I'm sorry, but I just can't help it, I love watching Iron Eagle. Now, do not misunderstand me, I am not saying that this is a great movie. No, rather, I would put it that this is an endlessly entertaining movie. For people who cut this movie to pieces for not being realistic are kinda missing the point. Of course Iron Eagle's plot was ridiculous. But I believe its target audience was kids, and I sure remember finding this cool when I was little. Now I just find it amusing as a guilty pleasure, kinda like Road House. This movie is part of the great pantheon of 80's, kids-taking-on-the-stodgy-adult-power-structure movies. You must remember D.A.R.Y.L, Real Genius, E.T., etc. If you ask me, just watching Doug and Knotcher "Ride the Snake" in the beginning is worth the cost of the DVD. That whole sequence was so STUPID! But, at the same time, it was hilarious, funny, totally 80's, all that good stuff. So bottom line, Iron Eagle is a great 80's guilty pleasure. The hairstyles, the dancing, the music, the dialogue, its all funny as hell. I have Iron Eagle on DVD and to me it was totally worth $9.99 at Best Buy. If you love laughing at dated, unrealistic action movies, this one is a must-see. Oh yeah, and I think its plot was only marginally stupider than 1986's other fighter pilot action pic, Top Gun.
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scubergmu6 February 2005
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It's not an amazing film. Forget that. But this is great 80's straight to the point plot and resolution. Good dialogue and good action. I'd give it an 8 but that's for my own nostalgia. I won't let that impact my rating.
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Most of us remember Top Gun as being the biggest hit of 1986. Iron Eagle, despite the numerous sequels it produced, has been all but forgotten. However it also made its mark in the same year, just not as big of a mark. Iron Eagle is the story of a teenager (Jason Gedrick) who with the help of an experienced jet pilot (Louis Gossett Jr.) "borrows" a couple F16 fighters to rescue his father who is being held prisoner in a hostile Arabic country. The film is absolutely ludicrous, but definitely a sign of the times back then.
I do not recall if the hostile nation in this film is ever named, but it is obviously based on Lybia who was public enemy #1 for the USA back then. At least as far as non-communist bloc nations were concerned. The main bad guy who seems to be running the show is obviously based on Muammar Gadaffi, too. After a kangaroo court trial, Gedrick's father is sentenced to be hanged for simply being shot down in disputed air space near the enemy coast. (recall Gadaffi's "line of death") The US government seems to be planning no action to rescue the dad. It appears Gedrick and Gossett Jr. are his only hope!!!! In a series of ridiculous scenes perhaps even less probable than the actual air combat scenes, Gedrick and his teenage friends are able to steal all the necessary reconnaissance needed to set up the mission. Gedrick is able to gather enough information to convince Gossett to fly in there with him in his own plane. But can two F16s really penetrate the hostile country's air space and pull off the rescue?????? Sure they can! This was the 1980s!!! Ronald Reagan was president!! Americans could accomplish anything back then!!!! Whether or not this kind of plot seems interesting quickly becomes irrelevant once the film gets going. It is technically inept, full of impossible scenes, and lacking in logic from the get-go. This film was obviously rushed; no doubt to get it released before Top Gun which was a much better film in all areas. There are an embarrassing number of continuity goofs involving the weaponry carried on the wings of the planes. In some shots the planes appear fully loaded for battle. Then, the next shot will show only a couple missiles left. Then, the planes will do some kind of loop da loop and there will be no weapons visible at all. The editing department was either out with the flu or just didn't have time to get things right. The acting isn't bad. Gedrick is likable, and Gossett Jr. is terrific as ever. He basically plays the same kind of hard-ass he played in An Officer and a Gentleman. He likes the kid and his father, but he knows the kid will have to be toughened up drastically if they have any chance of pulling it off. Keep a close lookout for Robbie Rist who played Cousin Oliver on The Brady Bunch.
