Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		2.0

Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie Review

Don't slice, dice, or electrocute. Just show this movie on loop. That would be torture enough.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 11, 2015

No, this isn't the Behind Enemy Lines from 2001 that stars Owen Wilson and Gene Hackman, and no, it's not even The Rescue or a Missing in Action or Rambo film, pictures with which this movie shares some plot similarities. This Behind Enemy Lines, hailing from 1997, stars Thomas Ian Griffith and Chris Mulkey as a couple of soldiers who wind up back in Vietnam some time during the 1990s and essentially restart the war on a small scale. Unfortunately, the film doesn't even reach the threshold of "mindless fun" as do the above-referenced movies, all of which offer some level of good, hearty baseline entertainment set against a one-man-versus-an-army wartime backdrop. Behind Enemy Lines is instead a laborious, slowly developing, empty movie that might entertain some eight year old boys with its run-and-gun and overly stylized military shoot-em-up sequences but will likely alienate most viewers in search of something that could be considered even remotely satisfying across the broadest definition of the term.

Prisoner.

Russia and China have signed on to a treaty aimed at reducing nuclear arms smuggling between their two countries. The United States has stepped up enforcement efforts. Two soldiers -- Mike Weston (Thomas Ian Griffith) and Jones (Chris Mulkey) -- are in Vietnam to stop one such exchange. They find themselves in battle against General Nguy (Spanky Manikan). The nuclear briefcase is lost, Jones is wounded and taken captive, and Weston escapes. A year later, Weston is approached by Colonel Wolfe (Mark Carlton) with intelligence that Jones is still alive. Weston goes in for the rescue but is himself captured in the act and ultimately imprisoned alongside Jones. Now, the men must face sadistic torture or give up the briefcase's whereabouts. Meanwhile, Weston's sister Kat (Hillary Matthews) and a ragtag band of ex-military misfits mount a rescue effort.

It's rather amazing that an Action movie can be this slow. The movie begins with Weston and Jones perched below a bridge, aiming up to take out a couple of guards and, ultimately, stop an illegal nuclear arms deal. Why they've taken up a position of weakness is anyone's guess, but the scene sets the tone for the movie in several ways. First, it introduces the main characters (the aforementioned soldiers plus the evil General Nguy), it establishes the sluggish pace, and it demonstrates the ineptness with which the characters will do battle. This, and practically every action scene in the movie, be it gunplay or fisticuffs, feels like it plays out at about 3/4 speed. There's no flow, no sense of danger, just actors going through the motions, blasting away bad guys left and right. Where the movie might have found some interesting bits of physiological warfare between the main players or even a more tangible sense of danger and violence, it instead aims for the lowest common denominator, making sure there's something happening on the screen, so long as it involves guns, people running and yelling, and slow motion. Lots of slow motion. Because slow motion makes everything cooler and more dramatic. Apparently.

The movie is made of the usual barrage of dull Action movie "character" moments where characterization is reduced to slow motion footage of women and children caught in the middle of a firefight, slow motion footage of women and children caught in the middle of a firefight as seen in flashback, and slow motion footage of women and children caught in the middle of a firefight as seen in flashback...again. Essentially the movie is built on the idea of humanity and friendship opposing evil. It's lowest-common-denominator storytelling that assumes the most basic human emotions are enough to carry the movie, along with that deluge of slow-moving action and a throwaway plot about a nuclear briefcase falling into the wrong hands. It's the yucky result of stale and bland ingredients all tossed into a blender. It's unsurprising the result is so uninspired, so flat. And it's not even that there's much wrong with the movie in terms of its acting, direction, stunt work, visual effects, and so on. None of them approach the level of excellence established by the best genre films, but they're all passably professional. The problem is that the movie is hollow, soulless, something that's made entirely of its superficial pieces without even consideration for anything more substantial underneath. Hence why its audience probably only consists of the aforementioned prepubescent boys looking for a cheap military movie thrill.

Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Behind Enemy Lines features a 1080p transfer that shows some problems but ultimately proves watchable. The image features an inconsistent but unmissable assortment of specks and spots throughout. Grain appears to have been scrubbed away in places, leaving behind a flat, smooth veneer. Fortunately, pinpoint detailing doesn't suffer too greatly. Even with the moderately plastic-like appearance, there's still a good bit of raw texturing in faces, clothes, guns, woods, rocks, and jungle terrain. Clarity is quite good and sharpness only occasionally gives way to mild softness. Colors are bright and satisfying, particularly dense jungle greens. Reds occasionally look a bit garish, however, particularly as seen on a big swath of red on a flag that hangs behind General Nguy when Weston is first apprehended. Skin tones push a bit rosy. Blacks appear fine. A few edge halos are scattered throughout.

Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Behind Enemy Lines' DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 lossless soundtrack might enjoy a fairly robust spacing across the front, but it doesn't have much else going for it. Gunfire, which is arguably the single most dominant sound outside of dialogue, lacks distinction and punch but never falls fully flat or limp. Explosions and flying debris likewise sound the part but do so without much power or truly transparent lifelike clarity. Music is serviceably presented with fair baseline clarity. Ambient effects manage to linger across but don't do much to pull the listener in. Dialogue is delivered a little flatly but with adequate centered placement and volume. The track suffers most from the lack of surrounds and LFE; any modern Action movie would benefit from a more immersive, circular stage and the added subwoofer component, but Behind Enemy Lines is left firing from a half-full magazine instead.

Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

All that's included is the Behind Enemy Lines trailer (1080p, 4x3, 2:00).

Behind Enemy Lines Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Behind Enemy Lines is essentially part serious film, part fantasy film, and entirely empty film. The core story resembles other fan favorites in the genre, but the addition of the sister and ragtag bunch of motley crew heroes feels like outsiders forcing their way in because, well, being in a movie that allows for some gunplay and shooting bad guys might be fun. The movie plays to the lowest level of entertainment, but give it credit for not aiming any higher. It knows what it is, which isn't much, and it's pretty well acceptable as a bottom-tier time killer. Olive Films' Blu-ray release of Behind Enemy Lines features decent video and audio. A trailer is the only supplement. Skip it.