''Raider Platoon'' is a 1988 Filipino

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

directed by Francis "Jhun" Posadas and starring

Jess Lapid Jr. Jesse Lloyd Flake Lapid (born March 22, 1962), commonly known as Jess Lapid Jr., is a film and television actor, film and fight director, scuba course director of CMAS Philippines, and underwater director of photography. More popularly known ...

, Philip Gamboa, Amanda Amores, Lezette Cordero, and Ernie Ortega. Produced by Ticar Films, it is about a group of Filipino

marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...

who face off against Moro outlaws on an island in

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...

. The film was released in theaters on July 7, 1988. Critic

Lav Diaz Lavrente Indico Diaz (born December 30, 1958) is a Filipino independent filmmaker and former film critic. He is frequently known as one of the key members of the slow cinema movement, and has made several of the longest narrative films on reco ...

gave ''Raider Platoon'' a negative review, criticizing its shallow depiction of soldiers and its wasted opportunity to take advantage of available resources given by the military.

Plot

A group of

in the Philippines prepare themselves for an amphibious raid against a group of Moro outlaws on Patian island in

Cast

* Philip Gamboa *Amanda Amores *Lezette Cordero *Ernie Ortega

Release

''Raider Platoon'' was rated "C" by the

Movie and Television Review and Classification Board The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB; ; is a Philippine government agency under the Office of the President of the Philippines that is responsible for the classification and review of television programs, motion p ...

(MTRCB), indicating a "Fair" quality, and was released on July 7, 1988.

Critical response

, writing for the ''

Manila Standard The ''Manila Standard'' is a broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines which, as of 2017, is owned by the Romualdez family. The Romualdezes, through incumbent speaker of the House Martin Romualdez, also own Journal Publications, Inc., the owner ...

'' gave ''Raider Platoon'' a negative review, largely blaming the support given by the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

as the source of its issues. Alongside the film's technical deficiencies, Diaz criticized the filmmakers' wasted opportunity to make a good film out of the resources they have, citing its shallow understanding of why soldiers choose to be soldiers other than for their duty to country, as well as the societal issues the film fails to give insight to.

References

External links

* 1988 films 1988 action films Films about marines Philippine action films Films directed by Francis Posadas {{1980s-Philippines-film-stub