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Plot

Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. play a couple of what-the-hell flyboys flying contraband to Laos during the Vietnam War. Gibson doesn't seem to care about anything but the "guts and glory" aspects of the job, but Downey has serious questions about the moral implications of their mission. When a Laotian general expresses more concern over the wellbeing of an opium shipment than the men who are risking life and limb to fly it in, Gibson comes around to Downey's way of thinking. By film's end, Gibson is stuck in one of those character-building dilemmas so common to films of this nature: should he deliver his cache of weaponry, or should he dump it all to rescue a bunch of refugees?
MPAA Rating:
R
Genre(s):
Action,Comedy
Run Time:
113min.
Theatrical Release Date:
08/10/1990
DVD Release Date:
03/17/1998
Distributor(s):
Carolco Pictures
Director(s):
Roger Spottiswoode
Starring:
Mel Gibson , Robert Downey, Jr. , Nancy Travis , Ken Jenkins , David Marshall Grant
Themes:
Culture Clash,Americans Abroad,Military Life,Dangerous Friends,Unlikely Heroes
Tone:
Confrontational,Cynical,Deadpan,Irreverent,Frantic
Keywords:
airborne,aviation,barnstorming,con/scam,crash,drug-smuggler,drugs,friendship,rescue,smuggling,survivor,war
Country of Origin:
USA (08-10-1990)
Language:
English