Product Description

Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (mca) Release Date: 09/27/2005 Starring: Casper Van Dien Austin Farwell Run time: 118 minutes Rating: R Director: Sidney J. Furie

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #40030 in DVD
• Brand: Universal
• Released on: 2002-12-24
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 118 minutes

From the Back Cover
From the director of "Boys in Company C" and in the tradition of "Platoon" and "Apocalypse Now" comes a riveting action film about Echo Company, one of the hardest hit American units of the Vietnam War. After one of the War's most brutal battles is waged, Captain Ramsey (Casper Van Dien), the officer in charge of the campaign, is falsely accused of providing incorrect bombing coordinates, causing the senseless deaths of the men under his command. With all the odds against him, Ramsey now faces the battle of his life in this epic story about bravery, loyalty and honor.

Customer Reviews

Under Heavy Fire
I had recently watched this movie one early Sunday morning around 3:00am when I couldn't sleep. I at first thought it was one of those B rated movies so I choose to continue watching it and yes the acting wasn't all that great, but what intriqued me mostly about the movie was the fact that Veterans's were returning back to Vietnam and reliving nightmares and dealing with old demons and problems. The acting was alright considering what the movie was about. It really captured my attention when mistakes were made with the command structure and how misunderstanding and anger brought these band of brothers back together after so many years of pain. So hey the movie made it's point to me and that is why I ordered the DVD so I can watch it again. Great job Capser Van Diem and the remaining cast. Thanks!

Cashing in on Vietnam-Vet Stereotypes
Possibly the worst movie dealing with the Vietnam theme in the last 10-15 years. The plot revolves around a group of Marines returning to Vietnam to reexperience their old haunts of thirty years past. The group is hostile to their captain, who they belive called in an artillery strike on some of them, killing several, after a mutinous incident. As the men relive their experiences of the past war, they begin to confront what took place in the rice paddies long ago.

The movie is bad in nearly every respect. The lead, Casper Van Dien, is woefully miscast (he was great in Starship Troopers) and his efforts to play a Marine captain and demonstrate "decisiveness" are ridiculous. van Diem as a meditative, tormented soul with a "Marlboro gravelly" voice?! Hysterical.

Worse are the stereotypes of "'Nam" vets. After BG Burkett's Stolen Valor, it is amazing such idiotic stereotypes can still exist. Naturally the "'Nam" vets here are all given to constant "confession," drunken reveling and psychotic behavior--brought on by "'Nam," of course.

In the tradition of Platoon, there is no mention of politics in the film--other than "wise" looking Vietnamese soberly declaring that they "fought from the heart for liberation" while the Americans merely "fought from hate of the Gooks." Maybe this is the reason the movie's American vets are constantly weeping and having existential crises that resemble what your kid-sister had when her boyfriend broke up w/ her. Anyway this is "'Nam" for MTV, not actual vets--so why not?

The script is so bad that it's painful to listen to. Did this film have an editor?

In short, the film is a remarkably amaturish attempt to cash in on "'Nam" (dude!) stereotypes and make a buck. Have respect for the real vets. Read a novel by Keith Nolan or Burkett's book instead.

Under Heavy Criticizm
Atmittedly, Van Dien may have been a bad choice for this film, but he doesn't do a terrible job. Just not that good. The amazing thing about this film which most reviewers seem to have missed is that a lot of it seems to have actually been filmed in Vietnam. It is also the first film to approach the subject of Veterans returning to Nam. On that note, the acting was pretty bad, quite overdone and just plain laughable at times, and the dialogue was pretty lame. The action was mediocre at best, and all the actors, the "vietnam veterans" who are revisiting Nam are clearly in their 20's and 30's. The subplots were unnecessary, and several of the dates were extremely innacurate. If you have any intrest in Vienam films, and war films in general, this film is worth at least one watch. Even better, watch Sindey Furie's other film "The Boys of Company C".