I am at a loss to try to answer the question as to why some people apparently thought this direct to video loser was worthy enough to be re-released on DVD more than twenty years later. Though it promises a lot of jungle action, there isn't much. In fact, in the first hour of the movie, there are only a couple of minutes or so of what could be considered action. There is a little more action in the last thirty minutes, but it's extremely lame, directed without any passion. In short, what we have here is a truly boring movie. I will admit it's not without merit. The movie looks very nice, filming on picturesque locations in south-east Asia that give the movie an authentic feel. And Dennis Patrick makes his character charming, though he isn't given that much to do. Apart from those two things, the movie has absolutely nothing to entertain B movie fans, unless you think that the sight of Michael J. Pollard without his shirt sounds enticing.

Lt. Joe Hoffman (Hatch) is a Vietnam veteran who, many years after the end of the war, decides to go back to the "Golden Triangle" to find his lost love, Michelle Twassoon (Mitchell-Collins). She was an interpreter during the war, and they fell in love. They even had a precocious, squeaky-voiced son together. But trouble looms for Hoffman in the form of Larry Bingo (Max) - yes, LARRY BINGO is his name. He's a disgraced army dude who was kicked out of the service for raping one of the locals back during the war. Now he's a drug runner along with his compatriots Snake (Pollard) and Bandit (Dye). Coincidentally, they run into Hoffman now, in the present day, and, seeing as how Hoffman was Bingo's commanding officer, and was largely responsible for his dishonorable discharge, Bingo now wants revenge.He kidnaps Hoffman and stashes him away deep in their jungle hideout. However, Hoffman escapes and has to shoot his way out. Meanwhile, Charlie Pope (Patrick), a toilet salesman (it just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?) teams up with Michelle and her son to try and find Hoffman. Will these star-crossed lovers ever reunite? Okay. For a movie called "Heated Vengeance" and with a tagline like "Lt. Hoffman thought the war was over. He was wrong!", and with the fact that it was shot primarily in the Philippines and released by Media, one would think this would be a no-brainer awesome action movie. Sadly, there is little heat, minimal vengeance, and a lot of unnecessary talking and stupidity. Technically, there is some mild vengeance, as Hoffman must shoot some of his captors, and Richard Hatch throws his hatch into the ring as being yet another jungle-adaptive action hero, but this is a drama/love story with mild action elements. It uses the Vietnam war as background. Imagine a less-good Final Mission (1984) or First Blood (1982). Or a REALLY degraded Deadly Prey (1987). Everything about this movie is a letdown, from Hoffman's strange son, to the slow pace, to a botched use of a flamethrower to the choice of naming the main antagonist "Bingo".Naturally, the VHS box prominently displays the flamethrower, and mistakenly labels Bingo as "Binko" but who really cares anyway, it's stupid both ways. The ending is completely abrupt and feels unfinished, like they had to release it that day and didn't get to finish editing, or even shooting the complete movie. That just adds to the unfulfilling feel of Heated Vengeance. To add insult to injury, the ever-wacky Michael J. Pollard can't save the movie with his childlike mush-mouthiness and there's even further silliness with "comedic" sound effects and tuba music at inappropriate times.Like many AIP movies, the featured song is far better than the movie itself, and high marks go to Jim Price and his song "Second Chances". But this one good aspect can't support the entire movie. It's all down hill from there.Heated Vengeance is a pretty cut-and-dry disappointment.for more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com

By no means is this film a great piece of work. The story is not unique, and the characters don't have any real depth to them. It is a nice vehicle for Richard Hatch, considering you don't see him in much. It makes you realize just how good of an actor he is. Without Richard, this film would not be worth viewing. The film is watchable, and there is plenty of action and skin to satisfy a diehard action fan. The most interesting part of the film is to watch for continuity problems. This is worth watching when you are bored and have nothing better to do.

This is a really bad film, and I mean that in the best possible sense. Everything about this film is so totally inept that it is frequently hilarious. Vietnam-vet Hoffman returns to the country to meet up with his lover, but is kidnapped by the crazy Sergeant Bingo, who has a bit of a grudge because Hoffman tried to send him to jail for rape of a Vietnamese girl. He manages to escape, and Bingo then sends his men out after him, into the jungle.You know you're in trouble when a the cover of a film brags, "Filmed on the same location as Apocalypse Now!" The film can be boring, but there are some hilarious scenes that makes it well worth a watch. I liked the first shot of the movie, which consists of a man firing a machinegun straight into the ground from a helicopter, obviously not more that a few feet above ground. And the bad guy screams and cries and whines like a big sissy, and screams so much that it is, in some scenes, completely impossible to understand what he's saying.See it with an open mind, and a lot of beer, and you might be able to enjoy it's goofy delights.