Review of Enemy Mine (1985) by Viktor N — 13 Dec 2015
It is the late-2000s and Earth is at war with the Dracs, an alien race. During a battle, an Earth fighter pilot, Willis Davidge (played by Dennis Quaid), crash lands on a neutral, seemingly uninhabited planet. A Drac also crash-lands on the planet. Initially the two try to kill each other but soon they discover that they need each other to survive...
An interesting story of friendship and tolerance, with a good message regarding race relations, and the stupidity of war. Quite emotional at times, especially in the middle third or so.
However, very similar to Hell in the Pacific, made in 1968 and starring Lee Marvin and Toshiro Mifune. This movie was set in WW2 and involved a US pilot and a Japanese naval officer being marooned on an island together. Similar story progression (to a point) and similar moral themes.
Other than the feeling that this has been done before (though in a different setting and with a different ending), there are a few other negatives to Enemy Mine. Final few scenes are cheesy action scenes and ruin, to a degree, the emotional buildup of the movie.
Furthermore, the production values of the movie are quite poor. Yes, I know this was made in 1985 but the special effects in Star Trek (series and movie) and Battlestar Galactica (the original series), all made well before this, are much better.
Overall, worth watching, especially if you haven't seen Hell in the Pacific yet. Better still: see Hell in the Pacific instead. It has a tighter plot, is not sci fi, so is more realistic and relatable, has better production values and is more subtle in its approach.
This review of Enemy Mine (1985) was written by Viktor N on 13 Dec 2015.
Enemy Mine has generally received positive reviews.
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