I went into watching Behind Enemy Lines expecting a somewhat jingoistic early 2000s “let’s get our boy back” type deal. That in itself is OK, and I can’t say I outright disliked it. But to call it “the best film of John Moore that I’ve seen” is truly damning with faint praise.
As the two other films of his I’ve seen are Max Payne and Live Free or Die Hard; two truly atrocious movies.
If I’d known beforehand, I might not have bothered. Even without that knowledge, ten minutes in I was stunned by the obnoxious editing and use of music that seemed incongruent with the setting and story. I really like Buck Rogers be Feeder, but what is it doing being played over footage of a fighter jet?
The story is simple enough; when known action hero Owen Wilson (yep) is shot down, can he evade capture and get to the rendezvous point? I think we know the answer, so it’s all about the how.
And bar some reasonable action, it’s very meh. It has no interest in the conflict and broader context the characters are involved in, focusing instead on American’s doing what needs to be done and making heroic choices.
But then there’s the final ten minutes, where any good will the film built up was blown away. Because the films decides that a fighter pilot is going to slide while shooting one-handed. Everything is slow motion as the music swells and nonsense prevails.
I guess at least we got Niko Bellic from it. And Hackman is always good value.
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