Toy Soldiers

Plot synopsis:
In Barranquilla, Colombia, terrorist Luis Cali (Andrew Divoff) has taken over the Palace of Justice with a ruthless team of mercenaries. He demands the release of his drug kingpin father, Enrique Cali, only to be told that his father has already been delivered to the United States for trial. They escape by helicopter and with the weapons and logistics assistance of Luis' second-in-command, an American named Jack Thorpe, they enter the U.S. through Mexico.
In the United States, the Regis High School is a prep school for teenage boys with wealthy and influential parents, half of whom have been expelled from other schools. A group of pranksters led by Billy Tepper (Sean Astin) that includes Joey Trotta (Wil Wheaton), Hank Giles (T.E. Russell), Ricardo Montoya (George Perez), Jonathan Bradberry (Keith Coogan), and Phil Donoghue (Knowl Johnson) is carefully watched over by their teachers and the stern but well-meaning Dean Parker (Louis Gossett Jr.).
Phil's father is the Federal Judge presiding over Enrique Cali's trial, so the entire family is taken to a safe location as a precaution. Unaware of this, Luis Cali invades the school to capture Donoghue, killing the Campus Police, and a faculty member who interferes. Furthermore, they rig the campus with heavy firearms and remote-detonated explosives. With Phil nowhere to be found and the sons of numerous influential individuals in his grasp, Luis takes the entire school hostage.
Underestimating the threat, the local Sheriff attempts to intervene but is repelled by fire from a .50 caliber M2 machine gun, although he and his deputies are able to fall back to safety. The State Police, FBI and US Army are called in, keeping their distance to avoid provoking the terrorists. Luis releases the school faculty (except for the cooks and headmaster, Robert Gould) but institutes hourly headcounts to keep track of the boys.
The students, under Billy's leadership, use their expertise in skirting authority to collect tactical information about the occupying forces, which Billy covertly brings to the authorities on the outside. They won't allow Billy to return, but with Parker's encouragement, he escapes and narrowly rejoins the students in time to be counted, preventing the killing of Gould and four students in response.
Joey's father, New York mafia boss Albert Trotta arranges through Luis' father for the boy to be released. Joey, contemptuous of his father, refuses to go. He steals a weapon and opens fire on another terrorist, but is killed. Luis tries to impress upon Parker, who comes to retrieve the body, that it was an accident, but Albert takes revenge by having Enrique Cali killed in prison.
Knowing they must act before Luis can learn of his father's death, the authorities undertake a rescue mission. FBI Hostage Rescue Team personnel (trailed by Parker), supported by the Army, covertly infiltrate the school and begin taking out terrorists. Meanwhile, Billy and his friends sabotage the detonator for the explosives, incapacitate several more terrorists with surprise attacks and lead the students and Gould to a secret basement chamber. Overwhelmed by the assault, in which most of the terrorists are killed, Luis takes Billy at gunpoint and holds him in Gould's office. Parker and commandos converge and kill Luis, the Dean being wounded in the process. The few remaining terrorists are subdued and the students are liberated.

Tags: violence

Review:
A Very Good Movie and should deserve the same amount attention as Die Hard and Hostage!.
This movie is about prep school called The Regis School and its packed with rebellious kids, in which one kid William Tepper (Sean Astin) has a hard time adjusting due to prior rejections from other schools cause they couldn't control his rebellious act and now at The Regis School committing more acts of a rebellion there school gets taken over by terrorists on a random day and which the real reason is because the leader Luis Cali's (Andrew Divoff) father has been sent to prison,and the leader will do anything including killing the students, setting bombs and so forth in order to get his father back.Along side William Tepper, is his rebellious friends at the Regis School, one in particular is Joey Trotta (Wil Wheaton) in which this guy holds a troubled past of living in a Mafia family and being sent to The Regis School because of hating his father for who he is and which now he must deal with these terrorists taking over the school, so William, Joey and there friends must band together to stop these terrorists from violent acts and hazardous tactics.This movie was really awesome and I believe people should notice it more because when people think of a good hostage movie they would say "Die Hard" and even though I would have to agree with them, they need to recognize that Toy Soldiers was a good thriller, it sure had my heart beating because the students are my age and I would be scared to confront terrorists like these if they took over our school ...
In fact, a very similar movie was made in the 90's called "Masterminds" and it was a PG variation on the same theme, but it was nowhere near as fun or realistic for that matter.So what's so special about this film?
