That was an excellent one.

People are voting emotionally.

Admirable film.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

This DIRTY DOZEN reimagining sees army colonel Gene Hackman leading a crack squad of former soldiers into the steamy jungles of Laos in search of American soldiers declared missing in action a decade previously. The story template is familiar but the central theme of hunting for MIA soldiers in Vietnam is good enough to have inspired later, more popular action films like the Chuck Norris MISSING IN ACTION vehicles and the Stallone-starring RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II.Uncommon Valor is both similar to and different from those populist movies. In terms of last reel action, it more than holds its own with an explosive climax that involves storming a prisoner of war camp. However, there's much more to it as this film follows the DIRTY DOZEN mould closely, with plenty of time being taken up with recruitment and training. The characters are well drawn and there are enough decent actors around to make this a highly entertaining viewing experience. No-frills director Ted Kotcheff also handled the first Rambo outing, FIRST BLOOD, and he does another confident and assured job here.And…what a cast! One of the most interesting ensembles from the early 1980s. Hackman, as always, is the highlight of the film: tough, no-nonsense and yet filled with emotion lurking beneath that hard surface. Fred Ward (ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ) shows up as a soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress, while bargain-basement muscleman Reb Brown (STRIKE COMMANDO) handles some comic scenes nicely. Then there's the larger-than-life Randall 'Tex' Cobb making an impression, Tim Thomerson prior to his B-movie career with Charles Band and, last but best of all, an extremely young Patrick Swayze giving a subtle and nuanced turn as the rookie of the group. You can see why Swayze went onto bigger and better things on the strength of his performance here.

'Uncommon Valor' Directed By Ted Kotcheff who also directed 'First Blood' the film has Hackman cast as a Colonel veteran (Korea) who teams a group of Vietnam War veterans to re-unite to rescue some of their own who were previously left behind and taken prisoner by the Vietnamese.Hackman is driven by the mission as his son is a POW, Robert Stack whose son is also a POW plays the Oil magnate who finances the daring mission. The late Patrick Swayze is mis-cast in the role as a Ranger who joins the mission purely for the fact that his own father is a POW. apparently the far more ferocious James Remar was originally cast in the role. Genre favourite Randall 'Tex' Cobb is an odd ball Vet who is an absolute riot in his role. Fred Ward and Tim Thomerson also appears. John Millius wrote the script which explains a lot of the Gun-ho militaristic theatrics. one wonders if the makers of Rambo First Blood II lifted the idea for that film.

Even after all this time, the action and suspense scenes are riveting, the camaraderie between the characters is believable and touching and the conclusion is both heartbreaking and bittersweet. Uncommon Valor delivers more than your average war film and boasts a perfect all round cast. The action scenes are first class and quite frankly outweigh the efforts in the likes of Hamburger Hill, Full Metal Jacket or Platoon. One of the few war films that truly affects its audience and successfully deals with the issues of post-traumatic stress. Very rarely does a film boast such realistic character acting on a wide scale and it's thanks to the actors that the film packs such a punch, emotionally and viscerally!

First of all it has to be conceded that this film has a very "macho" 80s/Reagan era view of war. Most Vietnamese characters are cannon fodder whose deaths have little or no impact, while American characters are granted either tragic or glorious deaths. But if you can tolerate, ignore or (to be fair) enjoy this aspect of the film, you will find a very moving look at people dealing with the idea of their friends and family never coming home and/or being forced to live as Prisoners of War. This is the main thing which separates this from other POW rescue fantasies (along with a certain, though modest, degree of realism). The most touching scene is at the start of the film, with Hackman pondering over the whereabouts of his son, but there are also some very poignant moments at the end of the film. "Uncommon Valor" is also worth watching for a memorable cast including one of Patrick Swayze's earliest and best performances. Hackman is, as usual, excellent.