Flight of the Intruder (1991)

People are voting emotionally.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

So many war films can be either great, mediocre or terrible while others just fly under the radar without much attention; "Flight of the Intruder" falls into the latter category of being ignored. Truly a shame as this film is more of a drama based around the central characters rather than war itself.Taking place during the conflict in Vietnam, the film tells the story of a group of pilots and their daily lives serving their country. The film examines much of what goes on behind the scenes for the pilots while observing them in combat as well.The central character is pilot Lt. Jake Grafton (codename: Cool Hand), a brash but talented young man who goes through numerous trials as a Navyman from being embroiled in one of America's most contentious wars to losing his wing-man during one mission to a contentious relationship with his superior officer and new senior co-pilot. Portrayed with believable vulnerability by Brad Johnson, the actor brings a cocky charisma that makes Jake likable despite his arrogance. Johnson keeps the character grounded in reality as Jake must cope with loss when his co-pilot 'Morg (Christopher Rich)' dies and butts heads with his superiors yet Jake matures throughout the film.Playing Jake's new co-pilot, Lt. Cmdr. Virgil 'Tiger' Cole, following Morg's death is the ever reliant Willem Dafoe. Lt. Cmdr. Cole is a seasoned Navy pilot, as he constantly reminds Jake Grafton early in their partnership, and is a straight-arrow but proves he is willing to bend the rules when called upon. The character is almost reminiscent of Dafoe's role as Sergeant Elias in "Platoon" except Cole is more reserved than the outgoing personality of Elias, but Cole does look out for the younger officers similar to how Elias treats Chris Taylor in "Platoon". Dafoe brings his mentor-like wisdom to Cole in addition to a battle-weary exterior and a selfless demeanor particularly in the film's explosive finale when everything rests on the combat veteran's shoulders to aid his comrades.As Grafton and Cole's superior officer, Commander Frank Camparelli, is seasoned actor Danny Glover. Glover plays the character as a no-nonsense hard-nose and stickler for the rules, but secretly has a soft side for the men under his command. Camparelli is particularly hard on Jake and Virgil; Jake due to his brash actions and Virgil for his compliance in the younger officers' escapades. However Camparelli displays his compassion in the face of hardship such as the death of Grafton's co-pilot. He is also skilled in combat as seen in the final act of the film as Camparelli follows Grafton and Cole on their final assignment.Truly an under-appreciated film that should be experienced by all.

During the air war over Vietnam, a US Navy A-6 Intruder tactical bomber pilot schemes with a hardened veteran to make an unauthorized air strike on Hanoi.Director John Milius later recalled, "That was Paramount with the Paramount control, and they tried to control every aspect of it. I'd spent more money than I'd ever spent before, because they told me how much I was going to spend on it. They didn't let me control it. I would have made that movie for at least $5 million less." One can only imagine what Milius would have done with complete control! Roger Ebert called the film a "mess", noting that "some scenes say one thing, some say another." Others have complained about the special effects. I thought it was alright. Not a great film, but in retrospect somewhat interesting due to the cast. I mean, wow, a pre-"Friends" David Schwimmer and a pre-"Pulp Fiction" Ving Rhames?

It's 1972. The A-6 was the US Navy's medium attack bomber during the Vietnam conflict. It was called the Intruder. They fly low and alone over enemy airspace. Lt. Jake 'Cool Hand' Grafton (Brad Johnson) loses his bombardier with a peasant rifle shot. He questions the course of the war. Frank Camparelli (Danny Glover) is his commander. Political considerations keep the zone around Hanoi and Haiphong from being bombed. Lt. Cmdr. Virgil 'Tiger' Cole (Willem Dafoe) is a veteran flyer on his third tour newly arrived on the carrier. Jake meets Callie Joy (Rosanna Arquette) packing up for his bombardier's widow. Virgil is Jake's new co-pilot. Jake asks Virgil to bomb Hanoi. He relents after Boxman (Tom Sizemore) gets killed. He tells Jake about SAM city. It's a bit of 'Top Gun', a bit of 'Road House', a bit of 'Animal House' and a whole lot of pro-war militarism. The tone is a mess. The humor is broad low grade. The romance is stiff and melodramatic. Brad Johnson is not the best lead. He has limited range. The good news is the movie has Willem Dafoe and also Danny Glover. What works are the planes and the missions. The flying action is done well although the miniatures are a little obvious and the special effects aren't the best. However the first run in Hanoi is terrific like the Star Wars trench run. In fact, that's what is better than 'Top Gun'. These are war actions with the characters getting shot at and killed. That makes those scenes more compelling.

I can't understand why TopGun is so hyped yet nobody has even heard about this movie? Sure its not as glamorous or stylish but it is far more realistic. Perhaps some people just don't consider the old A-6 Intruder bomber as glamorous as an F-14 Tomcat fighter? Unlike Topgun, this movie is faithful to facts and the footage is much much better. The combat scenes are brilliant and the way they show the intensity of anti-aircraft artillery and machine gun fire from the ground really illustrates the difficulties of air warfare. Also unlike Topgun, where the MiGs were fake aircraft and really American F-5s, the MiGs in this movie were real MiGs. So were the SA-2 Divinia SAMs that were fired by the thousands. The combat and dogfight scenes were far more realistic than topgun even if they looked a bit less flashy.This movie is a real gem and a must see for anybody interested in aviation or war related movies. If you are clueless about aviation and just want a no brain entertainer, stick to topgun.