Bat*21 (1988)

During the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.

Director:

Peter Markle

Writers:

William C. Anderson (book), William C. Anderson (screenplay)

Stars:

Gene Hackman, Danny Glover, Jerry Reed

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gene Hackman	...	Lt. Colonel Iceal Hambleton
Danny Glover	...	Captain Bartholomew Clark
Jerry Reed	...	Colonel George Walker
David Marshall Grant	...	Ross Carver
Clayton Rohner	...	Sgt. Harley Rumbaugh
Erich Anderson	...	Major Jake Scott
Joe Dorsey	...	Colonel Douglass
Michael Ng	...	Vietnamese Man (as Rev. Michael Ng)
Theodore Chan Woei-Shyong	...	Boy on Bridge
Don Ruffin	...	Helicopter Crew
Scott Howell	...	Helicopter Crew
Michael Raden	...	Helicopter Crew
Timothy Fitzgerald	...	EB-66 Officer
Stuart B. Hagen	...	EB-66 Officer (as Stuart Hagen)
Jeffrey Baxter	...	Helicopter Gunner (as Jeff Baxter)

Storyline

Lt. Col. Iceal "Ham" Hambleton is a weapons countermeasures expert and when his aircraft is shot over enemy territory the Air Force very much wants to get him back. Hambleton knows the area he's in is going to be carpet-bombed but a temporary shortage of helicopters causes a delay. Working with an Air Force reconnaissance pilot, Capt. Bartholomew Clark, he maps out an escape route based on golf courses he has played. Along the way however, he has to face enemy forces and the death of some of his fellow soldiers.

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Plot Keywords:

helicopter | vietnam | vietnam war | rescue | pilot | 

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Taglines:

Trapped behind enemy lines. A whole army after him... And only one man can save him.

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Gene Hackman is approaching the villager's hut, he startles a chicken. A string was tied to the chicken's leg & Gene Hackman "trips" the string which pulls the chicken out of the doorway. He then acts startled.

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Goofs

The "Jolly Green Giant" helicopter is actually a Siskorsky S-61, a type built for the U.S. Navy. The Siskorsky HH3-F was used by the U.S. Air Force and featured a ramp at the rear of the fuselage. The S-61 did not have a ramp.

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Quotes

Capt. Bartholomew Clark: Let's get the basic relationship down... I'm the lifeguard, you're the drowning man. If you relax, I can bring you to shore. If you fight me, then I'll have to slap you around.

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Connections

Edited into Gale Force (2002)

User Reviews

A well-made Vietnam movie but ...

.... this was supposed to be a "true" story, so why not tell it as it really happened? Of course, there are always budget restraints and other considerations that come into play. But I can never quite work out why Hollywood changes crucial facts of a real story when making "true-life" movies of this type. Don't get me wrong - I saw this movie for the first time just last week, a full 13 years after it first appeared, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It didn't glorify war at all, and some of the scenes were quite shocking and moving. However, having read the TRUE story of BAT 21 some years ago, I couldn't help thinking "hang on a minute - it didn't happen like that!!!" In reality, the actual 1972 mission to rescue Lt. Col. Hambleton was a very complex affair that lasted for 12 days, the downed airman finally being rescued by a two-man team consisting of a US Navy SEAL lieutenant (who won the Medal Of Honour in the process) and a South Vietnamese Army Ranger. Why not include this in the movie if you're out to tell anything like the true story? Also, several US aircraft and choppers were shot down in the process, with 10 American airmen killed and two more captured. But apart from the superbly done abortive helicopter rescue attempt and the shooting of the captured crewmen, the movie led us to believe that the rescue mission merely consisted of Hambleton (Hackman) escaping & evading on the ground with Clark (Danny Glover) circling above and talking to him on the radio. In reality, Clark was himself shot down early in the mission and had to be rescued, and his role in the actual Hambleton rescue was therefore nothing like that depicted in the film.

But, that said, why let the truth get in the way of a good story? And despite its shortcomings on the historical accuracy front, this was a thoroughly enjoyable film that didn't gloss over or sanitize the horrors of war. Despite my nit-picking, I'd definitely recommend it.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 October 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bat 21

Filming Locations:

Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$982,080, 23 October 1988

Gross USA:

$3,966,256

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,966,256

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures, Vision PDG, Eagle Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1