''Tribes'', also known as ''The Soldier Who Declared Peace'' (UK), is a 1970 American television drama film broadcast as an ''

ABC Movie of the Week ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

'' directed by

Joseph Sargent Joseph Sargent (born Giuseppe Danielle Sorgente; July 22, 1925 – December 22, 2014) was an American film director. Though he directed many television movies, his best known feature-length works were arguably the action movie '' White Ligh ...

. A big ratings success when it first aired November 10, 1970 (which happened to be the Marine Corps' 195th birthday), ''Tribes'' was later released theatrically in Britain and Europe under the title ''The Soldier Who Declared Peace''. ''Tribes'' has been released on VHS, but has not been released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

Plot

Private Adrian, a young United States Marine Corps Vietnam war-era draftee who, despite being an anti-war

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

, reluctantly reports to boot camp to fulfill his duty as an American. Adrian excels as a leader, though his pacifist ideology presents continuing conflicts between himself and his superiors. Adrian's

drill instructor A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors. Australia Aust ...

, Gunnery Sergeant Thomas Drake quickly recognizes Adrian's leadership qualities, but is conflicted as he grows to respect Adrian while also realizing that he represents everything Adrian opposes. At one point, Adrian points out that his love of meditation is similar to Drake's drawing to relax, indicating a sketch of a flying bird. Both are ways of finding freedom. Drake responds angrily, denying that he had drawn the picture. Throughout the training, Drake's superior, Chief Drill Instructor Master Sergeant Frank DePayster, takes an instant dislike to Adrian. Disciplinary problems with the platoon begin to arise as Adrian's influence on fellow recruits begins to have an impact on the effectiveness of Drake's instruction. DePayster repeatedly argues with Drake about Adrian, claiming that the fact that the man is performing all of his assigned tasks is not enough. He considers Adrian's

attitude Attitude may refer to: Philosophy and psychology * Attitude (psychology), an individual's predisposed state of mind regarding a value * Metaphysics of presence * Propositional attitude, a relational mental state connecting a person to a propo ...

grounds enough for him to be set back and placed in the Motivational Platoon, a disciplinary unit for problem recruits. Drake disagrees and allows Adrian to continue training. However, during a weekend pass in San Diego, Adrian becomes disenchanted with military life and exchanges his dress uniform for civilian clothes at an Army-Navy store. Drake tracks him down and brings him back to the base to continue training. DePayster, at odds with Drake's attitude toward Adrian, goes behind Drake's back and files a complaint against both Drake and Adrian with the

Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitud ...

. Without Drake's approval, the Commanding Officer drops Adrian from the platoon and places him in the Motivational Platoon under DePayster, where he will effectively be "recycled" for an extended period of training time. Drake accuses DePayster of carrying out a personal vendetta, to which DePayster replies "I'll forget I heard that." Drake takes the drawing of the bird from his desk drawer and hangs it up, thus signifying his own method of rebellion and freedom. The platoon graduates without Adrian. As Drake awaits a new batch of recruits, DePayster informs him that Adrian went "over the hill" during the night.

Cast

Darren McGavin Darren is a masculine given name of uncertain etymological origins. Some theories state that it originated from an Anglicisation of the Irish first name Darragh or Dáire, meaning "Oak Tree". According to other sources, it is thought to come from ...

as Gunnery Sgt. Thomas Drake * Earl Holliman as Master Sgt. Frank DePayster *

Jan-Michael Vincent Jan-Michael Vincent (July 15, 1944 – February 10, 2019) was an American actor known for portraying helicopter pilot Stringfellow Hawke in the TV series '' Airwolf'' (1984–1987) and the protagonist, Matt Johnson, in the 1978 film ''Big ...

as Adrian * John Gruber as Quentin *

Danny Goldman Daniel Goldman (October 30, 1939 – April 12, 2020) was an American actor and casting director. He was most widely recognized as the voice of Brainy Smurf in Hanna-Barbera's ''The Smurfs'' (1981–1989). Early life Goldman graduated from Far ...

as Sidney *

Richard Yniguez Richard Yniguez (born December 8, 1946) is an American actor and director mainly known for '' Boulevard Nights'', ''What's Cooking?'' and ''The Deadly Tower ''The Deadly Tower'' (also known as ''Sniper'') is a 1975 American made-for-television ...

as Sanchez * Antone Curtis as Marcellus *

Peter Hooten John Peter Hooten (born November 29, 1950) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the title character in the television film '' Dr. Strange'' (1978). Career Hooten started acting in 1968 at the age of 17. He appeared as an uncredited ...

as Scrunch * David Buchanan as Armstrong * Ric Weaver as Morton

Awards

''Tribes'' received three

Primetime Emmy Awards The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime E ...

for Sound Editing ( Don Hall, Jack Jackson, Bob Weatherford and Dick Jensen, sound editors), Film Sound Mixing ( Theodore Soderberg, mixer) and Original Teleplay ( Marvin John Schwartz and

Tracy Keenan Wynn Tracy Keenan Wynn (born February 28, 1945) is an American screenwriter and producer, whose credits include '' The Longest Yard'', ''The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman'' (both 1974), and '' The Deep'' (1977). Early and personal life Wynn was ...

, writers). It was also nominated for Directorial Achievement in Drama (

). Tribes was ranked the 8th best boot camp movie by Screenjunkies

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tribes (film) 1970 television films 1970 films 1970 drama films Films about the United States Marine Corps Vietnam War films ABC Movie of the Week Films directed by Joseph Sargent 20th Century Fox Television films 1970s English-language films