OPPOSING FORCE (1986)
Label: Scorpion Releasing
Region Code: A
Rating: R
Duration: 98 Minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.78:1)
Director: Eric Karson
Cast: Tom Skerritt, Anthony Zerbe, Richard Roundtree, Lisa Eichhorn, Robert Wightman, Ken Wright, George Cheung
In this 80's actioner female soldier Casey (Lisa Eichhorn, Cutter's Way) is the only woman pilot to sign-up for an elite experimental military program designed to simulate extreme POW torture conditions, among the other enlisted men are senior ranking officer Logan (Tom Skerritt, Poltergeist III), Ripkin (Paul Joynt, Echoes), Botts (Robert Wightman, Stepfather III), and Conway (Ken Wright, Prince of Darkness). Parachuted behind enemy lines in teams of two they land on the tropical island with the mission to evade capture by simulated enemy forces as long as they can. Once captured the amount of force and brutality used against them is a bit surprising for all involved, the soldiers are puzzled if this is just meant to be ultra-realistic or has the POW camp commanding officer Becker (Anthony Zerbe, The Dead Zone) gone off the deep-end. Becker's second in command Stafford (Richard Roundtree, Night Visitor) is more level-headed, but the forces under Becker, including his go-to henchman Taun (George Cheung, The Exterminator), are only too happy to engage in humiliation, brutality and use deadly force if directed to do so.
The pilots are really put through the wringer at the simulated POW camp, forced at gunpoint to endure being stripped nude and deloused, put to hard labor and grueling tortures designed to wear them down, thrown in bamboo cages and beaten on the regular. At a certain point Becker steps over the lines and rapes Casey, that's when the seasoned Logan has had just about enough, and starts a rebellion on the island resulting in a pretty large body count.
Directed by Eric Karson (Black Eagle) this Orion Pictures produced actioner has some great looking locations and set pieces shot in the Philippines during the Marcos regime, it looks and feels like a P.O.W. camp. The direction is good enough but not particularly punchy or show-off, but it gets the job done well enough, and things blow-up real nice from time to time. The main cast is pretty terrific as well, especially Skerritt, Eichhorn, Zerbe and Roundtree, but the lack of atmosphere and tension brings it down a notch for me, it just lacks the weight, and there are some moments that should have a weight to them and it just doesn't.
Audio/Video: Opposing Force (1986) lands on Blu-ray from Scorpion Releasing via Ronin Flix in 1080p HD widescreen (1.78:1) sourced from the same 2019 master as the previous Scorpion Films Blu-ray. It's a sharp looking presentation with solid depth and clarity, the greens of the jungle fauna are vibrant throughout. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 with optional English subtitles. The track is clean and well-balanced, free of any hiss or distortion. Extras come by way of an Audio Commentary With Director Eric Karson plus a much longer 6-min Alternate Ending.
Special Features:
- Audio Commentary With Director Eric Karson
- Alternate Ending (6 min 30 sec)
I probably looked at the cover art for Opposing Force at the VHS rental store hundreds of times as a kid but never picked it up, I just wasn't a huge Missing in Action-style military-action film fan. I did enjoy this one though, I just didn't love it, but it is well-staged and the action elements are entertaining, and the main cast is quite good. It brought to mind stuff like Missing In Action 2 and Turkey Shoot, it doesn't really bring anything new to the table, but the novel twist of an American run P.O.W. simulation gone wrong has a fun Stanford Prison Experiment vibe to it and I loved seeing Zerbe play another slimeball, he's so great at it!
Screenshots from the Scorpion Releasing Blu-ray:
