Warhead

Though this movie was made nearly 30 years ago, its main theme is still very relevant with the current Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East. With the current threat of nuclear warfare in that region, the scenario in this movie could become a reality though we hope that will not happen. What made this movie especially delightful to me was the background music cues. For those of us who are "Rat Patrol" TV series fans, you will quickly recognize that the music used in this movie were taken from the recorded music cues from "The Rat Patrol", music composed by the outstanding TV composer Dominic Frontiere, even though his name is not credited in the end credits. Overall a good movie with plenty of action.

David Janssen was an excellent actor in "The Fugitive" (TV Series). He also starred in another very good film called "Birds of Prey" (1973). His other films are not that good. This "Warhead" (1977) is one of his worst. Karin Dor was a beautiful and convincing actress. But, she too, is lost in this uninspired production, of unlimited boredom.

Originally, "Warhead" was a television movie called "Prisoner in the Middle" (1974). It was somehow released in some theaters in 1977 as "Warhead".

When the movie began, I could quickly tell it was a movie made on the cheap. For example, a CIA operative (David Janssen) is about to parachute into the desert...and they cut away and suddenly he's on the ground gathering up his parachute. Moments later, a school bus is attacked in the desert...and they show they about to attack and then it cuts to the bus suddenly lying on its side...having been blasted. But you see no blast....it's as if the warning "Scene missing here" should be emblazoned across the screen!

The plot involves Palestinians, Israeli soldiers and a lone CIA operative (Janssen) all scrambling to retrieve a lost US Air Force nuke accidentally dropped in the Jordanian desert(???). Why the USA would only send one guy is confusing, that's for sure! The nuke ends up changing hands repeatedly.

So is it any good? Not really. The acting is passable but the film itself lacks energy and interesting characters...and a decent budget. Overall, it just really looks cheap...incredibly cheap! And, it is also not especially entertaining...which is odd considering the subject matter.

Every one would agree with the idea that this film, good or not, is no more than a modern western scheme, where Arabs are Apaches and Israelis the blue coats. Every part of this feature, if you remove the vehicles and replace it with horses, is a pure western. I found this movie exciting, but that doesn't mean that's a pure masterpiece, and I also understand that many people consider it as a pro Israeli topic. I was not bored and that's the most important to me. Even the climax in the desert fort evokes western more than ever. Good feature.

This is a film about the nearest, knowledgeable nuclear warhead expert (Janssen), on vacation in the Middle East, where such a bomb is accidentally parachuted. It doesn't detonate when it lands in the Syrian desert, slightly north of the border with Israel. Janssen is procured to deactivate it. A radical Arab group interrupts Janssen's mission and claims the weapon as theirs. But a force in pursuit of the Arabs adds further intrigue to the mix. Has Janssen been rescued or simply captured by another faction? Initially he's regarded suspiciously by the Arab-hunters. But, eventually, the contingent's leader - dying from wounds - declares that Janssen shall be his successor. With nothing great - but nothing really bad, either - the vote of 5 seemed appropriate for this.