On the plus side, the soundtrack is pretty good. One Vision by Queen is a great rock song. There are also good songs by Twisted Sister, King Kobra, and Dio. And also its a joy to behold someone bombing the heck out of this worthless dictator and his stupid country. Blowing up his oil refinery may have been a bad decision, though. Something like that could theoretically hike up the price of gas world wide!! Just ask our current president or his father. When bombing a Middle Eastern country, the LAST thing you want to hit are its oil resources! Prices are high enough as it is these days! 5 of 10 stars. Mostly for the soundtrack.
The Hound. -
aaronspencergrace19 March 2006Back in 1986 I was a sixteen year old boy, when I first saw this film, I thought back then that this movie was one of the coolest I've ever seen. Just the other night at a friends house, my friend said "how about a trip down old memory lane", he busted out an old dusty VHS tape and I could see it was the original Iron Eagle movie. He slapped it into his VCR and off we went. Now I am a 36 year old man, not the boy I was many years ago. As I watched the film, I could see flaws in detail, flaws in the special effects and a corny script and plot line. Now don't get me wrong, it's still a good film, if you are like stuck in the 80's! The only true thing I could get into with this film was the pretty good soundtrack. I am a big fan of the rock group Queen, they made parts of this film good enough to at least sit tight and watch. Good film back in the days, good film now, just a whole lot of corny! "Thank you for your time" Aaron Grace
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ReelCheese2 May 2007Ahhh, to be twelve years old again. I'm pretty sure if I was still that age, I would have loved this preposterous medley of bad acting, copious amounts of Queen's "One Vision" and senseless explosions. Sadly (and I do mean that), I've grown up and can recognize IRON EAGLE for what it is... and while it's not god-awful, it's not all that good, either.
IRON EAGLE is the story of new high school grad Doug Masters (Jason Gedrick, whom you'd recognize from CROSSING THE BRIDGE and ONE EYED KING had you ever heard of those movies). His fighter pilot dad has been captured by an evil Middle East country for illegally entering its territory (imagine that!). Now papa's gonna be hung and nobody in the US of A is ready to do anything about... 'cept Doug. So our hero steals military intelligence and an F-16 fighter jet (it's quite easy, really... just get your friends to distract army dudes by 'accidentially' spilling juice on their shirts and stuff). With the help of bright spot Louis Gossett Jr., he soars in to save the day.
IRON EAGLE actually starts out promising. You might even be willing to forgive its ludicrousness, but it gradually morphs into a meaningless series of fireballs and clichéd dialog. It seems perfectly content to dish out cheap thrills to violence-obsessed boys, and do nothing more. It's also too long and at times borders on the laughable. The film still has a certain charm, but unless your night is slower than molasses, you'll want to skip it. -
Tweekums25 November 2020When US Airforce pilot Col Ted Masters is shot down over waters claimed by a hostile Middle Eastern country he is captured, put on trial and sentenced to death! His eighteen year old son Doug, a skilled Cessna pilot hoping to join the Air Force, is horrified to learn the military will be doing nothing to save his father. He decides to lead his own rescue mission. He enlists the help of Col. Charles "Chappy" Sinclair, a Vietnam veteran who is now in the Air Force Reserve... they plan the mission; appropriate two fully armed F-16 fighters and set off for the Middle East to rescue Doug's father.
To say this film is cheesy and unrealistic is an understatement... I can see why the USAF wanted nothing to do with it as it makes it look easy for kids to get classified information on an air base not to mention the stealing of two F-16s! That said if you can put your brain in neutral it is quite fun. There is plenty of action and the flying sequences are spectacular with the Israeli Air Force proving F-16s and Kfirs; the latter standing in for enemy MiGs. The effects aren't the best; it is clear that destroyed aircraft and buildings are models. The makers clearly liked explosions ... even a mast falling on a tent causes an explosion! Much of the acting is pretty hammy but Louis Gossett Jr adds a touch of quality as Chappy. Overall I wouldn't call this a must see unless you are on an '80s nostalgia trip or, like me, have to run to the window every time you hear a fast jet overhead! -
I loved this movie 10 years ago when I was about 16 years old. My biggest mistake was to watch it again, 10 years later. It's not the worst "I-wanna-be-a-pilot" movies ever, but it has so many flaws in it that you can hardly overlook them.
