sherman tank! After butting heads with a sheriff's deputy, his son is framed for drug possession and he must battle wits with the evil sheriff.This movie is sort of a cross between the original 'Smokey and the Bandit' and a free wheeling episode of 'The Dukes of Hazzard'. It's a predictable, mildly amusing film with cultural stereotypes. If you're willing to overlook this, it will provide you with the typical fast food type of entertainment.