Louis Gossett Jr sleepwalks in his role, but he does add some brevity to the film, particularly his relationship with Astin's rebellious nature.So how's the action?
By today's standards, it's rather tedious and cheap looking, almost like a TV movie, but the production values are good and the violence is actually quite nasty for a film involving school students.
However, the director makes up for the limited budget with some nicely suspenseful moments and well placed humor.So park your brain at the door and enjoy this fondly remembered action flick, but don't expect Oscar material!.
The group of kids who fight were all up and coming when this film came out in 1991:  Sean Astin (looking very cute); Wil Wheaton (looking miserable); Keith Coogan; George Perez (the token Latino who is very handsome, very muscular and is mostly shown in nothing but tight underwear); T.E. Russell (the token black guy) and Shawn Phelan.
The only other good performances are from Denholm Elliott (having a ball as the headmaster) and Louis Gossett Jr. as the dean.Other than that--there's lots of action, suspense, explosions and little brains.
I think that Toy Soldiers is an excellent movie.
If you want to see a great movie you need to check this one out and if you are a Sean Astin fan you will definitely like this movie..
I had never heard of this movie when I first saw it, and the title really pointed towards something else than a great terrorist/hostage situation at a high school.
Toy Soldiers has the best from it's time period of the early 90's, where action movies were light-hearted and very enjoyable.
The action is good, the plot is interesting and way over the top, the bad guy is a one-dimensional hateful douchebag (which is great), Louis Gossett Jr. is in it, it's simply a feel-good movie which I thoroughly enjoyed.You can't go wrong with this one if you like action.
Sean Astin is my favorite actor, and in toy soldiers he did an amazing job!
Toy Soldiers (1991) *** (out of 4) This here is pretty much DIE HARD via a boarding school but if you're a fan of 80s then you're going to find quite a bit here to enjoy.
A terrorist group takes over a boarding school full of "important" kids in hopes that the American government will release the main guy's father who is in prison.
Soon the rejects, led by Sean Astin and Wil Wheaton, must try and figure out a way to bring the terrorist down.
If you need brains with your action then it's probably best that you skip this thing but if you just want to have fun then this film offers quite a bit.
Most people will remember Astin and Wheaton from THE GOONIES and STAND BY ME among others but if you're fan of those films then you're going to enjoy seeing them grown up and taking on a new adventure.
The entire cast fit into their roles quite nicely with Astin playing the rebellious teen who must eventually grow up and try to out-smart the terrorist.
The way the boys go to get their freedom isn't just a simple plan but instead it's rather well thought out and in the long run the movie at least rises above the type of film you'd expect to see on TV.
Sean Astin pulls off another amazing performance in "Toy Soldiers".
During a regular day at Saint Anselm's school for boys, a group of dangerous terrorists take all the boys and teachers as hostages and threatens to blow up the school if the leader, Luis Cali (Andrew Divoff's), father isn't released from the American prison, but these aren't just ordinary boys that are taken hostage, most of these kids are the sons of very powerful people in America and half of them were expelled from other schools before they came to Saint Anselm's.
You have Gossit Jr., the kid who played the main character in Stand By Me, Sean Astin, and many other great actors.
Sean Astin and Wil Wheaton are the most notable students held hostage and Denholm Elliott is the most recognizable faculty member stuck.
It hasn't become worse with time, it is still a great fun film, with plenty of excitement in its own way.
Wil Wheaton, Sean Astin, Keith Coogan star as uptight rich kids who's school is under assault when terrorists (Led by Andrew Divoff) take it over and demand that the government release the father of said terrorist.
For instance the climax is body-count action but in the beginning it is all build up, one that never generates any legit suspense as anyone who has seen Die Hard will have seen this and everything Toy Soldiers has to offer.
It's a movie about a hostage situation involving a prep school populated to some extent by endearing teenage boys who can't seem to get out of trouble.
Back to the point:  Toy Soldiers is simply a great movie.
Countless "appreciation" sites dictate the fact that beloved Quentin Tarentino, who I admit I like, has copied many, many, many movies in the making of his first major film Reservoir Dogs.
The stage curtains open ...Back in the days when teenage action was popular with films like "Iron Eagle", "The Rescue", and "Red Dawn" comes what is probably the best of the bunch in "Toy Soldiers".
