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Gene Hackman, Owen Wilson, Gabriel Macht, Charles Malik Whitfield, Joaquim de Almeida ... see more see more... , David Keith , Olek Krupa , Vladimir Mashkov , Marko Ogonda , Elizabeth P. Perry , Eyal Podell

A television commercial for a Sega game system that aired during the 1999 MTV Music Video Awards landed debut director John Moore a gig behind the camera of this military action thriller. Owen Wilson ... read more read more...stars as Lt. Chris Burnett, a naval aviator aboard the U.S.S. Carl Vinson who's frustrated with the strict "hands-off" political policies that prevent him from experiencing combat against hostile Bosnian forces in his F/A-18 Superhornet jet. Burnett's commander, Admiral Reigert (Gene Hackman), thinks that the brash pilot doesn't have what it takes to be in the millitary, but the eager young officer soon gets the chance to prove his mettle. While conducting a routine photographic reconnaissance over a remote area of the Balkans, Burnett captures grisly images that serve as proof of genocidal crimes, but his plane is blown out of the sky. He's soon pursued on the ground by the forces of Lokar (Olek Krupa), a Serbian paramilitary leader intent on covering up unthinkable crimes, while Reigert defies the NATO orders of his superior (Joaquim de Almeida) and risks his career to mount a covert rescue mission. Behind Enemy Lines (2001), the first of two back-to-back releases starring Wilson and Hackman (the other being The Royal Tenenbaums), also stars David Keith, Gabriel Macht, and Charles Malik Whitfield. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Flixster Users

65% liked it

301,118 ratings

Critics

37% liked it

130 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: John Moore

Release Date: November 30, 2001

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DVD Release Date: April 23, 2002

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Stats: 7,541 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (7,541)

  • TheDudeLebowski65
    November 10, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    Behind Enemy Lines is a decent action film. The film is a departure for Owen Wilson who has worked exclusively in the comedy genre. Behind Enemy Lines is not a perfect film, but for what it is, the film succeeds somewhat at being entertaining despite the fact that the film at tim... read morees fails at displaying a conventional, believable plot. If you can forget that aspect of the film, you may be able to enjoy it. I did like the film, but it's not one of those films that I'll watch again anytime soon. The film is entertaining for what it is, but it never does succeed at being an effective and good action that will really astound you. Owen Wilson is decent here, and Gene Hackman is wasted here however. The film could have been much better than this, but for the most part, it's a pleasant time waster that does entertain despite its somewhat ludicrous plot. The film is nothing I'd call great, but for what it is, it succeeds at being mindless entertainment. Behind Enemy Lines is a popcorn flick pure and simple. Though this film could have been better, Behind Enemy Lines is a decent film that manages to entertain, and be mindless, fun entertainment. The film could have been worse, but the end result is a decent action film that delivers some decent action despite the fact that the film lacks any strong plot development to really make this a memorable action film to watch. Worth watching at least once.
  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    August 8, 2011
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    Prepare to cross the line.

    Very good movie! It's shocking to see Owen Wilson in this film since usually his roles are in comedies but he did quite good as a air force soldier. The story was interesting and in a few moments intense, not bat at all.

