Review of Fire Birds (1990) by Rj M — 10 Jan 2009
A blatant Top Gun ripoff, this movie showcases the US Army Apache Helicpoter. Nicolas Cage assumes the Tom Cruise role as the hotshot helicopter pilot training to fly the Apache. Tommy Lee Jones is the token instructor who's seen it all, but remains in awe of the hotshot new pilot.
Non-actress Sean Young line reads her way through the useless love interest role, who also just happens to be a helicopter pilot. And you thought the love story in Top Gun was wooden. All of this is moot since the movie serves only to throw the Apache into battle sequences.
We get all the training sequences as our "hero" proves his stuff, until the squad is thrown into combat against a drug cartel at the end of the movie. The final battle sequence is fast moving and exciting, and wraps up the movie well.
The journey to get there is as cookie cutter as these movies get, and at times you think they are making a parody of this genre. There are a couple of times the movie seems more Hot Shots than Top Gun.
Still, as far as 80's action movies go (ok, it was released in 1990, but was MADE in 1989), it's a decent way to kill 90 minutes.
This review of Fire Birds (1990) was written by Rj M on 10 Jan 2009.
Fire Birds has generally received mixed reviews.
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