Customer Reviews

Flight of the Intruder [VHS]

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Yeah, yeah... I agree with many other viewers. The movie storyline is not as good as in the book in two areas: 1. the in-depth description of its characters -I guess it's just too hard a job to explore the complexity of human personalities within 90mn; 2. the ending which, in the book, is a bit more in line with the actual war in Vietnam.

And also, that's true that the special effects are somewhat dated now...

But boy, being a professional of aviation, living, breathing, dreaming of it every day of my life, I can't applaude enough to the fact of being able to watch a movie that DOES feature combat aircraft! Just count the number of good action movies that actually show these machines, and I bet you'll be able to count them on the fingers of, say, 2 hands. That's just to stay on the optimistic side of things.

Flight of the Intruder is a real cool movie in terms of aircraft footage. You are "behind the wheel", at times you are literally in control of the aircraft. Your heart pumps faster when this ugly looking -and sounding- SAM detection signal flashes to and screams at the crew. And watch these unforgettable scenes with the A-1 Skyraiders, the famous "Sandys" at the end of the film! The shots, the sounds... Everything contributes to raising the hair of your neck with passion!

The movie itself is pretty well documented too, if only a bit too simplified. Looks like the film was technically supported by both the Navy and the Air Force. The pilots' jargon is accurate, and so is the overall A-6 bombing philosophy.

And after viewing it, you'll sit back and start reflecting on it, and I'm pretty sure that you'll end telling yourself: "These fly-boys in Vietnam... They sure had real guts". Hats and heads down, ladies and gentlemen, and respect for courage!

This is the way it really was. I used to fly F4s of the Oriskany back in '66. Everyday (and most nights) I'd watch the A6s queueing up for takeoffs and traps. I flew with the best. This movie, even though there are a "few" technical problems, brings me back to those days almost 40 years ago.

I agree with the movie's major premis - we could have won the war if the politicians kept their noses out of the running of the war.

Ignore all these arm-chair warriors and watch the movie. For the most part, it shows how it really was.

This movie is a great depiction of the air war in Vietnam in 1972. It has it's funny moments, it's serious moments, but all in all, it's a great action movie with a great plot and storyline. Also, since Willem Dafoe is one of my favorite actors, that was another plus for this film. Danny Glover put in a hell of a performance as the skipper of the air crew, and Brad Johnson and Willem Dafoe put in excellent performances as the pilot/bombardier team. This is a movie worth five stars.

During the Vietnam war, many air crews were frustrated by the political nature of target selection. Real, worthy targets of military significance were put off limits to avoid annoying the enemy or the allies of the enemy. Instead, missions were sent against "suspected" targets like truck parks and staging areas more often than not, this resulted in the bombing of some innocent trees. That would be frustrating but not necessarily infuriating. What was infuriating is that crews were lost and killed in the missions to worthless targets.

In this story, one crew has had enough. After seeing so many of their friends killed for no apparent reason, they decide to do something that matters. They want to bomb a military target. They want to destroy SAMs, the surface to air missiles that are so dangerous to flyers. They know where to go. It is no secret that the SAM inventory is stored in a massive artillery park in downtown Hanoi. They decide to take it out.

The unauthorized raid is a success except when speaking in terms of careers. Even then, it seems, fate intervenes.

This is a story about comrades in arms keeping the faith with each other. Its not a great movie but it's a pretty good story.

Its also a credit to Danny Glover's acting skills. You would never know that he's part of the "I hate America" crowd.

This movie was great & most people have never even heard of it.
The movie is very accurate & shows what it was like to have piloted an A-6 during Nam. The movie is better than Top Gun because it has more action & it's realistic. This should be in all military buff's collection.

This movie should have been better then Top Gun.
In everyones mind though we all want the speed and cockyness of
a fighter pilot.
But, as the line states,"Fighter pukes make movies, bomber pilots make history."
I believe that because this movie wasn't as big as Top Gun is
because there was a little love story in Intruder, that was not
as big Top Guns steamy love scenes.
This movie to me was better then Top Gun because of the absence
of a steamy romance, just a hint.
This movie, should be considered a classic.

