Search - Sgt. Bilko on DVD

More a tribute to 70's Steve Martin than Silvers

Rottenberg's rotten book review | nyc | 06/16/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Though based on the famous character in Phil Silver's famous oldie TV show, the new "Sergeant Bilko" is less an homage to that show than it is to the classic Steve Martin of his 1970's days. Though this Bilko (again a shifty and tireless grafter, the evil face of non-coms everywhere) is very much the opportunist that Silvers' character was (he runs the base casino), as shy of risk as Silvers was (the unit's mobilization orders for Desert Storm mysteriously disappeared) and manages to get caught in his own dealings as Silvers had (Bilko botches the fixing of an Army boxing match, unwittingly tricking each boxer to think he's the one who's supposed to take a fall) the screwball zaniness is very much out of Steve Martin's SNL days.

The script has Bilko's unit charged with testing a brand new army weapon - a "hovertank" that is soon to be cancelled because, among other things, it simply doesn't work. That the hovertank's end will spell doom for his own cozy position doesn't seem to bother Bilko, mostly because he lives day-to-day. Things change when the officer charged with evaluating the hovertank turns out to be the fearsome Major Thorn (Phil Hartman). Years earlier, Bilko unwittingly made an enemy of Thorn by accidentally implicating him in one of his bitched schemes. Now a major, Thorne isn't simply content enough to eliminate the Hovertank, but must now axe Bilko as well. They say that desperate times reveal the man, and Bilko is now revealed to be the spineless weasel his troops have come to love. Martin plays Bilko like a character from one of his old SNL skits. It's sort of fun to watch the guy work on material we haven't seen since his more sedate days playing less zany funnymen ("LA Story", "Roxanne") and more mature dramatic roles ("The Spanish Prisoner", "Grand Canyon" and that update of "Silas Marner"). It's light and breezy and you'll probably forget most of the gags, and the script under-uses most of the supporting cast (especially the now late-great Phil Hartman as Bilko's evil nemesis), but it's still fun."

Old Laughs

sushishrink | Charlottesville, VA | 01/10/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"You may have forgotten just how funny this one is. It's great for those times when you just want to smile, but aren't sure what to watch. Plus, you have the added benefit that most young people haven't seen it yet! Nothing too objectionable in it, so that's good too."