Los perros de la guerra

That is, not for those with child like tastes. If you require non-stop action ... move along. The characters are set up nicely and Walken is just too cool, I think it's his best performance. Most of his fans don't know about this movie but it's a gem. There are a few scenes I would have left on the cutting floor but they can be overlooked. There's a scene with his doctor that is worth watching the whole movie over. But there's plenty more. There's good dialog, nice scenery, some action and some characters you actually care about. This is not an assault on your senses; you will have to pay attention to enjoy it. But it will be worth your time. If you are a fan of Christopher Walken, then it will be well worth your time.

An effective and efficient little film detailing the story of a military coup in an African country. This one's based on a novel by Frederick Forsyth, so it has more realism behind it than some I could mention, and as an added bonus the director is John Irvin, who later went on to make the equally authentic HAMBURGER HILL. This one stands out because it has an actual plot to it leading up to the big action scene at the end, and that alone makes it more original than 99% of the guys-on-a-mission type films that came out in the 1980s.

Christopher Walken, twitchy and solemn, stands out in this early role as the hard-ass mercenary who's seen plenty of conflict over the years. Walken is a guy who seems to live and breathe his characters rather than the other way round, and he's one of the best things in this film. His trip to the made-up African nation of Zangora is fraught with peril and tension, and yet seems real throughout in the same way that a film like BLOOD DIAMOND had the ring of authenticity to it.

The violence that follows is expected yet none the less shocking for it, and even the character building exposition scenes back in the West are handled in such a way that you never lose interest in the proceedings. Then things shift up a gear for the pyrotechnic meltdown at the climax, which is more familiar to fans of action and war movies, but the strong storyline proceeding this moment makes it all the more full of impact.

Not sure I was really aware of this before flipping it on. I was pretty surprised with some of the directions this one took. It definitely doesn't follow the super generic formulas that most movies would have. The inverse of that is, it's not super memorable in any particular way. So I give it credit for not fitting into a perfect mold of cookie cutter storytelling, but it needed something, a spark to make it stand out more.

Decent watch if it happens to be on, no real reason to go out of your way for it though.

Oddly enough I have never heard about "The Dogs of War" before now in mid-2019 when I found the movie. I saw that Christopher Walken was in it, and that was all I needed to sit down and watch it.

Turns out that "The Dogs of War" was actually a nice and enjoyable movie. Now, mind you, this movie definitely has its ups and down, some thrilling parts and some less thrilling parts. But the overall result of director John Irvin's movie from 1980 was actually good.

The storyline is good and you easily and quickly immerse yourself into the plot and storyline. And the pacing of the movie was, for the most parts, quite good.

The characters in the movie were fair and well enough detailed to make you have an interest in them. And they had a good ensemble of actors and actresses to portray the various roles. Needless to say that Christopher Walken was of course carrying the movie quite nicely. And he had some good assistance from the likes of Tom Berenger and Paul Freeman. It was a nice surprise to see the likes of Ed O'Neil and JoBeth Williams in a movie such as this, despite having small roles.

While "The Dogs of War" certainly was entertaining for what it turned out to be, I wouldn't really say that this the type of movie that you will watch more than once. It just didn't really have enough contents to warrant more than a single viewing.

There is a wonderful sense of good old days to "The Dogs of War" in terms of the way the story was told and how the movie was constructed and executed. So there could be some nostalgic value to the movie for some viewers as well.

This movie is the most realistic treatment I've seen of what real mercenary operations and business travels are like. Any who have traveled to third world hell holes like "Zangaro" feel as though they must have had a camera following them around to get the background for this movie, the airport arrival, the hotel holding passports, the "tour guide" and the bar toast are as realistic as you can get. If you like movies that show the real nitty gritty, the backdoor politics, the backstabbing and intrigue that is international diplomacy catch this one the next time it's on cable.