Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11599 in DVD
• Released on: 2002-09-02
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: Czech, English, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 101 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Smart casting and sensible plotting make Behind Enemy Lines an above-average military thriller. Perfectly timed to bolster US patriotism, the film is partly set (during a hypothetical "day after tomorrow") on the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, which was on alert status in the Persian Gulf when this film was released theatrically in the States. Proving his versatility as an unconventional movie star, Owen Wilson plays a navy navigator who is shot down over Bosnia during a reconnaissance mission. Pursued by rebel Serbian forces, Wilson must fight for survival while his commanding officer (Gene Hackman) plots a daredevil rescue.

After a successful career in TV commercials, Irish director John Moore makes a promising feature debut on Slovakian locations, borrowing a few techniques from Saving Private Ryan while adding impressive flourishes of his own. The gung-ho ending's a foregone conclusion, but it works like a charm after the movie's exciting game of cat and mouse.--Jeff Shannon

DVD Description
Burnett must struggle to survive in unfamiliar hostile territory with a cold-blooded assassin and hundreds of enemy troops on his heels and finds that his only useful weapon is his will to survive.

Special Features
2.35 Wide Screen
16:9 Wide Screen
DVD 9
English
English
Region 2
DTS 5.1 English\Dolby Digital 5.1 English
DTS 5.1
Dolby Digital 5.1
Audio Commentary By Director John Moore And Editor Martin Smith
Audio Commentary By Producers John Davies And Wick Godfrey
Behind The Scenes Featurette
Pre Vis Ejection Sequence
Additional Main Title And Original End Title Sequences
Alternate Take Off Montage
4 Directors Cuts
Scene Access
Interactive Menus

Customer Reviews

Gung ho no brainer
Although it's possible that there's some politically correct people out there that can't enjoy a film if it uses stereotypes, gratuitous violence (most of which ended on the cuttingroom floor anyway), or "typical" Hollywood hamfistedness when tackling issues of recent times that they don't fully understand, Behind Enemy Lines is *still* a great deal of fun. It's pure Saturday night in popcorn entertainment. It's brash, it's loud, there's a ton of explosions, and deep down in there there's something of a message, although to be honest you'd be hard pushed to find it.
The film follows a disillusioned Navy fighter pilot, on the verge of leaving the service as he's lost track of what it is that he's supposed to be fighting for, who then gets shot down over Bosnia during a routine surveillance mission on Christmas Day. He has to evade capture, and eventually try and get to a pick-up point where he'll be lifted to safety by a rescue team from his aircraft carrier. Throw into the mix a bit of genocide, executions, a long chase a la The Fugitive, political wrangling and a surprising amount of tension and suspense and you've got the recipe for a great night in.
Owen Wilson makes for a decent hero, and the film is edited in a flashy style that's both visually appealing and moves along at a fair old pace. Gene Hackman sleepwalks through his role as "The Admiral", chewing on scenery and barking just like you think he will when you see his name in the opening credits.

Behind Enemy Lines is actually a lot better than you'd think it would, or probably should, be and even though you get the rousing flagwaving anthemic music during the final action sequence, this isn't enough to detract from everything that went before it.

The DVD is a good example of what could have been without too much interference by the US rating board. All the footage that was considered "too graphic" for public consumption appears in the deleted scenes (with optional commentary) - basically more violence during the battle in Hac, and more footage from the mass grave Owen Wilson discovers whilst trying to evade capture. It's grim, but the film could have benefitted from it's inclusion as it lends itself to a darker, more fitting tone. There's alternate takes on various sequences, sfx breakdowns, commentaries, plenty to keep you occupied after watching the film.
The film itself is a stunning presentation, visually it's flawless and the audio, in either Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1, will literally tear your livingroom apart during the action sequences, although it's just as impressive with ambient effects during quieter moments, creating a full 3D soundfield that's amongst the best I've heard.

Very entertaining and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone that can happily remove their brain when they watch these kind of movies

a must for flight fans
This film has some of the best flight sequences I have ever seen. The cinematography is superb, and one gets a glimpse into the speed a pilot experiences as he tries to outmaneuver an oncoming missile; it also shows the "nuts and bolts" of the ejection seat process, which I found fascinating.
Having fairly low expectations for this film, I was amazed at how entertaining and visually stunning it actually is, and am surprised it did not receive greater success in its theatrical release.
It takes place in Bosnia during an imaginary time, with US forces under NATO command, and though fiction, it uses captions at the end, telling the audience what happened to the characters, as if it were a true story.

Filmed on the USS Carl Vinson, and in Slovakia, with the beauty of the Carpathian mountains as a backdrop for the horror of a war zone, director John Moore keeps the pace of this film constantly pumping. Though some characters are somewhat cartoonish, and the script at times silly, much of the acting is good. Gene Hackman can always be depended upon for a solid performance, and Owen Wilson does well as the main protagonist, who starts out as being a rather shallow, whiny fellow, and grows with his extreme experience, as he plays a cat and mouse chase with a Serbian "tracker", played by Russian actor Vladimir Maskov. Gabriel Macht is excellent in the smaller part of the fighter pilot Stackhouse.

Yes, there are times the plot is contrived and not altogether believable, but this is more than made up for by the dazzling cinematography by Brandan Galvin, a fine score by Don Davis, and astounding visual and sound effects…and if you like jets and choppers the way I do, you are guaranteed to like this film.

Atmospheric Action
"Hmmm" is what i thought to myself after watching this film. How was is it that they made a really great movie that begged me to watch and understand every second of tape, without having any women in it? And women with nothing much on either!?

This film about 2 hotshot fliers in the U.S. navy being shot down and rescued has a resonably simple plot bordering on being complicated, which is how i like my films, not a walkthrough, yet not too much thought involved either.

One thing i really liked about this film was the slow motion sequences, like the falling of a gun to the ground after an explosion exposing the clips' spring. I'm not sure how the director does it, but somehow manages to capture the exact feeling of the scene in one short, slow motion event that sums it all up. Lets not get into specifics here, it works and is very good, which is all that counts to you, the viewer.

The music included is another great asset to the overall presentation, with less of the infantry marching band and drum rolls and more tending towards catchy songs, one inparticular caught my attention by Feeder, that just on a CD player doesn't sound anything brilliant, but here it sounds a masterpiece. So, the music goes hand in hand with the film and really gives a more modern and different touch which sets this film apart from its rivals.

For a war conflict (and a recent one too), the script has its funny moments, which doesn't make it tacky or disrespectful in anyway.

Action is constant throughout, so you stunt sequence monkeys/ Matrix fans will be in your essence.

In summary, i would say this film is just top notch, everything about it has been thought through and just works...very well indeed. I can't explain why, just buy it and you'll see what i mean.

It also has moderate replay value; you can watch it more than twice basically and still enjoy the film experience, which is probably aided by the music and uplifting/often comic script.