The Delta Force (1986) review

 

THE DELTA FORCE 1986

Chuck Norris (Major Scott McCoy), Lee Marvin (Colonel Nick Alexander), Hanna Schygulla (Ingrid Harding), Martin Balsam (Benjamin Kaplan), Shelley Winters (Edie Kaplan), Robert Forster (Abdul Rafai), Susan Strasberg (Debra Levine), George Kennedy (Father O'Malley), Bo Svenson (Captain Campbell), Robert Vaughn (General Woodbridge), Steve James (Bobby), William Wallace (Pete Peterson), David Menachem (Mustafa), Avi Loziah (Jaffer Khalil), Uri Gavriel (Jamil)

Directed by Menahem Golan

The Short Version: In 1986 Silver Screens everywhere were projecting large quantities of manliness in this, one of the pinnacles of 80s masculine movies; a hellfire missile action hero sandwich from Cannon. Chuck Norris and Lee Marvin's names alone are worth the ticket price. Terrorists hijack a jetliner packed with enough well known actors to make Irwin Allen have a fit; and America's Delta Force is tasked with taking them out, and rescuing the hostages while one of the catchiest synth scores ever conceived blares in the background.

Palestinian terrorists led by Abdul Rafai hijack a jetliner in Athens and threaten to kill everyone aboard should their demands not be met. The President sends in Delta Force to stop them and rescue the passengers. Unknown to them, the terrorists have moved the Israeli men aboard to a location in Beirut. Delta Force track them down and attempt to free the hostages before their execution.

The Cannon Group's ratio of good to bad movies varied wildly during their bid for box office supremacy in the 1980s. THE DELTA FORCE is one of their best pictures from this period, and likely the best of Chuck Norris's tenure with the company. It was among the best casts ever assembled for a Cannon production, too; so many big names and recognizable character actors. Additionally, for a production with a basic action premise (based on real life events), it's surprisingly accomplished filmmaking from the co-head of Cannon, a company not often associated with quality motion pictures.

A portion of THE DELTA FORCE is very similar to Irvin Kershner's Made For TV movie RAID ON ENTEBBE (1977) about the real life rescue of hostages held at Uganda's Entebbe Airport by Israeli commandos. There were two other movies -- Marvin Chomsky's Made For TV movie, VICTORY AT ENTEBBE (1976) that aired barely a month before the above mentioned Kershner film; and Menahem Golan's own OPERATION THUNDERBOLT (1977) based on the same daring rescue. This movie, though, feels like two films in one -- one half is a suspense thriller with a basis in fact, and the second half is a good ole fashioned action picture.

Originally Charles Bronson (already among Cannon's stable at this time) was tapped to co-star with Chuck Norris; but for whatever reason, Bronson never shared the screen with the American Karate king. Incidentally, Bronson starred in Irvin Kershner's film playing Brigadier General Dan Shomron. A shame audiences were denied this titanic team-up of two action cinema icons.

Tough Guy paragon Lee Marvin, as tired as he looks, is up to the challenge as Bronson's replacement. This was the actors last motion picture, and he's a good pair for Norris. There's a running gag between the two of them -- McCoy (Norris) repeatedly tells Alexander (Marvin) to not wait for him; and he always ends up waiting for him. Marvin is the leader of Delta Force, an elite group of soldiers. You could say he's the covert teams patriarch. There's a familial bond between them all. This extends to the lesser members who get little more than a few lines of dialog. 

Lee Marvin was a former Marine, having served in WW2, and received a few awards for his service. His rugged looks was perfect for westerns and action films playing both the hero and the villain. Out of a career judiciously stacked with impressive titles, one of his best remembered is as Major Reisman in Robert Aldrich's classic war picture THE DIRTY DOZEN (1967). Even at age 63, and very sick, Marvin makes his last big screen role a memorable one. Prior to starring in the Cannon movie, Lee reprised his Major Reisman role for the Made For TV sequel, THE DIRTY DOZEN: NEXT MISSION (1985).

Going back to the films roots based on actual incidents, the plot of THE DELTA FORCE bears many similarities to the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 that occurred Friday, June 14th, 1985. It also briefly clones Operation Eagle Claw during the opening sequence depicting a failed rescue attempt. That disastrous operation took place on April 24th, 1980 in Tehran.

