Mid to late 90's Hollywood Military Movie

[ShogunRua]

There are a bunch of cadets or military trainees in the forest, and they must split up into groups with paint guns in order to "kill" one another. They're all joking around and having fun.

At one point, they come across a crusty, blonde older man wearing sunglasses, also with military credentials, who calls them all a bunch of idiots who are doing nothing to prepare for real combat. The older man is accompanied by a younger, silent lackey.

During the course of the film, there is some gang of evil-doers who systematically kill (for real) off these group of cadets. Eventually, the surviving members band together with the old man and his lackey. In the end, only one or two of the cadets as well as the gravely injured old man survive until the end.

All of this happens in some lush forest, possibly even filmed in South America. I believe the blonde older man is a reasonably famous actor, too.

[paulofilmo]

One of the first to come up with an IMDb keyword search:

http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0098415/

[ShogunRua]

Unfortunately, that's not it. Besides the fact that I'm dead certain it was made in the mid to late 90's, the group of cadets in my film were all young people wearing green or camo outfits, not a bunch of oldsters in assorted clothes. And they were to paint ball in mock military battle, not learn Boy Scout skills.

Also, I think the baddies that end up killing most of them are an actual enemy or terrorist group, not just a bunch of random assholes.

[dfernand]

Almost certainly not this 'Southern Comfort' (1981), it's a squad of adult reservists (not cadets) on military manouvers at the weekend and hillbilies hunting them down in the swamp / forrest / outdoors.

But it's worth a shot..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_ ... 1981_film)