5.8 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Lt. Jake Grafton, a U.S. Navy pilot who has become cynical about the current state of military affairs, is convinced that if the Vietnam War were left to the soldiers rather than the politicians overseeing the Pentagon, United States victory would be swift and assured. Grafton shares this opinion with Virgil Cole, a supremely confident new pilot under his command, and together they commandeer an A-6 Bomber, known as The Intruder, for an unauthorized bombing raid against Hanoi.
Starring: Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe, Brad Johnson (II), Rosanna Arquette, Tom SizemoreAction | 100% |
War | 99% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, English SDH, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Flight of the Intruder is a 1991 war film depicting a squadron of bomber pilots tasked with taking out military targets in the southern region of North Vietnam. Directed by John Milius (Conan the Barbarian, Red Dawn), the film floundered during its initial theatrical run, but eventually gained traction in the subsequent home video market. In all likelihood, the failings of the film led to the exit of Milius from a Hollywood directing chair, in favor of returning to his screenwriting roots. It also marked the end of Brad Johnson’s career as a Hollywood leading man (the year before Flight of the Intruder, he starred in the film Always), and his return to various roles in television productions. Put together, you’d assume the negative turning points in the careers of these two men are indications of the film’s entertainment value, yet I’ve still gleaned plenty of enjoyment out of this action classic over the years.
I didn't know anyone could make drinking coffee look so cool.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the AVC codec (at an average bitrate of 19Mbps), Flight of the Intruder looks every bit as good as the source material allows. The elements clearly aren't in exceptional shape, but as soon as you move past the nighttime sequences with thick layers of film grain, you'll be pleasantly surprised by the level of fine object detail throughout the image. That's not to say there aren't several soft shots mixed in from time to time, but any less proficient elements can be chalked up to limitations in the original filming techniques often utilized during the early 90's (more noticeable in distance shots), and not a flaw in the replication of this transfer. Continuing with the positives, I have nothing but praise for the increased richness of the color spectrum in this Blu-ray transition. From the deep blue of the ocean surface to the wild tropical coloring of the Vietnamese brothel, every hue is incredibly vivid with no evidence of filtering, color push, or bloom. Unfortunately, the one element that reveals modest weakness is contrast differentiation between darker shades in the nighttime settings. Blacks look excellent, but there's a tendency for shadow detail to fall prey to crush, leaving large black holes across the image. I'd suspect this is partially related to the heavy blanket of film grain in these same scenes (again, reflecting a characteristic of the source material), but it still became a bit distracting next to the strong presentation in subsequent daytime shots.
If you're a long-time Flight of the Intruder fan, the visual quality of this new release will surely exceed your expectations and should stand as the best presentation possible without a costly restoration.
Any minor weaknesses in the visuals are more than made up for by the exceptional sound design in the lossless audio mix. From the opening bomb run to the daring rescue mission in the closing minutes of the film, we're treated to a continuous onslaught of bombastic aerial effects that rival anything heard on the highly-praised Top Gun release. When we aren't witnessing adrenaline-pumping aerial maneuvers that rock the soundstage of your home theater, the audio engineers introduce sequences full of small arms fire to constantly remind viewers this is an action film. In fact, I'd wager there's only about twenty minutes of dialog-driven moments in the entire film. As a result, your surround channels are utilized extensively through the majority of the runtime, replicating the screams of jet engines flying across the sound stage, or the immersive experience of exploding bombs sounding off from every direction. Unfortunately, there are two minor issues that warrant a half-point downgrade on the audio presentation. First, as much as I enjoyed the high-volume nature of the action effects, they sometimes revealed a disproportionate balance next to the dialog in the film. It's not extreme enough to warrant continuous volume adjustments, but I could see it bothering some viewers. Second, the sound effects generated by explosions and the rumble of jet engines typically seem quite good, but I noticed several instances where the volume of those effects leads to the introduction of crackle (usually when the effect reaches its highest volume level). It's not terribly noticeable (most viewers likely won't even care), but it's still something worth mentioning to any audiophiles reading this review.
The only extra included on the disc is a promotional trailer for other Blu-ray releases from Lionsgate.
Flight of the Intruder has always been overshadowed by better films within its genre, but that doesn't mean it's a waste of time. I'd imagine if you went back through time and released the film six years earlier (Platoon was released in 1986), it would have generated much higher box office returns. Unfortunately, countless films had already upped the ante by the time Flight of the Intruder was released, and it would seem the American public was done with mindless Vietnam action films. If you've never seen the film, but possess an appreciation for high-flying productions such as Top Gun, I'd suggest you give it a shot. The timing has never been better for an introduction to the John Milius classic, especially considering the impressive technical presentation offered up by Lionsgate.
1988
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