I don't think this movie was intended to show what air combat is really like over the 'Nam, although Stephen Coonts, the author of the novel, "The Flight ofthe Intruder" did fly combat missions over vietnam. OK, Brad Johnson is a better pretty boy than actor and the FX can be cheesy but Dafoe is does his usual fine job and the story really picks up when he appears. This is the story of two guys who got fed up with risking their lives to bomb water buffalo and rice paddies and decided to take things into their on hands. Historically, the most amazing true fact depicted is that for political reasons the US allowed the North Vietnamese to have "safe areas" where they could stockpile weapons and equipment without fear of attack. This really happened in several different locations in the region. Hopefully we know better now. This is a story about doing the right thing even if it means breaking the rules, consequences, and redemption.

The A-6 was the United States Navy's Medium (A) Attack bomber during the Vietnam conflict. It flew at tree-top level in any weather at night and alone. The A-6 had NO defensive weapons. It was called - The INTRUDER.

That is the opening statement to an outstanding action movie. The thought of flying unarmed over hostile territory circa 1972 presents a very exciting war tale indeed.

Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe and Brad Johnson are a great ensemble cast.

The "Flight of the Intruder" based on Stephen Coonts (former Naval Aviator) novel of the same name. Coonts has written an entire fictionalized series based on Jake Grafton (played by Brad Johnson) exciting Naval career. The "Flight of the Intruder" was the first in that series.

Summary: Young Naval Aviator Lt. Jake Grafton pilots the infamous A (Attack) - 6 Intruder over 1972 Vietnam. You get to experience lots of great aerial photography, plenty of action and the unbelievable daring of these A-6 Naval pilots. This includes low level (200 feet) bombing missions (dodging all kinds of enemy fire). "Iron Hand" the art of an Armed A-6 versus' SAM (Surface to Air Missles). They shoot first up to 4 missles before you can attack them!!! Great stuff!!!!

Paramount's WideScreen DVD Collection presents the viewer with some OUTSTANDING MOVIES at an economical price. The only short fall one Extra is the trailer and the Enhanced 16:9 WideScreen HDTV is some what grainy on my 55" Home Theatre Screen. The sound is outstanding!

Overall this is a great war movie for the collector!! This DVD is worth the price of admission. Enjoy

I am not qualified to discuss the politics of the Vietnam War and about 40 something other people have commented upon the story. Having said that the book was one of those that was hard to put down. The movie was pretty good but arguable not quite to the same level of excitment as the book. One thing that the movie really does a terrific job of doing is showing people just how formidible a weapon system the now retired A6 Intruder realy was. Not supersonic and not the prettiest thing in the air but certainly agile. The flying segments are well worth watching if you are a fan of US Naval Aviation. Sadly like the A7 and few others it never seemed to capture the media's attention like the F4 Phantom and the F14 Tomcat did. Which brings up another interesting question I have that resulted in the 3 star rating I gave. Wasn't there any other aircraft on Grafton's ship? All we see are the A6 intruders and in the end we also get to see some Sandy's go into action. But that is about it...

If you are a fan of flying movies see this...
If you are fan of Vietnam War movies see this...
If you are fan of Steven Coonts books see this...
If you are fan of any of the stars see this...
If you looking for a pretty good action movie see this...

It is not a boring film but the story could have been a little better written.

This movie is my all time favorite. Yes, I read the book first, and I was surprised at the wholesale changes Hollyweird made. I enjoy the comeraderie of the characters and the attention to detail in recreating Po city in the Phillipines. If you are a book nut who thinks that a book should be literally translated on to the big screen, this movie isn't for you. If you want to pop a good movie into the VCR on a slow Saturday afternoon, this is the movie for you.