Sean Astin headlines a roster of notable young actors at the time including Wil Wheaton and Keith Coogan.
(also starring in "Iron Eagle") and Denholm Elliott.When a boys boarding school is overtaken by terrorists, the boys are held hostage since their fathers (for the most part) are influential men.
The terrorists have fortified themselves on the campus grounds and a tight group of friends, led by the school's troublemaker (Astin), take it upon themselves to get tactical information to the outside authorities, risking everything in the process.I loved this movie.
Louis Gossett Jr. was the perfect choice in this film as the school's dean, a no-nonsense kinda guy, yet understanding.
Toy soldiers is one of those movies that make you hold your breath from start to finish; the actors do their jobs very well, both the protagonists and antagonists, and the story is original and very well written and displayed.
Sometimes I just want to watch a movie that is enjoyable, and has a story that makes sense and toy soldiers without doubt has that.
If you want to enjoy a 2 hours film filled with action and suspense scenes, then I would definitely recommend toy soldiers..
Billy Tepper (Sean Astin) is the lead delinquent in a school full of delinquents.The terrorists release all the staff except the headmaster.
Led by Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton and Keith Coogan, the 'Rejects' show their true colors, using both brains and brawn in a fatal race to defuse the terrorists' explosives," according to the synopsis scribers at TriStar Home Entertainment.Catch the step-son and grandson of two "Addams Family" stars in one film (one picking his nose)...Except for a sad scene (or two), this is a funny and suspenseful thriller.
~ Sean Astin, Louis Gossett Jr., Wil Wheaton, Keith Coogan.
His upscale boy's school in Switzerland (or somewhere like it) gets taken over by Arab terrorists, why I'm not really sure.
You can watch Billy, Joey, and the rest of the guys and see real kids acting out the way they did (or at least wanting to).Great action scenes.
(A far cry from Wesley Crusher) Usually this genre of film is one I watch for the soul purpose of making fun; but not Toy Soldiers.
The viewer is irrestiblely drawn into the movie involving 5 young men working together to try and overcome insumaintable odds, Sean Astin as Billy Tepper is brilliant along with great supporting roles from T.E.Russell, Wil Wheaton and Shawn Phelan, the guidance and leadership of Gosset's and Astins characters makes the movie so much better.
Sean Astin is great in this movie!
This is one worth watching, although it is sometimes cheesy, it is great to see a young Sean Astin, and this ends up being quite an entertaining and humorous action movie.
Yes, it's not a great cinematic achievement, but Toy Soldiers is a fun and entertaining movie.
Plus many of you will remember the actors from some 80s/early 90s classics--Sean Astin of The Goonies, Wil Wheaton of Stand By Me, and Keith Coogan of Adventures in Babysitting and Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead.
I would also like to say that this is one good terrorist/prep school movie...a little bit like Masterminds in a way!
I would like to see a movie made like Toy Soldiers but has it having girls/women doing the dirty work and not the guys!
Sure it's just an action flick, but isn't having fun what watching movies is all about?
Sean Astin makes a great rebel, successfully avoiding being a precocious teenager.If you want fun, watch this film!
And that it's a good film that I really enjoy.If you have the possibility to watch this movie, don't miss it!!!!.
'Toy Soldiers' is the story of five misfits boys (most noteably being Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, and Kieth Coogan) attempt to save their school from a terrorist invasion after the American government imprisons the leader's father.
'Toy Soldiers' is a funny and pretty cool action, and certainly the better of hostage-crisis-at-school movies.
The movie plays out like a fun, lighthearted teen romp combined with a Schwarzenegger-type action flick.
Sean Astin is fun to watch, and I haven't seen Louis Gossett, Jr. since I saw "Diggstown" in theaters.
The idea of the movie is great, and the acting is very good as well.
this movie contain a lot of action!!!just one thing i gotta say....WATCH IT !!!!!!!!!10 OUT OF 10 STARS !!.
Alright, this movie has a cheesy plot about a rebellious group of rich boys in an exclusive school that's just taken over by South American terrorists.
Toy Soldiers is an okay action movie but what really stands out is the amount of effort that the scriptwriters and director put into portraying American counter-terrorist forces accurately.
But sometimes it's the rebels you need in a nasty situation.It doesn't get nastier when a of bunch terrorists take over this prep school headed by Headmaster Denholm Elliott and Dean of Boys Lou Gossett, Jr. The head of the group is Andrew Divoff who overacts the entire film.
