Clint Eastwood is more versatile as an actor and director than he’s given credit for. Because his portrayal as a vigilante police officer in Dirty Harry and a steely gunfighting bounty hunter in The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly are so iconic, it’s easy to equate him as a cop or cowboy solely. Between romantic dramas, musical comedies, space adventures, neo-noirs, and biopics, there are only a few subjects and genres that Eastwood hasn’t touched. As a seminal figure in action movies and Westerns, the combat field was a suitable backdrop for Eastwood, who gave one of his most charismatic performances ever in the boot camp-set war drama with a sharp comedic edge, Heartbreak Ridge. While the film, compared to most of his other work, never touches greatness, Heartbreak Ridge is endearing due to Eastwood’s innate movie star charm that radiates off the screen.
Clint Eastwood Tackles a Real Military Operation in ‘Heartbreak Ridge’
Under Ronald Reagan’s presidency, American culture hearkened to a time of national exceptionalism and pride on all fronts: economics, foreign affairs, and culture. Gone was the prevalence of downbeat character dramas in New Hollywood. In the ’80s, movie theaters were dominated by sequels and bloated, glossy action spectacles with muscle-bound Herculean stars. Throughout the turnover of the film landscape, Eastwood remained steady, working consistently as an actor and director, even making a Western, Pale Rider, when the genre was as dead as an outlaw with a bounty on his head. When he felt inclined to do so, Eastwood would tap into current events, as he did with Heartbreak Ridge, which is set during the impending days before the American invasion of Grenada in 1983. Codenamed Operation Urgent Fury, the invasion of the island nation of Grenada was a U.S-led intervention to overthrow a military government that had taken power in a bloody coup days earlier. At the time, it was the largest military action by the U.S. since the end of the Vietnam War.
Heartbreak Ridge follows a well-decorated combat veteran, Thomas Highway (Eastwood), close to retirement. Now at the current rank of Gunnery Sergeant, he is assigned to serve as drill instructor to a brash and young platoon in Cherry Point, North Carolina. He clashes with his squad, which he believes is filled with lazy malcontents. They despise him for his harsh training regimen and hard-nosed attitude, which is exacerbated after he’s had a few drinks. Highway also has a case of insubordination with his superior officers. To no one’s surprise, Eastwood was perfectly suited to play a grizzled, lone ranger figure who punches down at the younger generation. As a director, Eastwood knew how to serve his screen persona. By focusing on his appeal as a movie star, the film, for better or worse, takes an ambivalent approach to grappling with its political backdrop. Eastwood, who later crafted an insightful anti-war text in Letters From Iwo Jima, more or less pretends American imperialism is a fabricated concept to serve the script. For viewers who laud Eastwood as an artist who deconstructs genres, watching this film casually interpret the American invasion as another ho-hum military triumph is disarming.
Clint Eastwood Clashes With a Young Platoon as a Drill Instructor in ‘Heartbreak Ridge’
As a military-based comedy with a noisy, climactic combat sequence to telegraph the stakes of the film, Heartbreak Ridge has way more in common with Stripes than anyone would imagine. It’s a shame that Eastwood rarely made traditional studio comedies, as Heartbreak Ridge proved that he carries the perfect blend of grav itas and wisecracks to lead a Bill Murray-style comedy about a misanthrope forced to become heroic. Once the movie settles in and places Highway with the rag-tag group of soldiers, it becomes a delightful blend of black humor and gritty combat training. Amazingly, it took this long for Eastwood to play a drill instructor barking at listless soldiers. The stand-out member of the platoon is “Stitch” Jones (Mario Van Peebles), who is constantly butting heads with the unflinching Sergeant. Despite not being renowned for his yelling, Eastwood’s soft-spoken sneering is a worthy counter to the fervor of Louis Gossett Jr. in An Officer and a Gentleman and R. Lee Ermey in Full Metal Jacket. Eastwood’s unassuming prowess as a hardened veteran is exemplified when the soldiers commission a resident bodybuilder, Swede Johanson (Peter Koch), to intimidate Highway for his rigorous training. Without breaking a sweat, Highway locks him in submission and snaps his arm, causing the platoon to run away in fear.
If Clint Eastwood has demonstrated anything over his legendary seven-decade career, it’s that he isn’t proud of stereotypical masculine urges and penchant for violence. Across various Westerns and action-thrillers, he has deconstructed the archetypal noble cowboy or police officer as morally compromised anti-heroes. Their violent streak is not a ploy for justice, it is an innate way of life. This is blisteringly characterized in Eastwood’s revisionist masterpiece, Unforgiven, which shows a retired outlaw insisting that he is reformed, only to revert to his old ways upon being offered a chance at vengeance. Other Western protagonists, seen in High Plains Drifter and The Outlaw Josey Wales, feature characters who are vessels for warfare or devilish figures who destroy a local town to fulfill vengeful desires.
‘Heartbreak Ridge’ Relies on Clint Eastwood’s Infectious Movie Star Charm
Heartbreak Ridge is the rare instance of Eastwood relishing his innate tough-guy bonafide. His belligerence and drunken nature, while providing laughs for the audience, is never a detriment to his morality. Throughout the film, Highway is on the righteous path, and everyone around him is wrong. As the platoon perseveres through the Sergeant’s grueling training, which includes firing an AK-47 within inches of his men’s heads to familiarize them with combat, they gradually garner respect for Highway. The group strengthens their unity upon learning that Highway earned a Medal of Honor for his service in the Korean War. Highway’s commanding officer, Major Powers (Everett McGill), threatens to have him court-martialed for his disobedience on the battlefield in Grenada. In the nick of time, Powers’ superior officer reprimands the major for dishonoring Highway’s leadership. The moment when Heartbreak Ridge lands in Grenada to fight the Cuban army, its energy and charm deflate, similar to the narrative trajectory of Stripes. At this point, everything that Highway does is immaculate: his platoon loves him and there’s no danger of him facing repercussions.
First and foremost, Heartbreak Ridge is a movie star showcase for Clint Eastwood, and by every definition of the term, Eastwood inhabits the role of a movie star. He has never been anything but effortlessly charming throughout his filmography, but the role of Tom Highway allows him to let loose and be captivating without managing the complexities of subversive storytelling. As a director, Eastwood gets plenty of mileage out of witty banter and intense stand-offs between Highway and his unruly soldiers. This section of the film is an effective blend of wartime comedy and a drama about an aging rebel trying to impose his worldview on his surroundings that have evolved past his old-school ways. Even before he turned 60, Clint Eastwood’s characters, bewildered by the changing times, have always felt over-the-hill. The stalwart nature of his characters mirrors Eastwood’s real-life prolific career. He’s simply never going to back down.