Uncommon Valor---Gene Hackman, Patrick Swayze & Robert Stack (1983)

Rare courage is what the men in this movie had and they went above and beyond what our own United States Government would not do to bring MIA’s home to their families.

Marine Colonel Jason Rhodes (Gene Hackman) discharged because of his adamant determination to get our government to search for the missing MIA’s that everyone knew were still being held prisoners by Vietnamese. 

Even ten years later all anyone in government would say is they were negotiating with the Vietnamese government. And, we all know they did not try, because none of their sons were MIA and it is doubtful any of them even fought in the war. 

Besides, this was not a popular war when it was going on, so they mainly just wanted to keep it quiet and not let anyone make waves to draw attention to a war that North Vietnam won.

Colonel Rhodes finally acquired evidences of where the P.O.W. camp’s location---after his son Frank was a MIA---for ten years. MacGregor a wealthy business man financially backed the mission because his son was MIA and fought with Colonel Rhodes son Frank (Todd Allen).

So he begins recruiting the guys who served with his son’s platoon. It was a slow at first, because some of the guys had families and were reluctant to give up their lives after ten years of being home in America.

Finally, he obtained the men he needed for the mission, Blaster (Reb Brown), Sailor (Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb), Kevin Scott (Patrick Swayze), Charts (Tim Thomerson), Johnson (Harold Sylvester) and Wilks (Fred Ward).

All the men had weapons experience and skilled in combat to stay alive in the war. All the men but Kevin Scott; who’s a Former Force Recon Marine and sharp shooter skilled in hand to hand fighting, but no combat experience. Kevin trained the men in a refresher course to get them ready to hit hard, fast and get out with the MIA’s.

Sailor gave Kevin a hard time at first until Colonel Rhodes told the men the reason he was helping. Kevin’s father was a MIA from the Vietnam War, his helicopter was shot down. Then a new respect for Kevin from all the men developed.

The US government spied on the group while they were being trained in Texas and listen in on their conversations; and even had the CIA take their weapons and truck away, but that did not stop them. They used the money MacGregor gave then in Texas before they left from home.

They hired a guide with horses and he brought his two daughters with him to help. The trip was not always easy going through the jungle; but they never complained.  They just made their way until they reached the P.O.W. Camp.

This is an amazing movie---but any movie Gene Hackman is in---is always special. These actors are the “Cream of the Crop” of action actors and some of my very favorites.

© BEPH 2014 All Rights Reserved

PurvisBobbi44 is the sole author of this Blog and if it is seen anywhere else on the Internet or in print it was taken without my consent.