A young pilot finds himself recruited unwittingly into a covert and corrupt CIA airlift operation in Laos during the Vietnam conflict.A young pilot finds himself recruited unwittingly into a covert and corrupt CIA airlift operation in Laos during the Vietnam conflict.A young pilot finds himself recruited unwittingly into a covert and corrupt CIA airlift operation in Laos during the Vietnam conflict.
- Director
- Writers
- Stars
- Awards
- 1 nomination total
Art LaFleur
- Jack Neely
- (as Art La Fleur)
Sinjai Plengpanich
- Gene's Wife
- (as Sinjai Hongthai)
Yanee Tramoth
- Gene's Brother-in-Law
- (as Yani Tramod)
Chanarona Suwanpa
- Kwahn
- (as Chanarong Suwanapa)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
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Featured reviews
A fun, leave-your-brains-at-the-door movie
I regard this as a classic war movie! It's fun, good acting, more fun, and factually correct, well up to a point of course! What I like about it, and what I feel makes it original, is that not many films were made about Laos, and also its a cheerful take on war, pretty original for that too I'd say. A good movie i could watch again and again. Excellent music too! 5/5 stars.
Thank God for Mel Gibson to rescue Hollywood from itself!!!
With Gibson involved; Couldn't wait for the show to hit the screen in Houston so I could take My kids and show them a reasonable representational response to their: "What did you do in the war, Daddy?" - (I was an H-34 Driver, out of Udorn '66 - '68)... Despite Gibson's standard magnificent acting, the writing was a bummer compared to the REAL calibers of wit & humor that took place. It's a damn shame the writer didn't have tapes of the up-country aircraft comm traffic to draw from; you'd be waking-up in the middle of the night, laughing at the one-liners. In 28-years and 13,000+ flight-hours in 7-Nations on 5-Continents; that was the greatest bunch of maniacs I ever had the honor of working with.
Good for some laughs.
I enjoyed Air America even though it wasn't the most original story ever told. Mel Gibson is very good in a role that seems written for him. The rest of the cast seem like they are just collecting a paycheck. Some good action scenes spike it up a little but, it's really only good for about one viewing.
No Brainer !
Air America is an easy, fun, not hard to watch movie. I have seen it many times and find it an easy no brain. I can watch the movie and do other stuff at the same time and still catch the jokes and the plot. I like Robert Downey Jnr always and this movie is no exception. He gels really well with Mel Gibson. I am an actor and I would have loved to be cast in this movie. Love the scene where Robert Downey Jnr is asleep, hammered from the previous nights session on the booze when Mel Gibson flying his helicopter hooks him up while still asleep on garden furniture. Fab scene !
Give it a go. It now an old movie but a good one that seemed to have slipped through so many peoples viewing when it was released.
Great music !! I am a big fan of old soul and motown and this movie has some fab tunes.
What this movie on a crappy Wednesday night when there is nothing else on and not much to do and you will have a fun time.
Give it a go. It now an old movie but a good one that seemed to have slipped through so many peoples viewing when it was released.
Great music !! I am a big fan of old soul and motown and this movie has some fab tunes.
What this movie on a crappy Wednesday night when there is nothing else on and not much to do and you will have a fun time.
Some pilots are willing to work anywhere to "slip the surly bonds of earth" ...
This film rendition of Christopher Robbin's "Air America", the story of CIA's secret airforce in Laos during the Vietnam War has been fluffed up a tad too much. I would have hoped they would have kept the tone of the book which was a bit edgier; more like the film version of MASH. This version makes the "non-war" in Laos seem like a Disney World Ride. However Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr make it worth the price of admission. After you watch the flick track down the book for the REAL story.
Did you know
- TriviaThe sequence where Robert Downey, Jr. is seen hanging from a rope flying across the skies above Thailand, including a Buddhist temple, was done for real, with Downey performing the stunt himself after director Roger Spottiswoode had rejected doing it using such alternative techniques as blue screen or back projection.
- GoofsWhen Kwuan is pushing the cargo out, he clearly has a safety line attached. As he and the cargo go over the edge, there is no line present. The safety line is back in the next cut.
- Quotes
Billy Covington: [Gene is loading a machine gun] Excuse me, is that an Uzi?
Gene Ryack: [glances at Babo and Billy] You know, that would make a great TV commercial? 'Excuse me, is that an Uzi?' 'Why, yes it is. Hey, self-defense is no laughing matter! That why when I want number one I pack an Uzi... accept no substitutes.'
- Alternate versionsUK television screenings are usually missing the translation subtitles of Gene's conversation with the 'Hillbilly's' when he and Billy are captured shortly after the helicopter crash. The subtitles are present on both the R2 Optimum Home Entertainment DVD and Guild Home Video VHS releases.
- ConnectionsEdited into Soldier Boyz (1995)
- SoundtracksFree Ride
Performed and Produced by Edgar Winter & Rick Derringer
Written by Dan Hartman
Published by Multi-Level Music Inc. and Silver Steed Music Inc.
Administered by EMI Blackwood Music Inc.
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $35,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $31,053,601
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $8,064,480
- Aug 12, 1990
- Gross worldwide
- $33,461,269
- Runtime
- 1h 53m(113 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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