A Soldier's Story

"Alone, far from home, and far from justice, he has three days to learn the truth about a murder... and the truth is a story you won't forget."

1984 1h 41m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 210

MysteryCrimeDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In a rural town in Louisiana, a black Master Sergeant is found shot to death just outside the local Army Base. Military lawyer, Captain Davenport—also a black man—is sent from Washington to conduct an investigation. Facing an uncooperative chain of command and fearful black troops, Davenport must battle with deceit and prejudice in order to find out exactly who really did kill the Master Sergeant.

“Alone, far from home, and far from justice, he has three days to learn the truth about a murder... and the truth is a story you won't forget.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Howard Rollins
Captain Davenport
Adolph Caesar
Sergeant Waters
Art Evans
Private Wilkie
Robert Townsend
Corporal Ellis
Denzel Washington
Private First Class Peterson
David Alan Grier
Corporal Cobb
David Harris
Private Smalls
Dennis Lipscomb
Captain Taylor

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Norman Jewison
Writers: Charles Fuller
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.6× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

42 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Norman Jewison, shot by Russell Boyd. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Herbie Hancock. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Mark Warner shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Howard Rollins and Adolph Caesar and Art Evans carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Alone, far from home, and far from justice, he has three days to learn the truth about a murder... and the truth is a story you won't forget.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0088146 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Norman Jewison directs. Russell Boyd behind the camera. Herbie Hancock scores. Mark Warner cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 3.6× over at the box office.
242 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Norman Jewison, shot by Russell Boyd. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Herbie Hancock. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Mark Warner shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Howard Rollins and Adolph Caesar and Art Evans carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Alone, far from home, and far from justice, he has three days to learn the truth about a murder... and the truth is a story you won't forget.".
8IMDB entry: tt0088146 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 14 themes, including "world war ii", "louisiana", "dead soldier", "based on play or musical".
10Released under 19 different titles around the world.