Seven men with one thing in common...

Starring: Gene Hackman, Fred Ward, Reb Brown, Randall "Tex" Cobb, Harold Sylvester, Robert Stack, Patrick Swayze

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆ - great

"Boy, you usin' that oriental martial bullshit on me is gonna get real expensive." - Sailor

Why watch this? A superb film about a rescue of American POW's held in Vietnam.

Plot Summary: Retired Colonel Jason Rhodes is haunted by the disappearance of his son, Frank, who went missing in action during the Vietnam War. After years of being frustrated by the government's inaction, Rhodes receives photographic evidence that suggests Frank, along with other American prisoners, is being held in a secret POW camp in Laos. Driven by a desperate need to rescue his son, Rhodes secures funding and assembles a team of his son's former Vietnam War comrades to undertake a dangerous clandestine rescue mission into Laos.

Dad's Preview: In the 80's there were several films about Vietnam, Vietnam vets, and going back "in country" years later to bring home missing Prisoners of War (POWs). This is my favorite, thanks to the always convincing Gene Hackman, and a surprise performance by heavyweight boxer Tex Cobb. I prefer this film to similar cinematic testosterone-overloaded attempts, such as Rambo II and the many Chuck Norris Missing In Action films. Those seemed like a cash-grab, this film feels more earnest.

Buzz Feitshans, John Millius; Paramount Pictures