    Lt. Chris Burnett has lost fai... read moreth in his job in the Navy and wants to get out, and is even forced to do a reconnaissance mission with his friend Lt. Jeremy Stackhouse over Bosnia. During the mission, they fly their jet off course to check out a suspicious target that turns out to be the site of a mass grave that contains bodies of Bosnian Muslims. The main perpetrator of the massacre, Gen. Miroslav Lokar, has the plane shot down in order to avoid having the plane obtaining evidence of the massacre. Stackhouse ends up getting killed, while Burnett finds himself alone on the run from Lokar's ruthless soldiers. Burnett's commanding officer, Rear Admiral Leslie Reigart, has trouble gaining approval from his own commanding officers to carry out a search-and-rescue mission to save Burnett. From encountering a major battle in a war-torn town, to mine fields, to Serb soldiers seeking the pilot, and to a highly skilled sniper, will Burnett be able to escape Bosnia, or will he suffer the same fate of his comrade?
  • deano
    May 24, 2011
    deano
    Superb and touching action-thriller film. The action sequences and visual effects are superb. The missile-jet scene has some of the best surround sound I have ever heard in an action scene, along with super visuals. Owen Wilson's travails, as he tries to stay alive in hostile ter... read moreritory while red-tape holds up his rescue efforts, are fascinating. The action scenes are quite different, too.
    The characters were solid, and director John Moore emphiseses the war - torn cities of Bosnia quite well. Wilson is excellent at portraying a character way out of his comfort zone, and Vladimir Mashkov's chilling as a Serbian sniper.
  • CloudStrife84
    January 25, 2011
    CloudStrife84
    No deeper analyze is required as to why this has received such heavy critism. It's naive, stupid and questionably executed. Just take the choice of music for example, which in some places sounds like something out of a high school comedy. Also to add to the list of negatives is t... read morehe unfitting humor. Some of it works, but too often it doesn't. If this was an action-comedy I'd been fine with it, but in regard to the seriousness of the story, it feels completely out of place. Too much joking around, when the characters ought to have survival on their mind. It's as if it's been directed by a kid whose playing war with real actors. No sense of thought behind his actions and with camera movements so irratic, it appears random and unplanned. Moreover, the fact that they hired Owen Wilson to play the main character, is like letting Robin Williams star as Jason Bourne. Not the most suitable choice. What speaks for it in positive terms though, is the action. I can't say it ever bored me, and it's got enough excitement value to keep you watching. So in the larger frame of things, it's not half-bad. Just lacking a soul and a brain and some meat on its legs. For such a skeleton of a movie though, it sure knows how to run and keep a good pace.
  • ythelastman89
    March 30, 2010
    ythelastman89
    Kind've just an odd casting selection, but it's not as corny as you might expect. The fact that it's Gene Hackman and Owen Wilson makes it worthwhile and the plot is somewhat original and engaging. I would say it's something that's fun to watch on tv if you have nothing better to... read more do.
  • MeetMeinMontauk
    January 23, 2010
    MeetMeinMontauk
    Ah-MAZE-ingly predictable plot. Wow. But it was on AMC and I was battling a migraine. Still, Owen Wilson in a serious role kept me intrigued enough to not turn it to other crappy cable shows. I did find it amusing that for the first 70% of the movie all Owen Wilson did was run....
  • fb619846742
    October 31, 2009
    fb619846742
    An occasionally intense and superbly acted war movie that is weighed down by a "Hollywood"-feeling plot and a ridiculous finale. Besides "Bottle Rocket", this might be Owen Wilson's best performance, I'd like to see him try some more dramatic roles. The ending, as expected, is pr... read moreedictable you never truly feel fear for the soldier's life because the movie doesn't do a great job coloring him in the first place. However, most of the action scenes are well-done, Wilson does what he can with his character, and this makes this movie a "maybe" see.
  • SirPant
    September 23, 2009
    SirPant
    A below average action film with a very unconvincing performance by Owen.
  • TheMachinist
    December 11, 2008
    TheMachinist
    Owen Wilsons effort to become an action star fails. I could probably end it right here but I guess I have to explain myself...

    "Behind Enemy Lines" is another generic action movie that tries to score but misses the goal. Sure there are some scenes that have some tension in 'em b... read moreut the end scene were they rescue Wilson's character (like you didn't know that would happen!) is full of clichés. Imagine Wilson skip his first rescue attempt and slide on the ice and shoot accurate shots with a 9 mm against soldiers who have no sense of self protection.

    Owen Wilson is no action star, that's for sure. He should stick with comedies and leave the genre to washed out WWF wrestlers... (You know I'm kidding about the wrestlers, right?)

    On the plus side, the cinematography has its moments, and the tension suprises the viewers at times, but I think it's best that you watch it once and forget it immediately after that.
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    December 1, 2008
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "In War There Are Some Lines You Should Never Cross."

