In 1980s America under Reagan took new, more confident and combative stance toward world affairs, which was difficult to reconcile with still unhealed traumas of recent humiliating defeat in Vietnam. Hollywood tried to solve this problem with action films that symbolically re-fought Vietnam War, only with different outcome. The fictional plots were inspired by the very real and emotional issue related to the conflict. The war officially ended for USA in 1973, but for many American families it was still going on due to their loved ones being listed as missing in action and their ultimate fate unknown. Many started to believe that at least some of those missing servicemen were alive and kept as prisoners in Communist Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Uncommon Valor, 1983 film directed by Ted Kotcheff, was the first major Hollywood production to use this notion as the basis for its plot.
The film begins in 1972 Vietnam. US helicopter crews, faced with overwhelming enemy fire, are forced the abandon the evacuation of trapped military unit, leaving the number of men, including young Lieutenant Frank Rhodes (played by Todd Allen), to be presumably killed or captured by Communist forces. The war ends with him being listed as “missing in action” and in the next ten years his father, US Marine Lt. Colonel Jason Rhodes (played by Gene Hackman) spares no effort to discover what actually happened to him. His search seems fruitless until he finds some hints about Frank actually being alive and kept with group of US servicemen as prisoner in Laos. While US government refuses to act on that information, Harry MacGregor (played by Robert Stack), oil magnate whose son also went missing in war, decides to finance the rescue effort. Rhodes gathers small team that consists of Frank’s former comrades, two veteran helicopter pilot and young former Marine whose father became missing during the war. Their plan is to raid the camp from neighbouring Thailand and liberate the prisoners. Rhodes and their team gather weapons and equipment and rehearse the raid to near perfection, but when they arrive in Thailand, the mission suffers serious setback and Rhodes must improvise to get it going.
The film was originally devised by 1980s action film star Wings Hauer and later produced by John Milius, film maker known for right-wing views and glorification of macho military action. Uncommon Valor, however, doesn’t feature American chauvinistic flag-waving nor revanchist Cold War fantasies characteristic of First Blood: Part II, later and much more influential film that used the similar plot. Protagonists are willing to risk their lives and possibly restart a war for purely personal reasons. Script by Joe Gayton doesn’t shy away from showing that war can have devastating effects even for those who returned from it in one piece. Two members of Rhodes team – giant machine gunner “Sailor” (played by Randal “Texx” Cobb) has been found in psych ward while former “tunnel rat” Wilkes (played by Fred Ward) joins his comrades after decade-long and failed struggle to put war behind it. Unlike Ramboesque fantasies about single supersoldiers, Uncommon Valor realistically portrays rescue operations as collective effort, and this is also an opportunity for Gayton to paint number of interesting characters for whom the audience would learn to care before the inevitable final showdown.
Director Ted Kotcheff has dealt with similar theme in his previous film, who had happened to be First Blood. Kotcheff again shows great skill and handles action scenes very well, as well as maintaining good pace. Cinematography by Stephen H. Burum, on the other hand, isn’t particularly impressive, while musical score by James Horner is merely adequate. The cast is very good, with Hackman again delivering credible performance of a man with authority and determination; Hackman is especially effective in the emotional bittersweet finale. Other cast members are also good, especially Fred Ward, Randall “Tex” Cobb and young Patrick Swayze.
Uncommon Valor nevertheless has one serious problem with its script. After establishing that South East Asian Communist countries still holds American prisoners years after the war, it also establishes that US government appears to be aware of it and even attempts to stop private individuals from discovering the truth. This dabbling into conspiracy theories, which were popular at the time (and even used in 1990s for the plot of The X-Files), was not followed by any attempt to give any reasonable excuse for governments to behave this way. When the seemingly happy end occurs, the audience is left to believe that US government won’t suppress this embarrassing information and the affair won’t be used as a jingoistic excuse for rematch that could result with more dead and missing. Recent historical events tell us differently, but Uncommon Valor still deserves recommendation as a solid piece of 1980s action cinema.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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