stoic and laconic soldier sergeant todd ( a fine and credible performance by the ever reliable kurt russell ) get dump on a desolate remote planet after he deem obsolete by ruthless and arrogant colonel mekum ( deliciously play to the slimy hilt by jason isaac ) and who have todd and his fellow soldier replace with a new advanced breed of genetically engineer combatant . todd join a peaceful ragtag community of self reliant outcast and have to defend this community when the new soldier arrive for a field exercise . director paul w. s. anderson and work from a smart and provocative script by david webb people and depict a chill vision of a bleak and cold and harsh possible near future while maintain a snappy pace and a tough and gritty tone throughout . moreover and anderson handle move moment of humanity well ( todd struggle to get in touch with his previously repress feeling be genuinely poignant ) and stag the stir action scene with rip roar gusto . russell give a strong and impressive almost pantomime portrayal of todd while he convey a lot of emotion without say much and instead do the majority of his act through his body movement and facial expression . bang up support turn by jason scott lee a brutish rival soldier caine 607 and connie nielson a the compassionate sandra and sean pertwee a the kindly mace and jared and taylor thorne a mute little boy nathan and gary busey a crusty season veteran captain church and michael chiklis a the jolly johnny pig and and brenda wehle a the sensible mayor hawkins . good still and this film make a profound and significant statement about the spiritual cost of be a merciless soldier and the importance of intellectual strength over physical might . david tattersall polish cinematography and joel mcneely rouse full bore orchestral score and and the first rate rate special effect all far enhance the overall sterling quality of this superior science fiction or action hybrid outing .