Queen's "One Vision" (along with the rest of the soundtrack) makes this film better than the average patriotic nonsense you usually get to see ;)
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paneos22 September 2019What do we have here,a typicall 80's movie!
Full of plotholes a sweet naivety through the whole movie a superb soundtrack cheesy dialogues what more do you want? i have revisited that movie 30 years later and i am not dissapointed at all.just keep in mind,thry to watch it like you are in the 80's when everything was possible and the movies was pure fun -
ma-cortes4 October 2006The film focuses a boy about eighteen-years-old (Jason Gedrick) ; when his father (Tim Thomerson) is taken prisoner by a dictator (David Suchet) from Middle East , he steals a F 16 fighter jet to rescue his daddy . He's helped by the brave Colonel ¨Chappy¨ Sinclair (Louis Gosset Jr. , though Morgan Freeman auditioned for the part) . The movie contains a plethora of action scenes , explosion , blasts , aircraft battles with various jet-planes flying to sound-velocity and blown up . The picture is a blend of typical films from the 80s , as ¨Top Gun¨and ¨Rambo¨ but starred by a teenager .
The story provides entertainment and action with no sense but being sometimes a little bit boring and dull . All of the fighter aircraft used (F-16 fighters ; plus , F-21 fighters depicting enemy MiGs) are actually Israeli Air Force aircraft , repainted with the USAF symbol and a fictitious enemy symbol . Jason Gedrick is the valiant he-man , he causes wreck havoc to nasties commanded by the villain David Suchet . Our hero ¨Chappy¨ is well personified by Louis Gosset Jr , usual to all the¨Iron Eagle¨ saga . Spectacular cinematography by Adam Greenberg with excellent sky-shots . However , the score is awful , but is based in disco-music and synthesizer , in spite of being composed by Basil Poledouris (¨Conan¨ music's author) . The motion picture was regularly directed by Sidney J.Furie . It's followed by three sequels, all directed by Furie with exception the second directed by John Glen , thus : ¨Iron Eagle 2¨ (1988) with Mark Humphrey ; ¨Aces : Iron Eagle III¨ (1992) with Rachel McLish and Horst Buchhold ; and ¨Iron Eagle IV¨ with Rachel Blanchard . -
WorldWar2Kid5421 May 2003This was a pretty good movie. I love fighter jet movies, and this was the best one I've seen lately. It was made using real planes, so that made it an even better movie. If you like watching U.S. F-16s blow the living daylights out of their enemies, this is a great movie for you.
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evilashus16 June 2001I remember watching this for the first time in the 80's as a teen. Man, I've read the reviews on this trash and I find myself astonished by the voting. This movie does not deserve four stars!!! This movie is NOT better than Topgun. Topgun has its own problems; don't get me wrong. This movie should be banned just for its own stupidity. So many stereotypes, so many loop holes, so MUCH poor dialog. I cannot think of one redeeming quality of this vomit. This is not action/adventure. This is a bad joke on film. Kinda like watching Plan 9 with stock F-16 footage. This movie not only defies logic and common sense within the context of a military setting, it sends a disturbing message. The military is not going to save your dad from the imminent evil of the middle east b*****ds. So go out there and hijack a multi-million dollar weapon and blast him out of the sinister clutches of the backwards, Anti-American Arabs. Cuz you can't reason with those animals. This is a Bruckheimer flick without a budget. Bland direction, weak acting, lame music, idiotic plot, equals...Iron Eagle.
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Neonsamurai10 October 2002Okay, here's the deal. There's this American pilot who's flying along, minding his own business, when suddenly he's outnumbered by evil, cowardly non-American fighter planes (they're Middle Eastern types, but suffice to say they don't like apple pie or Elvis Presley), who proceed to shoot him down. Now this American pilot was doing nothing wrong, but those evil non-Americans didn't care and before you know it he's banged up in a foreign jail and sentenced to death!!
Now, what would normally happen here is that the US Military would carpet bomb a couple of nearby towns until the pilot was released, but not this time. Those evil peace lovin' types probably got involved and managed to stop any kind of retaliatory massacre. As you can imagine, this doesn't please the pilot's family and the evil foreign dictator has this smug, contented look about him. He'll make those Americans pay, oh yes indeed!