Menahem's movie is a fictitious piece using true events as its narrative structure; outside of those factors it's pure, unadulterated machismo. For approximately the first seventy minutes, the script (by Golan and James Bruner) wrangles a good deal of suspense that adds immeasurably to the action sequences that dominate the last 45-50 minutes. 

The sequence where the terrorists move all the Israelis to "first class", and then later, off the plane in Beirut, are two of the stronger moments before the action takes over. The various actors and actresses get the opportunity to (briefly) flex their muscle; such as Shelley Winters and tough guy in his own right, George "I'm Jewish like Jesus Christ!" Kennedy. As they're moved off the plane, the walk down the aisle seems to go on forever -- much like a condemned man going to his execution.

After sporadic moments of heroism, close-calls, cliffhangers, and mishaps, the film switches gears, firing off volleys of testosterone once the rescue mission is finally enacted. At that point, THE DELTA FORCE ceases being a tense thriller and transforms into a highlight reel of machine gun fire, car stunts, and explosions. If you didn't get enough of Alan Silvestri's catchy main theme music before, prepare to have it burned into your memory banks once the action kicks into high gear. 

This was one of a few Cannon productions that critics seemed to like; yet at the time, and even today, there were some critics that claimed this film, like others of a similar ilk, depicts the Arab terrorists as savages. Seriously, there's no other way to describe such a group that lives to exterminate an entire race of people for their religious beliefs; not to mention favoring rather messy means of execution. I'd be curious to know what such critics thought about the Nazis; or even the Japanese military mindset during WW2 which facilitated an even more sadistic hatred towards the Chinese. 

Furthermore, other critics labeled THE DELTA FORCE, and movies like it, as American propaganda. The first half is based -- rather closely -- on a factual expropriation. The latter half is an action movie that depicts its title commandos falling victim to bad intel, and an enemy that is consistently one step ahead of them till a little past the halfway mark. In real life, military operations fail and succeed -- just like they do in this movie. And that's all THE DELTA FORCE is... it's just a movie.

While these militant killers are indeed the bad guys, the script doesn't draw them as purely evil. They prove their maleficent mettle with lines like, "Shut up, you American imperialist pig!", and "We kill everyone on this bloody plane!!!" Another bit that lets us know these guys aren't the most civilized of people is when a sympathetic German stewardess (based on the real life flight attendant Uli Derickson, of TWA Flight 847) refuses to name the Jewish passengers. She points to her German lineage, and won't be a part of a scenario that reeks of the Nazi Death Camps all over again. Mustafa, the excitable terrorist, naturally hates Israelis; and in response to Hitler's dead Jew tally of his Final Solution retorts, "Not enough, lady, not enooouugh!!!!" 

Even so, there are a few moments where they show slivers of sympathy; like when Mustafa swaps out his angry, shaking, sweaty exterior for a warm and fuzzy one in the company of a little girl and again for a pregnant woman. Golan and Bruner's script cuts them just a wee bit of slack when they didn't have to. The real life terrorists of the factual event were far more brutal than their cinematic counterparts.

Chuck Norris is his usual 'walk softly and carry a big kick' self. He gets a few more lines than he did playing the god-like Matt Hunter in the previous years INVASION USA (1985); one of Cannon's most violent movies. Chuck gets to smile a bit, too; expanding on his range of facial expressions when normally, his fists and feet do all the talking. In THE DELTA FORCE, Norris not only mows down terrorists again, but he also gets to do it on this nifty motorcycle armed with mounted machine guns, and front and rear rocket launchers. To top it off, he wipes the floor with Abdul's (Forster) ass in the finale with one of those classic Chuck fights where the bad guy is tossed around like a rag doll.

Robert Forster doesn't look like he's got any Arab in him, but he does a fantastic job playing one -- accent and all. Forster was an underrated actor that, while he appeared in dozens of movies, never got the credit he deserved; nor does he stand a chance against Norris's kicks and punches, but then who does? Forster ran into Chuck a couple more times on WALKER, TEXAS RANGER in the late 1990s.

