A twisty military thriller directed by John McTiernan, 'Basic' reunites 'Pulp Fiction' stars John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson. Travolta plays a DEA agent turned investigator probing the disappearance of a brutal Army Ranger drill sergeant and his trainees during a training exercise in a Panama storm, with contradictory testimony obscuring the truth. Piling twist upon twist to an incoherent degree, it left critics cold. It counts among the least of McTiernan's action pictures despite its starry pairing.