But He didn't reckon on Doug Masters, the captured pilots 16-year-old son. You see Doug has been able to fly a plane longer than he can drive a car, (which can't be that long) and decides to fly into that evil, foreign country and get his Dad back. So with the help of his friends, Doug and his wingman, retired pilot Chappy' Sinclair, Doug launches a two man air raid on the foreigners.
Now you'd think that this plan would be bound to fail, but you'd be wrong. Sure, those Middle Eastern types might be all veteran pilots, but Doug's got an ace up his sleeve, he listens to rock music when he flies! After shooting down a dozen or so enemy planes and blowing up an oil refinery, Doug lands at an airport and gets his now wounded dad onboard the plane. Understandably, the evil, not quite so smug anymore, dictator gets quite annoyed at these antics and takes to the skies himself, in bid to shoot down Doug. But the young lad listens to some more rock music and blows the villain out of the sky. HURRAH!
After Doug and Chappy have shot down 90% of their air force, the foreigners send up their last few planes in a rather poor attempt to shoot Doug down, but in the nick of time, a flight of US F16s turn up and scare them away.
I cannot recommend this film enough. It was the first ever videocassette movie that I brought, and until I was twenty, I kept hoping that my dad would get shot down over a foreign country so that I could rescue him. But he's doesn't like flying, so it didn't happen. -
jimakros13 July 2010I just saw this movie 24 years after its release,even though i was around when it was released,i had heard its so bad,i never got around to watch it. Actually,its a pretty decent aviator movie,if you like fighter planes movies you will enjoy it.It has extensive use of the F-16 Fighting Falcon airplane and also has an amusing chase scene with a Cessna trainer plane. The plot is a little far-fetched,a kid flying the Falcon to the middle east to save his father,i read its the reason the US Airforce refused to help the producers.But,the action scenes are pretty decent and even the plot is funny and not terribly unrealistic,considering this kid supposedly was trained by his pilot father.What i found incredibly cheesy and annoying is the use of the tape player every time he gets n the plane seat. Anyway,they did something right considering this movie made enough money to deserve four sequels! I enjoyed it and again its another instance where i shouldn't have listened to the buzz about this movie.
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nepreneaux13 January 2008OK, the very idea is ludicrous.
1. Kids don't own planes 2. Kids don't race planes with dirtbikes 3. It made the Air Force look like total idiots 4. The kids father would not jeopardize his entire career to allow his boy to joyride with him 5. Neither would a reserve colonel
The sequels, I am sure were worse than this tripe. The soundtrack is about the only redeeming quality of this waste of celluloid. I am sorry but I just don't understand why in the world anyone would write direct and produce such unbelevable junk. The Iranian Air Force is lucky to filtch a couple parts for an ageing F-14, and this kid wrangles not 1 but 2 fully loaded and fueled F-16s? Gimme a break. -
AmyB-522 June 1999I really hate seeing people rip on this movie. They rip on the realism. How realistic are half of Arnold Swarzenegger's movies?...or any movie like them. Iron Eagle has a great soundtrack, cool dog fighting sequences, and a good story line (whether it's realistic or not). It's a story every young person who likes military fighter jets would love to live. It draws on the fact that you wish it was you "going in to knock the s... out of them.." (As Chappy put it). You people who rip on the realistic plot.....hey.....go watch a documentary. Or go glam like Hollywood and watch Top Gun. How many times have US and Russian planes flown inverted and given the other the bird from a few feet away. Iron Eagle is a great movie.....check it out.
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kulhet8 December 2004I wrote spoiler alert, but there's not really much that can be spoiled. It's like spoiling rotten meat. This movie is probably the worst I've ever seen. Not because of the actors or the special effects, but because of the sheer number of mistakes, both factual and physical. First of all, the MIGs aren't actually MIGs at all. They're Mirages, and they're French. And how the heck can Doug's dad withstand the maneuvers his son makes to fight off the "MIGs" without a g-suit? And why would Chappy try to board his plane without a g-suit? And how could Doug defeat the enemy pilot ace with such ease? Anyway, I did not like this movie. And the worst part is that it has 3 sequels, the latest one from as late as 1995. Now that's scary.
