carrying the film with "enjoyable ease" and Bertolini and Goldman for supplying "enough smart, amusing banter" in his interactions with Stowe and Woods, but criticized West's direction for "underutilizing good actors while pumping up the story's gratuitously ugly side" with lazy "fetishistic touches" of its subject matter, concluding that: "[A]ll the movie cares about is the deed itself and the way it was done." Russell Smith of The Austin Chronicle gave praise to the performances of Travolta, Stowe and Woods, but felt there was a disconnect between the screenwriters and the director when crafting the narrative, concluding that: "The General's Daughter inspires all kinds of cognitive dissonance with its blend of high-mindedness and cheesy titillation. Very odd, and very icky. Highly recommended for graduate psychology students in aberrant sexuality, but others can probably skip sans regret." Rolling Stones Peter Travers also commended Travolta and Stowe for keeping the viewers "attractively distracted" with their chemistry and criticized West for sending his supporting cast "adrift" into "deep-fried Freudian melodrama", calling it "a lurid mess, a Southern gumbo simmering in Gothic cliche." Rita Kempley of The Washington Post criticized the film for playing up its "critical look at military injustice" by indulging in the misogyny of its overall plot, concluding that it "doesn't provide a compelling indictment of cronyism and duplicity within the military. While coverups and sex discrimination are continuing problems throughout society, this movie isn't offering any solutions. It's having its cheesecake and eating it, too." References External links 1999 films 1999 drama films 1999 thriller films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films 1990s mystery thriller films 1990s political thriller films 1990s thriller drama films American mystery films American mystery thriller films American political thriller films American thriller drama films Films about American military personnel Films about rape in the United States Films about the United States Army's psychological operations units Films based on American crime novels Films based on military novels Films directed by Simon West Films produced by Mace Neufeld Films scored by Carter Burwell Films set in Georgia (U.S. state) Films set in the United States Military Academy Films shot in Savannah, Georgia Films with screenplays by William Goldman Paramount Pictures films