John Milius’ Vietnamisation of The Bridges Of Toko-Ri was one of the commercial casualties of the gulf war — hitting American screens just as the public didn’t want to be reminded how dangerous it was flying bombing missions — and made its debut in the UK as a direct-to-video release.
Rugged he-men like Brad Johnson and Willem Dafoe fly on daring against-orders missions against North Vietnam, while Danny Glover blusters as the outwardly gruff but inwardly sentimental commanding officer.
Rosanna Arquette pops in for a few brief scenes just to prove that the heroes aren’t gay, but otherwise this is stolidly macho stuff, with the expected doses of humour in uniform punctuating the usual gung ho aerial action.