Private Benjamin

Goldie Hawn (in an Oscar nominated performance) plays Judy Benjamin who expects everything to be given to her on a gold-rimmed plate. Until she gets to the army that is. After her brand new hubby Yale Goodman (Albert Brooks) passes away on their wedding night, Judy joins the army believing that it will be like a vacation. She gets herself a rude awakening and must deal with Captain Lewis (Oscar nominated role played by Eileen Brennan), but in the end decides to redesign her life for the better.

A nice little movie with a message that both the critics and the general movie-goer seemed to love back in 1980 when this came out. Also starring Armand Assante, Robert Webber and Harry Dean Stanton. If you haven't seen it, give it a watch you might enjoy it.

Gosh, I don't know how many times I passed this movie up in my mom's collection. But I never really had an interest in this film, but my mom told me what a great comedy it was and that I should give it a chance. So, finally, today I got some time and watched it and I'm glad I did. Private Benjamin is a great comedy staring then new comer Goldie Hawn. I didn't realize how much she was meant for comedy, I've seen some of her work like Overboard and Death Becomes her, but usually she has the supporting cast helping her in the comedy, this time she was on her own and did great.

She plays Judy Benjamin, a 29 year old whose been married twice, her last husband died on her, literally, had a heart attack while he was making love to her. So, since she has always been taken care of, a stranger helps her out and recruits her in the army showing her the AFTERMATH of what she could have in the future, but she thinks that she's getting all the good stuff immediately. Therefore, she becomes the princess of the boot camp, but after a harsh talk with her folks, she realizes she needs the army and to become strong. She ends up meeting a suave French man and gets transferred to Paris after graduation, but she soon realizes who she needs most in life: herself.

Private Benjamin is a great comedy that I think anyone could get a little kick out of. It has great jokes and fun moments that I had a good time watching. Not to mention, Goldie Hawn is just so adorable and you definitely want to keep rooting for her during the film, she's just great.

7/10

Thanks mainly to a clever script and the presence of GOLDIE HAWN and EILEEN BRENNAN, this is the kind of service comedy that brings back reminders of how this sort of thing was done back in the '40s with comedies like SEE HERE, PRIVATE HARGROVE or YOU'RE IN THE ARMY NOW or BUCK PRIVATES.

But this time, it's a woman enlistee who has to go through the rigors of boot camp (arguably, the best segments in the whole film and the funniest). Goldie is a spoiled rich girl who thinks the Army is going to be a respite from her problems as a woman who lost her husband on her wedding night. She's in for quite a learning experience and the gags come fast and furious for the first half-hour or so.

Then, when romance enters the story, it becomes rather uneven as she has an affair with a Frenchman, ARMAND ASSANTE, who turns out to be a first-class heel. By the end of the film, she decides to re-enlist rather than return to the civilian life she found so empty.

It's a decidedly uneven comedy, but Goldie's perfect comic timing and ability to switch gears when romance is called for, shows she had more dimension as an actress than anyone suspected. She was nominated for an Oscar for her Private Benjamin--and Eileen Brennan, hilarious as Capt. Doreen Lewis won a supporting role nomination.

Goldie's fans should love this one; and after all, it's not supposed to be taken seriously, it's all done tongue-in-cheek style.

Goldie Hawn and I are the same age. Well she is actually 4 months older. I first saw her in the 1960s TV show "Laugh In" which we all enjoyed in college.

Here she is Judy Benjamin, in a great stroke of bad luck her husband dies on their wedding night. Distraught and not sure what to do with herself she goes to the Army recruiting office. In a good performance by Harry Dean Stanton (as the recruiter) he tells her this tall tale of what she would look forward to, a private room, a selecting of jobs, and if she didn't like it she could quit any time she wanted.

With that vision she showed up for 6 weeks basic training totally unprepared. The comedy kicks into high gear as she tries to cope, almost washing out, ultimately deciding to tough it out and become an exemplary military woman. Back then, in her early 30s, Hawn was unique and this military comedy fits her talents well.

When it comes to comedy,there are many every day situations that are good fodder to build on.The military is one of them.You can take an endless list of comedic performers and,when examined,the whole idea of any of them being in the military is hysterical.Goldie Hawn is definitely on that list.Now,you need to surround her with the right people to make the idea work.Mission:Accomplished.Hawn's talents were complimented well in this film and we have ourselves a gem of a military comedy.While not the best ever made,it certainly is among the best.It has moments about midway where it drags just a little,but not enough to damage the overall viewing experience.