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IMDbPro

Courage Under Fire

  • 19961996
  • RR
  • 1h 56m
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
57K
YOUR RATING
Meg Ryan and Denzel Washington in Courage Under Fire (1996)
Theatrical Trailer from Unknown
Play trailer2:21
1 Video
46 Photos
ActionDramaMystery
A U.S. Army officer, despondent about a deadly mistake he made, investigates a female chopper commander's worthiness for the Medal of Honor.A U.S. Army officer, despondent about a deadly mistake he made, investigates a female chopper commander's worthiness for the Medal of Honor.A U.S. Army officer, despondent about a deadly mistake he made, investigates a female chopper commander's worthiness for the Medal of Honor.
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
57K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Edward Zwick
  • Writer
    • Patrick Sheane Duncan
  • Stars
    • Denzel Washington
    • Meg Ryan
    • Lou Diamond Phillips
  • Director
    • Edward Zwick
  • Writer
    • Patrick Sheane Duncan
  • Stars
    • Denzel Washington
    • Meg Ryan
    • Lou Diamond Phillips
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 127User reviews
    • 64Critic reviews
    • 77Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 9 wins & 7 nominations

    Videos1

    Courage Under Fire
    Trailer 2:21
    Watch Courage Under Fire

    Photos46

    Meg Ryan and Matt Damon in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Matt Damon in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Denzel Washington in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Meg Ryan in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Matt Damon in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Matt Damon in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Matt Damon in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Denzel Washington in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Denzel Washington in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Meg Ryan in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Denzel Washington and Michael Moriarty in Courage Under Fire (1996)
    Denzel Washington in Courage Under Fire (1996)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Denzel Washington
    Denzel Washington
    • Nat Serling
    Meg Ryan
    Meg Ryan
    • Karen Walden
    Lou Diamond Phillips
    Lou Diamond Phillips
    • Monfriez
    Michael Moriarty
    Michael Moriarty
    • General Hershberg
    Matt Damon
    Matt Damon
    • Ilario
    Bronson Pinchot
    Bronson Pinchot
    • Bruno
    Seth Gilliam
    Seth Gilliam
    • Altameyer
    Regina Taylor
    Regina Taylor
    • Meredith Serling
    Zeljko Ivanek
    Zeljko Ivanek
    • Banacek
    Scott Glenn
    Scott Glenn
    • Gartner
    Tim Guinee
    Tim Guinee
    • Rady
    Tim Ransom
    Tim Ransom
    • Boylar
    Sean Astin
    Sean Astin
    • Patella
    Armand Darrius
    • Robins
    Mark Adair-Rios
    Mark Adair-Rios
    • Bobcat 5
    • (as Mark Adair-Riós)
    Ned Vaughn
    Ned Vaughn
    • Chelli
    Manny Perez
    Manny Perez
    • Jenkins
    David McSwain
    • Egan
    • Director
      • Edward Zwick
    • Writer
      • Patrick Sheane Duncan
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      In order to lose the required amount of weight for the present-day scenes, Matt Damon went on a strict regimen of food deprivation and physical training. This caused his health to become so frail that he was put on medical supervision for several months after the shoot. However, his efforts didn't go unnoticed: director Francis Ford Coppola was so impressed by Damon's display of method acting that he offered him the leading role in The Rainmaker (1997). While making Good Will Hunting (1997), after regaining his healthy weight, Damon met Steven Spielberg (who was then casting Saving Private Ryan (1998)). Spielberg told Damon that he had loved his performance in this movie and had wanted to hire him to play Private Ryan, but was afraid that Damon was too skinny. Once Spielberg saw Damon at his normal weight, he hired him for Ryan.
    • Goofs
      The Medal of Honor is never placed around the neck of anyone but the recipient of the award.
    • Quotes

      Nathaniel Serling: I work at the Pentagon, Sergeant, so I'll admit I'm a little slow on the uptake, otherwise I'd say that you just threatened me. Did you just threaten me, soldier? Because if you did, let me respond to you...

      [turns off tape recorder]

      Nathaniel Serling: Let me respond to you this way. I'm an officer, and therefore, by proclamation, a gentleman, but don't abuse that, son. Don't get in my crosshairs, because I'll have no compunction whatsoever about getting up to my neck in yo' ass. Do you understand me?

    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Independence Day/Special Effects/Phenomenon (1996)
    • Soundtracks
      Angel from Montgomery
      Written by John Prine

    User reviews127

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    6/10
    For the kind of film it is, it's not bad
    At the beginning of the film, someone makes a reference to Meg Ryan's character as being "butch". I immediately thought, "Yeah right. Meg Ryan, butch?" Well, I was actually quite surprised with her performance, given the fact that she is a light romantic screen actress. Plus, she was once considered one of America's sweethearts, so it's hard to picture her in a role like this.

    Denzel Washington, a Colonol in the Army, is investigating the death of an American soldier who died in the field, during the Iraqi war. Whether she deserves the medal of honor, which she has been nominated for, is the reason for the investigation. There are surviving members of her crew, and each one has a different version of the story, and what really happened the morning of her death.

    The first twenty minutes of the film are slow, and a bit hard to pay attention to (or maybe that's just me and military movies), but once you get into the story, it picks up quite a bit, and becomes very interesting and worth the watch. I will probably never see this movie again, but it was entertaining enough that I was able to sit through the whole thing without being frustrated from boredom.

    Denzel Washington was good, but nothing special. I suppose it might have been his character, given the fact that it was a pretty bland role. Lou Diamond Phillipes was probably the best actor in the whole film, and blew me away with his performance. I'm surprised he hasn't done as much since this film came out.

    Again, Meg Ryan was good in this, but I wouldn't have chosen her for this part. I would have gone with someone a little more masculine to fill her character's shoes, perhaps someone like Jodie Foster.

    It was a good drama, and if you want to see a really young and good looking Matt Damon, this is your chance. Other than that though, it's not worth that much. It's better than most action movies, but then again, there's not really that much action as there is story telling, which I enjoyed the most out of the whole film.
    helpful•20
    14
    • Pookyiscute
    • Feb 13, 2006

    FAQ1

    • Why does the term "A Medal for Honour" with the British spelling of "Honour" appear next to Meg Ryan's face?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 12, 1996 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Arabic
    • Also known as
      • Trận Đánh Không Cân Sức
    • Filming locations
      • National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Fox 2000 Pictures
      • Davis Entertainment
      • Joseph M. Singer Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $46,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $59,031,057
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $12,501,586
      • Jul 14, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $100,860,818
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 56 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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