Interceptor

Hey, who would have thought, this movie is actually pretty good and fun to watch. Performances are good all around, too, especially Prochnow as the main bad guy (it's definitely a bit of a typecast, but hey, he's cool). And it's really nice to see Andrew Divoff playing the role of the hero for one time. The budget wasn't that high and you can see this on the screen, but a high budget doesn't guarantee a good movie ("Air Force One" anyone...?). This one's alright, watch it.

I first saw "Interceptor" when it was shown on TV as part of non-stop, pro-military/pro-veteran movie marathon on the 4th of July, which I personally think, given the nature of this film, was in entirely bad taste. (Is there some reason why practically every movie that features the F-117 comes out cheesy? It's the most popular aircraft in cheesy movies to be blown up, stolen, modified, etc.) Basically the plot is simple: a bunch of fanatical terrorists have a chance to steal two special F-117s with a unique guidance system and aerial-deployable folding wings. The whole movie is packed with people being killed in strange and unusual ways. While violence is a key part of your modern action genre, "Interceptor" has a strange way of making all the violence in the film seem tacky or purely gratuitous. Aside from that, "Interceptor" is thin in story and plot, with has little espionage intrigue to offer.

A group of terrorists led by the wonderfully eeevil Phillips (Jurgen Prochnow), board a C-5 cargo plane in order to gain access to the extremely valuable cargo in the hold.

The fight is on, with the baddies gaining the upper hand through attrition. It's up to the survivors to fend off these odious thugs or allow them to carry out their diabolical plot.

INTERCEPTOR is, in spite of its obviously low budget, a tremendous action film. Yes, it borrows heavily from the likes of DIE HARD, UNDER SEIGE, etc., but so did just about every other such movie of its era.

It's actually exciting, especially considering the tight space in which the drama unfolds. Prochnow is excellent, and watch for Andrew "Wishmaster" Divoff as a good guy!

Highly recommended for the action addict!...

In reality this is a fun movie. It is a simple good guy vs bad guy story. During the story you learn just how bad the "evil" guys are. By the final scene you can find yourself cheering the good guys.

On the other hand,

If you have any knowledge of military aircraft you must suspend a "lot" of disbelief. I was in the U.S. Air Force and stationed at Dover AFB at the time this movie came out. For those that don't know, Dover AFB is the home of 48 C-5 Galaxy's. When this move was released it ran in our break room nonstop for two weeks. In spite of all the jeers about the errors in the aircraft we still found ourself clapping at the end of the movie. I only wish it was my aircraft that was blown up (70-00452)

In the end I don't really view this movie to be a military film, but rather a story of a hero overcoming adversity. The setting of a military aircraft just makes it a convenient way to tell which side is which.

This is a sufficiently entertaining ride. Oh, it's not a masterpiece, and it does little to challenge genre conventions. And I think it can be fairly widely agreed that the visor looks downright goofy(maybe they didn't think so at the time), and it should definitely be pointed out that this is really *not* a sci-fi flick, and the only element of such that there is in this is the high-tech jet(and they don't exactly spend the whole movie in it). With that said, some of this is pretty damn cool. The Virtual Reality isn't groundbreaking(anymore), but at least they didn't base the whole thing around it *cough* Lawnmower Man *cough*. And many of the FX are quite convincing. The numerous strong moments in the editing and cinematography deserve mention, as well. This is directed by the man who went on to do Snow White: A Tale of Terror, one of the too few adaptations of fairy tales that actually capture the grim nature of rather a lot of them(seriously, go read the originals, then, if you can stand it, watch some Disney to compare), and while he's doesn't do fantastic on either, he makes them work and even stand out from the bunch, marginally. He takes what could be instantly forgettable and makes it have a smidgen of an impression. There is great tension and suspense in this, and it genuinely gets the job done, engaging and exciting us for the nicely paced, doesn't-overstay-its-welcome 90 minutes. The action isn't bad. There is a decent sense of humor here and there in this. The writing is good at times. I personally love Divoff and Prochnow(who *revels* in his role as the villain), albeit for entirely different reasons. They both deliver solid performances. The rest of the acting varies. Andrew portrays a pilot who abandons a plane being tested, and then flies with a massive transport, carrying the two experimental stealth fighters. Terrorists attack, intending to steal them. Fun, and never claims to be anything other than what it is. There is a bit of disturbing content and brutal, if not terribly bloody or gory, violence, in this. I recommend it to anyone looking for a simple picture that just needs to deliver the goods. 6/10