The Finest Hour

A blend of action/adventure with romantic drama is attempted in this work completed soon after the "Desert Storm" imbroglio in the Middle East, showcasing Rob Lowe and Gale Hansen as U. S. Navy Seals sharing a desire for underwater military operations as well as for a comely marine biologist played by Tracy Griffith. As the film opens, Lawrence Hammer (Lowe) and Dean Meszoly (Hansen) become best friends while training in California to be Seals, where they meet and compete for favours from Barbara (Griffith); after the course is successfully completed, a Las Vegas sojourn for R & R is discontinued by sudden nuptials for Hammer and Barbara, an event that Dean regards with despair, and so the companionship of the young commandos is no more. The impending U.S./Iraq conflict, as orchestrated via "Desert Shield", forms the background for the picture's largest segment, as the two Naval officers, now become mini-sub specialists upon opposite American coasts, are reunited as members of a task force to be deployed near an island in the Strait of Hormuz where an Iraqi naval site is reportedly being developed in order to utilize biological warfare. During what is nearly a suicide mission, Hammer receives severe wounds, and Meszoly requests that Barbara come to Dubai to visit her husband in hospital, hopefully expediting recuperation, but Hammer soon joins his fellow Seals in a last chance foray to destroy the biochemical weapons, no matter what risks the team must take. The disparate components - personal relationships and combat daring - do not mesh here, primarily from a lack of directoral clarity, in addition to blocking gaffes, as improbabilities quickly become cliche, although there are some suspenseful moments. The production was shot at and about San Diego and its environs, with acting honours going to Hansen who creates a layered role; actual doctored film segments made during Desert Storm seem positively instructional in comparison with this feature, that additionally casts mainly Israeli players in Arab parts.

I think the last Aussie reviewer hit the nail on the head. This movie despite being based on the experiences of an elite US naval frog team at war is surprisingly value-neutral when it comes to extolling the virtues of the US military, or even the reasons for going to war. This may have to do with the fact that the writer/director, Shimon Dotan, is an Israeli. In short, I enjoyed this movie, because it introduces some character development in a genre where it is often conspicuously absent. The casting of Rob Lowe as the career jackass was a stroke of genius! That said, there are aspects of honour and sacrifice inherent in his role, which he does bring out. However, like others I felt Gale Hansen stole the show with his role as the strong-willed and dependable leader contrasting with Lowe's as the antithesis. I like the fact that everything didn't work out at the end, and the monologue delivered at the end summed up the whole experience nicely. Go see it.

Gale Hansen features in this a lot in spite of being second billed on the credits. He is good with the role that is, unfortunately, limited in any interesting dialogue. In fact the whole film lacks creative flair, which is a pity because it is quite a good story line with some good actors. The overall production is clichéd and, at times, boring. Yet the two story lines, triangular love affair and strategic target of an Iraqi base with chemical weapons, had a lot of potential. The military one is handled better than the love affair which required a greater deftness of touch than the director or screen play allowed.

There are lots of close-up shots of Gale (and Rob Lowe) and he plays the more rounded and sympathetic character though the camaraderie between his character - Mazzoli - and Rob's - Hammer - is good.

My rating (6/10) is for Gale and the overall acting rather than the film itself.

I have to admit, I only knew about this movie because my boyfriend was actually In The Navy during the time this movie was being filmed. Come To find out, he was stationed aboard the USS Kincaid, also known as the Kinky D, while this film was shot, and she is featured in the film multiple times. So now my boyfriend claims he starred in a movie with Rob Lowe, because he was aboard the USS Kincaid DD965 as they filmed her for use in the movie. I thought it was pretty good and he loved the Naval nostalgia.

The best part of this film was the two minutes of documentary footage from the First Gulf War. Everything else was ridiculously stupid and unbelievable. Now I was a soldier, not even special ops, yet the training and combat scenes made me cringe. However, I do highly recommend it for Mystery Science Theater 3000 treatment!