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This movie was okay, certainly nothing great, but it was a much more interesting film than "Top Gun". Perhaps I think this way, because when it comes down to it, "Top Gun" has more of a chick flick feel to it while this one is more about action. However, it is very unrealistic action to be sure. The story has a kid's dad taken prisoner so what is the boy going to do you ask? He is going to find a guy named Chappy, get a couple of M.I.Gs and go rescue his dad, because all you need in an 80's movie to rescue someone is a bit of training in a jet and a dude to accompany you to take out an entire military posts jets and ground troops. Like I said it is highly unrealistic, but it has some flair and is rather fun to watch at times, but it also moves slowly at times too. It does not go by as slowly as "Top Gun" did for me, but it could have stood to lose ten or fifteen minutes from its run time. The only stars of note in this one is Louis Gossett Jr. who at this point was in kind of a steady decline as to what films he would appear in. Also of note was Tim Thomerson who is more of your B star, but I always enjoy him in a flick. Granted he is not in this one all that much. So don't expect much and just enjoy the highly improbable rescue of 1986!
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ScottyK12 March 1999It's hard to believe that a movie this bad wasn't produced once, but four times! Most movies require a certain `suspension of reality' to enjoy, but this one takes it just too far. The basic scenario is an Air Force pilot who is shot down over a `Middle Eastern' country. The US government drags its feet in recovering him, leading the Pilot's son (Doug Masters) to attempt a rescue mission.
The problem I have with the movie is that it depicts the US Air Force as one colossal joke. In the movie you'll find that Doug and his friends on the air base manage to secure two F-16's, all the munitions, the fuel, the Intel for the mission, and so on. Security on this base seems to be a joke. Nobody seems to have a problem that a sixteen-year-old kid is fully qualified to pilot an F-16!
If that wasn't enough, you would think the producers would at least attempt to get the munitions right, since people like to see things `blow up'. Not so! Several times in the movie, Doug fires off AIM-9 Missiles on ground targets. AIM stands for `Air Intercept Missile', meaning a weapon used to strike targets in the AIR. He also fires off 15-20 missiles, where the maximum an F-16 can hold is 6 AIM-9's. The movie also lacks continuity. You'll see the aircraft configured with one set of munitions, and in the next scene, it has a totally different munitions package. Also, 20MM doesn't just completely destroy anything it touches! An F-16 will hold 500 rounds of 20MM, and it's mostly used for self-defense.
I could go on forever with plot holes, flaws, and outright wrong information from the movie, but I won't bore you. If you're in the mood to see a good Air Force movie, your choices are rather slim. Most military movies deal either with the Army, Navy or Marines. Until Hollywood can come up with an Air Force movie on the lines of `Saving Private Ryan' or `A Few Good Men', we'll be forced to watch movies like the `Iron Eagle' series. -
Get out of America. The under 4 because you don't recognize a cheeseburger with everything when it lands in your lap and over a 7 because it isn't on par with top gun and that at best deserves an 8, maybe a 9 as the movie that made adrenaline junkies cream their shorts.
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helpless_dancer22 June 1999A teen-age boy, who is not in the military and has not trained to be a jet pilot, takes off for a foreign country to rescue his dad. If this is not ridiculous enough, he talks a Colonel in the Air Force into helping him get his hands on a jet [wow!]. To make the picture even more absurd, the Colonel risks his career and life by giving the spunky lad some hands on aid. They not only don't make Colonels like this anymore, but they never did. This sappy, corny film should be tossed into the air and blown away by a MIG.