    Owen Wilson stars as Lt. Chris Burnett, a naval aviator aboard the U.S.S. Carl Vinson who's frustrated with the strict "hands-off" political policies that prevent him from experiencing combat against hostile Bosnian fo... read morerces in his F/A-18 Superhornet jet. Burnett's commander, Admiral Reigert (Gene Hackman), thinks that the brash pilot doesn't have what it takes to be in the millitary, but the eager young officer soon gets the chance to prove his mettle. While conducting a routine photographic reconnaissance over a remote area of the Balkans, Burnett captures grisly images that serve as proof of genocidal crimes, but his plane is blown out of the sky. He's soon pursued on the ground by the forces of Lokar (Olek Krupa), a Serbian paramilitary leader intent on covering up unthinkable crimes, while Reigert defies the NATO orders of his superior (Joaquim de Almeida) and risks his career to mount a covert rescue mission.

    Review
    I want go into much detail, but to sum it up: Behind Enemy Lines is a cheesy, generic action flick with a dumb, clichéd plot (if you consider that a plot), unrealistic, gung-ho action, and a distasteful covering of the conflict in Bosnia. If you're looking for a summer action flick, with its share of guns and explosions, it'll do fine (though there are definitely better), if you actually enjoy quality films and enjoy intelligence, skip it. Wilson, an American pilot, disobeys orders and ends up getting shot over Bosnia. Of course, we have Hackman, the American officer who will risk countless lives in order to get "his man back".

View All Behind Enemy Lines Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jeff Strickler
November 6, 2002
Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune

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

Michael O'Sullivan
December 8, 2001
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post

An old-fashioned game of the cinematic cat-and-mouse, soldier-on-the-run variety.

Rex Reed
December 6, 2001
Rex Reed, New York Observer

The only thing certain about Behind Enemy Lines is that Mr. Wilson is in it for the chance to work with Mr. Hackman, and Mr. Hackman is in it for the money. Full Review

Richard Roeper
December 3, 2001
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

A piece of junk. Full Review

Kenneth Turan
November 30, 2001
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

Pro forma stuff, so much so that you start to wonder why no fetching femme resistance fighter materializes to help the Americans on the ground. Full Review

Rita Kempley
November 30, 2001
Rita Kempley, Washington Post

This baby comes equipped with all the bells and missiles. Given the standard-issue plot, it's about all it can be.

Mike Clark
November 30, 2001
Mike Clark, USA Today

The pop-soundtrack bombast of the too-infrequently somber Behind Enemy Lines ... sometimes reduces a mediocre pursuit movie with capable action to 'Rockin' Bosnia.' Full Review

Peter Howell
November 30, 2001
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Directed by first-timer John Moore on the strength of his work on a Sega game ad, which may tell you everything you need to know about its visual sense and narrative nonsense. Full Review

Mick LaSalle
November 30, 2001
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

'Oh no, what will happen to Tom Cruise!' -- that might have worked. 'Oh no, what will happen to Owen Wilson!' just doesn't cut it. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
November 30, 2001
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

If you're looking for anything beyond flashy entertainment, Behind Enemy Lines feels out of whack from the start. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Stackhouse: Yet another useless joyride at the cost of mere millions to the US taxpayer.
    • Reigart: Burnett! Zero six, you are a combat naval aviator. Start acting like one. You've been shot down. Life is tough. I am very sorry. Now you pull yourself together. You do whatever it takes. Create some angles between you and your pursuers. Use your training. Use your head. Evade and survive, and we will bring you home. Do you understand? We will bring you home!
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Behind Enemy Lines Trivia

  • He was Behind Enemy Lines while being part of the Wedding Crashers and Shanghai Knights. Who is he?  Answer »
  • Owen Wilson starred with Gene Hackman in what movie?  Answer »
  • In which movie did Gene Hackman and Owen Wilson both star in?  Answer »
  • In Behind Enemy Lines, in which country is Owen Wilson shot down?  Answer »
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