Cinema Review: Behind Enemy Lines (From Barry And District News)

Cinema Review: Behind Enemy Lines

EVERYONE involved in Hollywood has said crooked nosed Owen Wilson will be a big star one day. He's popped up in supporting roles in films like Armageddon and The Haunting but has never had a proper leading role. Now here is the film that may put him on the Hollywood A-list.

Wilson is a Navy fighter pilot sent to take pictures of rebel Serbian sites from the air. He happens to take pictures of a dozen dead people the Serbs have killed and when they learn of his plan, they shoot him down. Now, alone behind enemy lines, his only hope is for the Navy to save him, but the Serbs are intent on killing him.

If Wilson wants to be a big Hollywood star then he should have picked a different film. Why? because this is a 'popcorn' movie. Critics don't seem to like these films anymore and don't take them seriously, which has happened with this feature. This is unfair because, let's face it, there's nothing like an evening watching basic, entertaining films at the cinema.

This is not brain surgery, just entertainment, and great entertainment it is. Director John Moore seems to think he's Tony Scott at times with his similar visual style which offers nothing fresh but apart from that, he's directed a pretty good film.

Wilson excels. He stalls a few dodgy lines but who really cares? The three main action sequences are brilliant and, seeing it's an action film, dodgy lines seems to be a tradition nowadays.Probably more a male film, Behind Enemy Lines offers nothing new but it's great entertainment. Who needs complicated twists and narratives?