Uncommon Valor: Difference between revisions

 

It is [[The Eighties]], and Col. Jason Rhodes (Hackman), a [[The Korean War|Korean war]] veteran, is haunted by the loss of his son, Frank, who has been Missing In Action [[The Vietnam War|since 1972]]. After a [[Adult Fear|particularly disturbing]] [[Bad Dreams|nightmare]], he decided to take action. He [[Screw the Rules, I Have Connections|petitions the government and all of his military contacts]] to no avail, eventually being [[Reluctant Retiree|forceably retired for being a nuisance]]. What's a [[Papa Wolf]] to do? Team up with the father of another MIA, now an oil magnate (Stack) for finances and recruit your son's former squadmates, drill them into a precise military unit with the help of a young Marine Kevin Scott (Swayze), and send them back to the war they've been trying to escape for the last 10 years.

* [[Action Girl]]: Lai Fun, and to a lesser extent, her sister.

* [[Badass]]: The whole crew, but Sailor and Wilkes specifically..

* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: {{spoiler|Rhodes's son died of illness several years before in the very camp they found. He was too late to save his son, but found Macgregor's son and three others for whom the war is now over.}}

* [[Calling the Old Man Out]]: inverted, as it's the veteran Sailor who calls out the much younger Scott. Scott is [[Bring It|confident]] and leaps at the chance to show off his Kung Fu, [[Punch-Punch-Punch Uh-Oh|but it doesn't]] [[Curb Stomp Battle|go well]] [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass|for him]].

* [[Chainsaw Good]]: Sailor manages to find a CHAINSAW on their practice run through the mock-up village. He even takes out a cardboard cut-out guard with it.

* [[Chekhov's Gun]]: {{spoiler|Sailor's Grenade}}

** ''"You come in low under his line of sight. You leap... taking him down, placing your hand over his nose, pulling his face away from you. At the base of his skull, to the right of the spine, into what the Chinese call the Wind Gate. You insert, scramble the brains. What you have is instant rag doll."''

* Desolation Shot: The team travel through the remains of a village whose every inhabitant was killed by mustard gas.

* [[Heroic BSOD]]: One of these lead to Wilkes' claustrophobia and disconnection from life.

** also Scott after {{spoiler|Blaster is killed and Chart's helicopter is shot down. It sends him berserk and screaming out of cover [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|charging a gunboat by himself to save Charts.]]}}

** {{spoiler|Rhodes' son Frank was captured after stopping to retreive Macgregor's son and carrying the injured man to the helicopter.}}

* [[Hero Stole My Bike]]: ''"Wilkes, we need transportation." "Buy it, or borrow it?" "'''Steal''' the fucker!"''

* [[Paper-Thin Disguise]]: Putting a hat and a poncho over Randall "Tex" Cobb doesn't disguise that it's Randall "Tex" Cobb travelling through Laos.

* [[Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner]]: Sailor gets three in a row:

** ''"Boy... you just bought the '''whole can''' of '''WHOOP-ASS!'''" *cue [[Foe-Tossing Charge]]*''

** ''*after being thrown** Boy, usin' that Oriental martial bullshit on me is gonna get REAL expensive." *cue [[Curb Stomp Battle|stomping]]*''

* [[Security Blanket]]: Sailor's grenade. ''"Well, Sailor figures if life gets too shitty, he'd just pull the pin, and see what's next."''

** played completely serious with one of the POWs: {{spoiler|when Sailor breaks down the door to take him home, the POW, who's so weak he can barely lift his head to speak, refuses to leave because he can't leave "The garden". Sailor expediates matters by reassuring him ''"Don't worry. We'll take the garden with us."''}}

* [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?]]: played straight with the claustrophobic former tunnel rat Wilkes being forced by circumstance to explore a drain into the POW camp.

* [[Wretched Hive]]: The Blue Parrot bar, complete with slimy maitre d, patrons firing guns into the ceiling to the music, the menus being lists of weaponry, and the basement being a huge warehouse of guns.

[[Category:Films of the 1980s]]

[[Category:Uncommon Valor]]