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Maybe I'm biased because the F-16 is my favorite fighter aircraft - although the F-14 is probably second or third - but I liked this movie. The sequels (Iron Eagle II and III) don't measure up acting and plot wise, but the first one - along with Top Gun - have excellent flying and music, along with reasonable plots and acting. II and III clearly have much less of a "flight budget", but their main drawback is plot and acting. I suspect the relative fame and popularity of Iron Eagle compared to Top Gun is almost entirely a reflection of the fame and popularity of Jason Gedrick compared to Tom Cruise. Another plus (for me) is an all too brief appearance by Shawnee Smith. 7/10
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This movie is the proverbial 80s flick that shows the viewer that as long as he or she tries at something, they can be better than the pros. The main character, Doug, showed off his skills in flying a Cessna aircraft, which somehow equated to being fully capable of flying a jet aircraft and being able to kill people. We all would like to have a few million dollars to play with... maybe make a good investment, donate, buy a few things, but the directors of this movie decided to make Iron Eagle... not once... not twice... not even three times; yes, four times. The thing to look most forward to are the multitude 'hollywood endings' in this movie. Just when you think the movie is going to end after a cheesy end sequence, there's another cheesy end sequence. Then another. Definitely a movie one must watch to believe... and maybe own just to remind oneself of how awesome the 80s must have been.
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skins73726 February 2018The older I get the more I love this flick. Had it not been forced into an early release "IRON EAGLE" would have been a $100M blockbuster instead of the (respectable) $24M it earned. I watch it once or twice a year now and enjoy it every time. (As a kid I preferred "TOP GUN"--but having teenage kids of my own this one has now moved ahead of that film on heartstrings alone.)
Suspension of disbelief is what movies are all about. The film takes itself seriously where it is supposed to, jokes to break the tension in like fashion, and draws you into the plot--if you'll allow it to. It's not a documentary. It's not supposed to be. It's a thrill ride where the good guys triumph over bureaucratic intransigence and difficult odds.
Boil it down and it's essentially the kindred spirit of "RED DAWN" but instead of the mountains in the Western US its setting is the cockpit of an F-16.
The acting is fine. (I don't understand the criticism of it.) Jason Gedrick does great as the anguished and determined teenager loyal to his father, Louis Gossett, Jr. lends his "Officer and a Gentleman" gravitas as the Lion in Winter warrior Colonel, and the rest of the cast does its job well enough. Tim Thomseron gets a nod here as well.
The special effects are better than today's still painfully obvious CGI plague. Yes, there are some goofs but they're the nature of the beast particularly with aviation films ("TOP GUN" has at least as many if not more) and could be fixed with some digital editing.
Finally, the soundtrack is outstanding. The score by Basil Poledouris is excellent and there are half a dozen songs by various artists that really get the heart pumping (notables: "Road of the Gypsy" - "Old Enough to Rock and Roll" - "Eyes of the World" - "Hide in the Rainbow" - "One Vision" - "This Raging Fire").
This is a beer and popcorn movie you can enjoy with your kids--beer for the grownups only, please.
One of the most underrated, unfairly disrespected movies ever made, particularly from the 1980s.
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AaronCapenBanner11 December 2013Sidney J. Furie directed this action-adventure that stars Jason Gedrick as Doug Masters, a willful young man whose father Col. Ted Masters(played by Tim Thomerson) is shot down by MIGs over a hostile Middle Eastern country, where he is taken hostage by the belligerent and ambitious leader(played by David Suchet) who loves sticking it the the U.S. Enraged at government inaction, Doug enlists the help of Air Force Col. 'Chappy' Sinclair(played by Louis Gossett Jr.) to train him to improve his piloting skills, then helps him "borrow" two fighter jets from the military to go into the country, battle the enemy in the air, rescue Ted, and make their escape. Granted that this film has a most unlikely premise, it is put across in such an entertaining, patriotic manner that it remains a guilty pleasure. Great fun, though I haven't seen the sequels...
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as a retired USAF MSG (aircraft maint. spec), this has got to be one of the worst movies i have ever seen. the fact that a teenager could ever get on the flight-line, much less get into an f-16 is ludicrous. the military spends millions on each pilot to make them the best in the world and this movie makes the air force and all its members seem stupid at best. yes, i know it is only a movie but it conveys a message to the younger folks that we are all idiots, and believe me, we are not. the logistics involved in setting up any type of mission are highly involved, even in the eighties, military computers were too secure to hack by any teenager, and the other flaws in this movie make peter pan more believable. sorry, to me, this movie has no entertainment value at all.