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Movies / Upcoming / Behind Enemy Lines
Behind Enemy Lines

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Behind Enemy Lines (2001)

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Reviews Counted:127

Fresh:46

Rotten:81

Average Rating:4.7/10

Consensus: The plot for Behind Enemy Lines is more jingoistic than credible, and the overload of flashy visual tricks makes the action sequences resemble a video game.

Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

US Box Office: $58,767,833

Synopsis: On a reconnaissance flight over eastern Europe, disillusioned naval pilot Chris Burnett (Owen Wilson) and his partner, Stackhouse (Gabriel Macht), photograph a scene they were not meant to see.... On a reconnaissance flight over eastern Europe, disillusioned naval pilot Chris Burnett (Owen Wilson) and his partner, Stackhouse (Gabriel Macht), photograph a scene they were not meant to see. When their plane is shot down and Stackhouse is quickly captured and executed, Burnett must struggle to survive in unfamiliar hostile territory with a cold-blooded assassin and hundreds of enemy troops on his heels. Meanwhile, on an American battleship in the Adriatic Sea, Burnett's commanding officer, Admiral Reigart (Gene Hackman), attempts to negotiate his soldier's return amidst tense political and military maneuvers. Soon Burnett discovers exactly why he's being hunted, making his situation--and Reigert's actions--even more perilous. Benefiting from Wilson's straightforward performance and Hackman's typically engaging presence, BEHIND ENEMY LINES proves itself with a solid story (loosely based on real-life events) and excellent action sequences. Shot in a cold, icy light, John Moore's film features a nail-biting aerial chase, a tense race across a grenade-filled wasteland, and a stunningly explosive final battle. Wilson, typically cast in quirky comedic roles, is an unlikely action hero who turns out to be the movie's secret weapon. By avoiding excessive macho posturing, BEHIND ENEMY LINES is smarter, more exciting, and better looking than most Hollywood military thrillers. [More]

Starring: Owen Wilson, Gene Hackman, Gabriel Macht, Charles Malik Whitfield

Starring: Owen Wilson, Gene Hackman, Gabriel Macht, Charles Malik Whitfield, Joaquim de Almeida, David Keith, Olek Krupa, Vladimir Mashkov

Director: John Moore

Director: John Moore
Screenwriter: Zak Penn, David Veloz, John Thomas, James Thomas
Producer: John Davis
Composer: Don Davis
Studio: 20th Century Fox

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Reviews for Behind Enemy Lines

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Bubble View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
Reviews
Tomatometer Critic Review Category
N/R

Urban Cinefile Critics

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 09 2002 07:20 PM

Urban Cinefile

splat
3/10

Garth Franklin

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 16 2001 08:14 AM

Dark Horizons

N/R

Robert Koehler

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 01 2009 03:15 AM

Variety

splat
2.5/4

Joe Lozito

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 14 2007 06:04 AM

Big Picture Big Sound

tomato
4/5

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 30 2006 07:39 AM

Empire Magazine

N/R

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 26 2006 03:17 AM

Combustible Celluloid

N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 26 2006 03:16 AM

Time Out

splat
1/5

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 06 2005 08:08 PM

Film Threat

tomato
B

Philip Martin

From its prosaic title to its convenient timeliness, this valentine to U.S. military guys hamstrung by officious NATO bureaucrats could hardly seem less promising

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 07 2005 09:49 AM

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

splat
2/4

Judith Egerton

That's just one of many reasons why I'm reluctant to call Behind the Lines entertainment. Propaganda, MTV-style, might be closer to the truth.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 25 2004 05:56 AM

Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

N/R

Alexander Walker

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 15 2003 05:15 PM

This is London

tomato
C+

Brent Simon

A satisfying enough piece of giddy-up entertainment that raises a few passing questions about the American 'cowboy mentality' before ultimately deciding it’s a lot more fun to simply eat your action movie cake than try to have it too.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 18 2003 11:24 AM

Entertainment Today

splat
2/4

Jeffrey Westhoff

Behind Enemy Lines crosses into the ugly side of patriotism.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 30 2003 04:11 PM

Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

N/R

Eugene Novikov

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 22 2003 05:14 PM

Film Blather

tomato
4/5

John R. McEwen

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Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Feb., 08 2003 08:28 AM

Film Quips Online

splat
2/5

Harry Guerin

Plays more like a recruitment video for the US military than any serious examination of conflict.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 30 2003 03:40 AM

RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland)

splat
1/5

Gareth J. Von Kallenbach

This film was so uninspired and bad, it is difficult to find anything positive to say about it.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 08 2002 08:36 AM

Film Threat

splat

Christopher Tookey

It's pure adventure hokum, despite some end captions which are put up as though the events portrayed really happened (they didn't).

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 10 2002 08:25 AM

Daily Mail [UK]

splat
1/5

James Rocchi

Military thriller aims high and misses the barn door by a mile.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 07 2002 01:23 PM

Netflix

splat

Jeff Strickler

The filmmakers do their best to distract us, but eventually it becomes hard to ignore that Behind Enemy Lines is one long chase sequence.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 06 2002 03:14 PM

Minneapolis Star Tribune

 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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