Iron Eagle (1986)

A young pilot plans a rescue mission when his father, an Air Force Colonel, is shot down over enemy territory and captured.

Director:

Sidney J. Furie

Writers:

Kevin Alyn Elders (as Kevin Elders), Sidney J. Furie

Stars:

Louis Gossett Jr., Jason Gedrick, David Suchet

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Col. Charles 'Chappy' Sinclair
Jason Gedrick	...	Doug Masters
David Suchet	...	Minister of Defense Col. Akir Nakesh
Larry B. Scott	...	Reggie
Caroline Lagerfelt	...	Elizabeth Masters
Jerry Levine	...	Tony
Robbie Rist	...	Milo Bazen
Michael Bowen	...	Knotcher
Robert Jayne	...	Matthew 'Matt' Masters (as Bobby Jacoby)
Melora Hardin	...	Katie
David Greenlee	...	Kingsley
Michael Alldredge	...	Col. Blackburn
Lance LeGault	...	General Edwards (as Lance Le Gault)
Tim Thomerson	...	Col. Ted Masters
Tom Fridley	...	Brillo

Storyline

When Doug's father, an Air Force Pilot, is shot down by MiGs belonging to a radical Middle Eastern state, no one seems able to get him out. Doug finds Chappy, an Air Force Colonel who is intrigued by the idea of sending in two fighters piloted by himself and Doug to rescue Doug's father after bombing the MiG base. Their only problems: Borrowing two fighters, getting them from California to the Mediteranean without anyone noticing, and Doug's inability to hit anything unless he has music playing. Then come the minor problems of the state's air defenses.

---

Plot Keywords:

two seater aircraft | aircraft cockpit | jet aircraft | warplane | aircraft | 

---

Taglines:

Doug is 18. Raised on an air base and born to fly. His father has been shot down 6000 miles away, and has been sentenced to death... for the crime of being an American. Everyone's telling Doug to sit tight and wait. Everyone but Retired Air Force Colonel Chappy Sinclair. They know what they have to do. And they've "borrowed" a pair of F-16s to do it. For them, waiting time is over.

---

Genres:

Action | Thriller | War

---

Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA Israel Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 January 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der stählerne Adler

Filming Locations:

Ramat David Air Base, Israel

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,104,754, 19 January 1986

Gross USA:

$24,159,872

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures,Delphi Films,Falcon's Flight

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All of the fighter aircraft used (F-16 fighters; plus, F-21/C-2 Kfir fighters depicting enemy MiGs) were Israeli Air Force aircraft, repainted with the U.S. Air Force symbol and a fictitious enemy symbol.

---

Goofs

In some scenes, Doug is driving a red 1966 Mustang convertible, clearly identified by the dash configuration, and the pitchfork quarter panel trim. In other scenes, He is driving a 1965 Mustang which is identified by the honeycomb grille and wings on the corral in the center (not installed on any '66 model)

---

Quotes

Chappy Sinclair: [finding Doug watching TV instead of sleeping the night before the mission] I thought I told you to get some sleep.
Doug Masters: I'm just relaxing a little, watching some TV, I don't need much sleep for this anyway.
Chappy Sinclair: Now how the hell do you know what you need?
Doug Masters: I'm just saying I'm ready for this. You're ready aren't you Chap?
Chappy Sinclair: You think it's gonna be so easy don't you?
Doug Masters: No I don't think it's gonna be all that easy. I'm just saying I'm ready for it that's all
Chappy Sinclair: You ain't ready for shit, boy!
[...]

---

Crazy Credits

The credits are yellow over a blue background, as opposed to the normal white over a black background.

---

Connections

Edited into Final Mission (1994)

---

Soundtracks

Old Enough To Rock And Roll
Written and Performed by Rainey Haynes

User Reviews

If Only I Were Twelve

Ahhh, to be twelve years old again. I'm pretty sure if I was still that age, I would have loved this preposterous medley of bad acting, copious amounts of Queen's "One Vision" and senseless explosions. Sadly (and I do mean that), I've grown up and can recognize IRON EAGLE for what it is... and while it's not god-awful, it's not all that good, either.

IRON EAGLE is the story of new high school grad Doug Masters (Jason Gedrick, whom you'd recognize from CROSSING THE BRIDGE and ONE EYED KING had you ever heard of those movies). His fighter pilot dad has been captured by an evil Middle East country for illegally entering its territory (imagine that!). Now papa's gonna be hung and nobody in the US of A is ready to do anything about... 'cept Doug. So our hero steals military intelligence and an F-16 fighter jet (it's quite easy, really... just get your friends to distract army dudes by 'accidentially' spilling juice on their shirts and stuff). With the help of bright spot Louis Gossett Jr., he soars in to save the day.

IRON EAGLE actually starts out promising. You might even be willing to forgive its ludicrousness, but it gradually morphs into a meaningless series of fireballs and clichéd dialog. It seems perfectly content to dish out cheap thrills to violence-obsessed boys, and do nothing more. It's also too long and at times borders on the laughable. The film still has a certain charm, but unless your night is slower than molasses, you'll want to skip it.