THE DELTA FORCE (1986) made approximately $18 million in the USA when it was released theatrically in February of 1986. Later that year, Cannon released another Norris film, FIREWALKER (1986) pairing Norris with Louis Gossett, Jr. Currently, a European documentary titled CHUCK NORRIS VS. COMMUNISM is being produced regarding how Chuck Norris movies (among many others), along with a lone female voice dubber, aided in crumbling the Communistic wall surrounding Romanians during that time period.

Quite possibly the best directed of Menahem Golan's US productions, THE DELTA FORCE (1986) is a true spectacle of American action movie manliness the likes of which you don't see anymore. The films Red, White and Blue stripes wave prominently during the climax -- the mission accomplished, and the rescued passengers all downing Budweiser while happily belting out a rendition of 'America the Beautiful'. Your enjoyment of TDF depends on how you feel about upbeat action movies; particularly those from the 1980s when pride in country was a common sentiment for many; and there's that main theme playing again....

This review is representative of the MGM Blu-ray.

Every Which Way But Loose (1978) review

 
EVERY WHICH WAY BUT LOOSE 1978

Clint Eastwood (Philo Beddoe), Sondra Locke (Lynn Halsey-Taylor), Geoffrey Lewis (Orville Boggs), Ruth Gordon (Ma), Beverly D'Angelo (Echo), Walter Barnes (Tank Murdock), John Quade (Cholla), Dan Vadis (Frank), Bill McKinney (Dallas), William O'Connell (Elmo), Gregory Walcott (Putnam)

Directed by James Fargo

The Short Version: Armed with fully loaded fists, a lovable orangutan, a filthy-mouthed old lady, and all the beer you can drink, Clint Eastwood stars in this box office knock-out. He's a bare-knuckled brawler chasing after the love of his life in between bar fights and being trailed by a vengeful cop, and an incompetent motorcycle gang. Virtually plotless, this 2 hours of consistent hilarity and fun became an unexpected smash success, and was Clint's biggest hit at that time. Get a BIG bucket of popcorn and a pitcher of cold beer for this one, but hide the Oreos!

Philo Beddoe makes a living as a local trucker driver and bare-fisted brawler on the underground circuit. One day he falls head over heels for a singer at the Palamino Club. When she unexpectedly up and leaves town allegedly over a jealous beau, Philo heads off after her, encountering trouble along the way. While he chases her, he's chased by a bumbling motorcycle gang and an off-duty cop who met Philo's fists in a barroom skirmish. It all ends with a fateful meeting of the knuckles when Beddoe tangles with Tank Murdock, a legend around those parts.

Nobody was expecting this wild and wooly Clint comedy actioner to bring home the box office bacon the way it did. The script was originally intended for Burt Reynolds's hands, but Eastwood was charmed by the unique scenario. Critics still saw the finished product as a train-wreck, but paying customers were having none of it while sending EVERY WHICH WAY BUT LOOSE to a 100 million haul.

It's doubtful Reynolds would have brought the same level of deadpan humor that Eastwood does. Still, Reynolds was a logical fit for the material given his string of southern fried action and race car hits that began earlier in the decade, and continued into the 1980s. If anyone ever wanted to see two of the 70s biggest stars team up, they got their chance in 1984 with CITY HEAT. 

Clint Eastwood had been a living, breathing goldmine for years from his various westerns at home and abroad; this includes the popular DIRTY HARRY series, and an occasional experimental movie thrown in from time to time. Nothing he'd done before was quite as different as this. The actor hadn't starred in a full-on comedy before, so this was a gamble, and one that paid off in a big way. One of the keys to that success was the inclusion of Manis, a member of Bobby Berosini's orangutan act. 

Manis played Clyde, an ape Philo won in a bet taking on four guys in a fight. A strong bond is presented between Philo and Clyde that reportedly extended to their offscreen companionship as well. Clint was said to occasionally visit Manis when he was performing at Vegas shows as part of Berosini's act. Sadly, Manis wasn't able to return for the sequel as he had grown too large (sources state the ape was 11 years old at the time), and was believed to have become too aggressive.

When Clyde isn't accompanying Philo to bars, he's making a nuisance of himself at home with Ma, Orville's foul-mouthed mother. Ruth Gordon and Clyde battle it out onscreen to see who can steal the most scenes. Speaking of thievery, Clyde loves stealing Ma's Oreos; and that's one thing Ma doesn't like to share is her Oreos.

