As told in the book by stockdale and his wife, it's the story of how commander james stockdale was taken prisoner of war for eight years in vietnam. James woods is stockdale, a fighter pilor leading strikes against north vietnam. According to his wikipedia page, he suffered injuries and torture during his imprisonment, some self inflicted so he could not be used as propaganda in public. We can see that he's being tortured, but it's tastefully done out of view of the camera. His wife sybil grew so frustrated with the lack of information being provided to the spouses, she joined the support group to try to help the p.o.w's. They at least wanted to get the u.s. Government to acknowledge the poor treatment and/or lack of updates of the prisoners. It's mostly well done.... there's some good acting, and some not so good acting. Stockdale was awarded numerous medals, and would later be primed as perot's running mate for the 1992 presidential election. Directed by paul aaron. Haing ngor, who plays major bui, was murdered ten years after this, in los angeles.
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This is a well-written, very well-acted TV-movie. Judging by the very small amount of votes, this movie is not shown very often. I had the chance to see this on a rainy Friday afternoon and I loved it. It's the story of a soldier, played by James Woods, who is taken prisoner by the North-Vietnamese in the 60s. His wife at home in the States, knows he is trapped in a prison camp, but she was not allowed to reveal this in public. The diplomatic relations between the US and the Vietnamese were not to be disturbed. The movie tells the story of the tortures "Jim Stockdale" had to endure in the prison camp and how the wife tries to cope with the situation. Woods is often accused of always playing the same, arrogant-type "James Woods", but in my opinion he is one of the best actors around. This movie really proves he can play a character with more than one dimension. The actress who played the character of the wife, also did a very good job.
I recommend this movie to anyone. It's a well-acted, well-written movie with some historical background. This should be aired more often ! -
dtucker8612 September 2003Its ironic to me that most people think of James Woods for his many bad guy and psycho roles in films. It is true that no plays a villian better then our Jimmy, but he is a great actor in general. One of those rare types of thespians who can play any role and play it well. He gives one of his finest performances here and really delivers. He plays one of our true American heroes, Vice Admiral James Bond Stockdale US Navy. Its is so unfair that most people remember this man only as Ross Perot's running mate in the 1992 Presidential election. Its like most people only remember General LeMay as George Wallace's running mate. Stockdale wasn't a good public speaker and had little time to prepare for the VP debate. He made a poor showing and people made fun of him and that made me so angry. HOW DARE THEY DO THAT!!!Jim Stockdale is a true American patriot and hero in every definition and sense of that word. There are few men in American history who have given and sacrificed more for their country then James Bond Stockdale. Stockdale graduated from the US Naval Academy in Jimmy Carter's class. From 1947 to 1964, he built a brilliant career as a Naval officer and Aviator. He spent most of his career on aircraft carriers, not on cushy shore duty, he was no pencil pusher. He missed out on WWII and Korea but was involved in Vietnam from the very beginning, on August 5, 1964, he led the first US bombing raid against North Vietnam after the Gulf of Tomkin. He flew 200 combat missions. On September 4, 1965, he was shot down over North Vietnam. He spent the next 2,714 days until February 12,1973 as a prisoner of war. He was beaten, tortured and starved. At one point, he was kept in solitary confinement for 3 and 1/2 years with an untreated broken leg. They broke his leg but did not break his spirit. Woods gives a wonderful performance as Stockdale as does Jane Alexander as his wife Sybil. I write to celebrities as a hobby and Admiral Stockdale kindly sent me an autographed picture a few years ago. This film is hard to watch, but it is the true story of an amazing American hero. Thank you Admiral Stockdale and God bless you for what you did for our country. The young service people of today have not forgotten you!!!!