Raid on Entebbe (1976)

One of my all time favorites.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

This movie is worth watching if for Yaphet Kotto's performance as Idi Amin Dada if nothing else. He's great in the role.All the actors put on great performances, but Kotto is just hilarious as was Amin. I mean, the big buffoon billed himself as "His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular," for crying out loud. So anyone with that kind of "personality" (and I use the term very loosely here cause Amin had...shall we say...some real 'issues') has to be played by someone with some real skill and Kotto did a bang-up job.Not only that bit of color makes this a great movie, but it also gives you a real deep understanding of just what a feat this raid was to plan, get approval and pull off.

Considering that this movie was made in 1977, surrounding events that happened not to long ago from then, I would certainly place it in a higher position than it currently is. With regards to authenticity, the Israeli and Mossad PR department seems to given full cooperation when it came to all the details surrounding the event because absolutely nothing seemed out of place in the sets. Every piece of equipment, uniform and aircraft were surprisingly authentic. All this would have been useless without a proper cast and the same is most certainly delivered. There isn't a lot of action until the climax but even the slower sequences will keep you gripped until that arrives. This movie is very detailed, realistic and authentic and would be classified as a must watch in my book.

After seeing both versions of the Entebbe movies, 'Raid on Entebbe' is definitely the better of the two. Not only are the production values and sets better, the acting is much more understated and restrained. It really allows the exciting story to shine through. The performances are really what makes the movie great: Yaphet Kotto is outstanding as President Idi Amin Dada. His fake cheerfulness towards the Jewish hostages is much more frightening than the actual terrorists with their guns. Sylvia Sydney is great as the doomed woman sent to the hospital. As always, Martin Balsam (which is the main reason I watched this) gives a good solid performance as the hostage who develops a sort of uneasy rapport with one of the terrorists, leading to the scene during the rescue mission. This movie is excellent--a tastefully done account of a real life, courageous mission with an exciting climax. If it's on, I highly recommend it. It's really worth your while.

I first saw this movie as a kid, but didn't remember it until I rented it a few weeks ago. This is a very gripping film, one that manages to get across the enormous amount of stress the Israeli government faced as they decided how to deal with a precarious situation. This mission took a tremendous amount of courage, which is reflected in the film. The scene where the commandos are singing on the plane conveyed the solidarity and stalwartness of the Israeli people as they rushed to the rescue of their own people.