Product Details

• Actors: Anthony Michael Hall, Michael Paré, Deborah Moore, Terry Kiser, Brian Haley
• Directors: Fritz Kiersch
• Writers: John D. Brancato, Michael Ferris
• Producers: Jim Begg, Kevin M. Kallberg, Mark Amin, Oliver G. Hess
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Vidmark / Trimark
• VHS Release Date: January 1, 1998
• Run Time: 101 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630247874X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #140,862 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Pilot For A Day: The Existential Qualities, April 24, 2010

By 

Robert I. Hedges - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Into the Sun [VHS] (VHS Tape)

"Into The Sun" is an action-comedy film from 1992 that's of such exceptional quality that it can only be found on VHS. It stars Michael Paré as a fighter pilot, Captain Paul "Shotgun" Watkins, in one of his better roles, and Anthony Michael Hall as Tom Slade, a film star who is doing research into the psyche of fighter pilots for a future role in one of his most questionable role choices. It also features Deborah Moore (Roger's beautiful daughter) as the love interest, and Linden Ashby as "Dragon," a mercenary traitor.

The film is two-thirds action and one-third comedy. Hall is over-the-top and self-absorbed (so pretty realistic in other words) to the point that he is worried about his tan after getting shot down behind enemy lines, and decides to use a piece of aircraft wreckage as a reflector. It's not a good thing when Paré turns in the best performance in the film, but he is the only thing that remotely holds this picture, as insipid as it is, together. "Into The Sun" may remind some people of "Top Gun," but it shouldn't. "Top Gun" used F-14s; this uses F-16s. Paré can't stand Hall, and is jealous of his uncanny abilities to resist hypoxia in the altitude chamber (why do they put on helmets in the chamber if they aren't wearing masks?,) and especially his ability to shoot down aircraft in the simulator; yes Hall catches on to this dogfighting thing like a regular idiot savant.

The film features aircraft in what appear to be Israeli Air Force (IAF) camouflage (they certainly aren't wearing a standard USAF paint scheme.) My suspicion is furthered by the appearances of the "enemy" aircraft, which appear to be Kfirs of the IAF. The Kfir is a very rare fighter aircraft derived from the Dassault Mirage, and I wouldn't have been surprised to discover that the flying sequences were filmed in Israel. Amazingly, Hall gets permission to fly a combat mission with Paré ("Feel like a pilot yet?"..."Actually I'm about to puke.") but after becoming involved in a real dogfight (F-16 versus Kfir) Hall decides he doesn't want to play and takes control of the aircraft away from Paré (remember he was really skilled in his half-hour in the simulator;) when all looks lost they initiate a precautionary ejection over enemy territory. OK: reality check time. I'm not going to pick the flying details apart here as I have a bit of an unfair advantage as an actual former USAF pilot, but people don't jump out of aircraft until they are actually mortally wounded and they have no other choice.

Paré and Hall float down to the desert where they start bickering. There is plenty of inane dialogue during this portion of the movie like when Hall tells Paré to "get in touch with your inner child" during the trek across the sand. Eventually Hall petulantly storms off on his own and flags down some helpful men in a Jeep, who he is too clueless to realize are not friendly. Paré and some helpful Bedouins rescue them both and then proceed to sell them to the highest bidder, which is, of course, the thugocracy in charge of whatever fictional Mideast country they are in. After some pretty basic torture and threats, Paré gets scheduled for execution at dawn, while Hall reads a propaganda statement; his agent, meanwhile, is concerned that his diction in the propagandizing is so poor it will ruin his chances at future roles. His diction might not, but his presence in this role sure might. We also learn the identity of the scourge of the USAF (and the guy who shot Paré and Hall down) is a traitorous mercenary with the call sign "Dragon" who was once an American pilot, and is now flying for the highest bidder. If you even for a moment thought that Hall or Paré was hamming it up, just wait until you see Ashby's performance as Dragon.

After realizing that Hall is a valuable Hollywood star, the Bedouins break him out of prison and sell him to his studio. Hall comes through in true buddy movie fashion and dons a sheik's outfit, and during Paré's hanging, mounts a rescue attempt with the greedy Bedouins. There is lots of ridiculous shooting and the ludicrous resolution that Paré and Hall steal a Kfir and fly it to freedom. This concept, of course, has loads absurdity. Paré has never flown a Kfir before, and Hall immediately becomes a hilarious backseat pilot ("Have you tried that button over there?") Oh, did I mention the Kfir is a single-seat fighter and that Paré has to sit on Hall's lap while flying and fighting? Cinematic aviation concepts do not get stupider than this. Not being content to merely escape in the plane, Paré and Hall bomb the oppressor's airfield, engage and defeat Dragon (of course,) and ultimately engage the American F-16s, losing again. I cannot even write about their escape from the aircraft without laughing so hard that I can't type: suffice it to say it involves sleep, Hall's resistance to hypoxia and cool under pressure, and complete and utter impossibility. To close the movie, Paré and Hall share a semi-private hospital room to overcome the injuries sustained in the bailout, Paré gets the girl, and Hall blathers on about subjects like the nature of man and the meaning of life.

Obviously this film isn't suitable to dissect from a technical point of view, but as a piece of action-comedy cheese, it has its moments. It is completely unrealistic, and the humor doesn't work as it was intended, but it would have made an absolutely superior "Mystery Science Theater 3000" episode. You'll roll your eyes at the preposterous plotpoints, bad acting, and ridiculous stereotypes, but for connoisseurs of B-movie pabulum, this is just the ticket.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Out of this world film, May 21, 2009

By 

Gem (Grand Rapids, Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Into the Sun [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is my most favorite Michael Pare film. The acting is good all around. Good to see him portray a tight Air Force officer that has to put up with a rich boy/actor who gets them all in trouble. It is a believable film and the landscape is outstanding.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fairly Entertaining With A Basic Plot, November 18, 2011

By 

J. Powell "Katmandu" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Into the Sun [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Great Movie! I don't see why it hasn't been released on DVD in the U.S. though. It's different enough from Iron Eagle and Top Gun to be fairly entertaining and somewhat original...Michael Pare is way underrated as an actor. Anthony Michael Hall is great too. I have a Russian dvd that is is Widescreen with 5.1 English Surround audio.