Turns out that Astin had a lot of the right stuff that no one but Gossett suspected he had.Toy Soldiers is a nice action oriented flick aimed at the young.
So the plot wasn't all that original.Who Cares?Toy Soldiers was absolutely stunning in the portrayal of a group of teenage boys held hostage in their boarding school.
The acting by Louis Gossett Jr., Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Keith Coogan, and Shawn Phelan as "Yogurt" was phenomenal.
If you want to see a great movie with lots of action, and a great ending, check out Toy Soldiers9/10.
In this forgotten action thriller its Gomez Addams son Sean Astin and Wil Wheaton who are the main rising stars, the rest of the youngsters have fallen by the way side.
This is my 2nd all time favorite movie, (Stand By Me being 1st.) The reason I watched this movie was because Wil Wheaton was in it and he is my most favorite person in the whole world and I think he done an amazing job in this movie and so did Sean Astin.
It really has little in the way of themes, but there is a bit of action, and the shenanigans of the High School misfits are quite amusing, especially moving the principal's entire office outdoors.Toy Soldiers is about a drug lord whose father has been arrested by the US and taken into custody.
These are both smart and gutsy kids, and not only manage to outwit the terrorists, but the FBI as well.I personally think this is a pretty cool little movie, and something that I quite enjoy watching.
He has already been expelled from three prominent private schools.His best friend, Joey Trotta, is the son of the Head of the New York Mafia; Billy, all their friends and many other kids at the school have equally influential and prominent, if more law-abiding, parents.When Luis Cali's father is put in jail, he heads for the Regis school to put the son of the judge in charge of the case under hostage, only to find he has been removed.However, once he realises who the parents of the rest are, he decides the entire student body of the Regis school would be an even better bargaining chip.....Easily the most insane of the Die Hard rip offs, toy soldiers is a good movie, very sadistic in some parts, but it suffers from one thing.....the main bad guy is one of the worst villains ever seen on screen.he is too nice to his hostages, and the one person he lets go, because he is nice, ends up getting shot.
Only when the whole plan goes awry, does he finally get nasty, but by then it's far too late.But luckily the film concentrates on the then new wannabe Brat Pack, whom whilst not the most talented people out there, do hold their own against the seasoned actors featured.The film mixes humour with the action, and while the film is very funny in places, one cannot help but notice the very dark aspects of the film, particularly the opening scene, which feels out of place in what is basically a high school movie.It's clear in some scenes that the makers were trying to make big stars out of the cast, and while it's worked in respect for astin, sadly the others have faded into obscurity, which is a shame, because they all do a great job.It's one of these long forgotten movies that doesn't deserve to be forgotten, as when it comes around every now and again, it's a right old treat to watch..
great action, great humor, good acting, wonderful film experience.
Not necessarily a bad film, but "Toy Soldiers" comes across as reasonably underwhelming..., basically it's premise is to be a top quality action flick but drowns in its own childishness.The cast of kids is fearful, you can see the anxiety seeping through in every character, instead of taking back the school and disposing of the terrorists, it looks as though all they want is their mommy's; fair dues they put a semi-confident effort in and eventually the terrorists do get their comeuppance, but the whole story comes across as a little flat.
Wil Wheaton is particularly terrible as the wannabe 'Rambo' Joey Trotta, the guy suffers from an inability to act, even as he aged and got older, his acting hasn't improved and sadly he's been cast aside, being labelled as another Hollywood failure.Sean Astin fared little better, but he was in fact better, his character Billy Tepper has more about him and at least has a level of credibility, something that Wheaton's character sadly lacks..., he's clearly the 'bad-boy' of the school and seems to have grasped the idea of being cool.The remaining cast played their roles suitably but none of them managed to put that extra something into their performance, a simple case of going through the motions and getting the job done rather than taking pride in their work and making their characters stand out; any emotional attachment to any of the characters was missing and this made emphasising with anyone an impossible task.
With that said, I watch this good old movie with that kind of goggles on me.Remember watching this as a kid, though I should have watched it years later, as it is rated age 15.
All in all, I highly recommend Toy Soldiers.Over to the movie as a product: - The production : An amazing soundtrack!
- The actors : Sean Astin, the leader in Goonies and leader in Toy Soldiers.
I'm sure I could find a hundred reasons not to like "Toy Soldiers," but as long as we don't take it TOO seriously, I don't see the need.