To say Ruth Gordon is a scene-stealin', show-stoppin', shotgun blastin' granny grumpus is an understatement. The personification of the cranky old lady, Gordon plays the cliches to the hilt and then some. She gets many of the best lines, and her delivery is comedy gold. She also has a grand old potty mouth that begs the question if Gordon had ever spent time on a sailor's ship. 

John Quade is perfectly cast as Cholla, the leader of The Black Widows, a dopey, clumsy-footed biker gang that are about as threatening as a car-load of circus clowns. They have their own theme music, and function as little more than cartoon characters. They have a few run-ins with Philo, and every time the result is the same -- bruised, battered, and beaten. There's a running gag that for every scuffle the Black Widows get into, they not only lose the fight and a little more dignity, but lose a bike or two in the process.

Former Italian muscleman and western star, American Dan Vadis has a role as one of the BWs. He's slimmed down considerably from his busier movie acting days in the 1960s. Still very toned, Vadis appeared in numerous supporting roles in a variety of Eastwood movies. 

Geoffrey Lewis is an extraordinary character actor. The man has played virtually every kind of role in domestic and foreign productions. His part as Orville Boggs is possibly his best remembered, and it's one he reprised for the sequel. He runs a tow service and acts as Philo's fight manager. He plays perfectly off of Eastwood. It's never revealed in the film, but if you didn't look at the end credits, or recall a line from Eastwood, you'd swear the two men were playing brothers.

If there's any real negative in this movie, it's the inclusion of Putnam, an off-duty cop who starts trouble with Philo in a bar after opening his mouth to which Beddoe promptly closes it. His pride hurt, the officer takes vacation time to chase Beddoe down in the hopes of returning the favor. The inclusion of Putnam does nothing except add another character chasing Beddoe while he chases Lynn. Which brings us to....

Sondra Locke had co-starred in Clint's movies since the late 70s and her role here isn't the most wholesome -- playing a hustler that moves from one town, and one man to the next. Locke's portrayal of bar band singer Lynn Halsey-Taylor is eerily foreshadowing of public opinion in lieu of how the couple ended up by the end of the decade, and again in the mid 90s. The two had both a romantic, and working relationship that melted down in 1989 during some ugly mud-slinging and a lawsuit. A second round of legalities came in 1995 when Locke was awarded an undisclosed amount. She told reporters, "I don't have to worry about working -- let's put it that way", and "I'm very happy with the settlement, but it wasn't about money; it was about closure". Her first appearance in a Clint flick was in THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES (1976) and the last being SUDDEN IMPACT (1983).

The sequence near the end where Beddoe realizes his action-oriented journey has been all for nothing other than the viewing audiences enjoyment is the one time the film gets serious. There's also a bit of irony in that this is one film where the hero doesn't get the girl in the end; instead, Orville gets a girl in the form of the sexy Beverly D'Angelo, a young lady running a fruit and vegetable stand with the freshest melons for miles. a few years later she was taking a VACATION of another sort with Chevy Chase in the 1983 National Lampoon classic.

The bittersweet finale doesn't stop with Philo learning the woman he'd been pursuing wasn't much of a lady; he sets up a bare-knuckle brawl with the legendary Tank Murdock (western star Walter Barnes), a fighter we hear a lot about, but never see till the end. Philo, enraged and smarting from the emotional beating he took from Lynn, pummels the aging bruiser; and as the crowd begins to boo their hero, Beddoe's next move is one you don't quite expect.

Much of the success of Fargo's film goes to the country music soundtrack spearheaded by Eddie Rabbitt's hit song of the same name. The song, 'Every Which Way But Loose', climbed to #1 for three weeks in 1979 on Billboard's Country chart, and #30 on the Hot 100. Mel Tillis and Charlie Rich feature on a few songs a piece, and Sondra Locke sings a tune or two.

So what if critics trashed it? EVERY WHICH WAY BUT LOOSE may be missing a plot, but it makes up for it in sheer quirkiness; and combining elements that don't appear to be a good match, but in the end, go great together. Both films have been on television countless times, so it's doubtful if most viewers haven't seen it at some point. If not, get ready for one of the manliest movies of all time, good times, good tunes, and a movie that will turn you Every Which Way But Loose.  

This review is representative of the Warner Brothers DVD.