An effective and efficient little film detailing the story of a military coup in an African country. This one's based on a novel by Frederick Forsyth, so it has more realism behind it than some I could mention, and as an added bonus the director is John Irvin, who later went on to make the equally authentic HAMBURGER HILL. This one stands out because it has an actual plot to it leading up to the big action scene at the end, and that alone makes it more original than 99% of the guys-on-a-mission type films that came out in the 1980s.Christopher Walken, twitchy and solemn, stands out in this early role as the hard-ass mercenary who's seen plenty of conflict over the years. Walken is a guy who seems to live and breathe his characters rather than the other way round, and he's one of the best things in this film. His trip to the made-up African nation of Zangora is fraught with peril and tension, and yet seems real throughout in the same way that a film like BLOOD DIAMOND had the ring of authenticity to it.The violence that follows is expected yet none the less shocking for it, and even the character building exposition scenes back in the West are handled in such a way that you never lose interest in the proceedings. Then things shift up a gear for the pyrotechnic meltdown at the climax, which is more familiar to fans of action and war movies, but the strong storyline proceeding this moment makes it all the more full of impact.

It' 1980. Jamie Shannon (Christopher Walken) and his men including Drew Blakeley (Tom Berenger) and Terry (Ed O'Neill) are soldiers of fortune. They force their way onto a plane barely escaping a chaotic battle in central America. Their friend Richard is killed and his widow tells him not to see her family anymore. Shannon is contacted by Brit businessman Roy Endean who is interested in the west African nation of Zangaro. He goes to recon but the brutal dictator General Kimba captures him. After being torture, he is released. He tries to go straight with his ex Jessie (JoBeth Williams) but then Endean hires him to lead a mercenary army to overthrow Kimba.The movie opens with a terrific sequence. It lays out the manners of Shannon and his men. There is a great effective sequence. However the movie is a bit too long trying to do too much. The reconnaissance inside the country could have been handled better. Shannon is so condescending that he is simply a bad spy. As for the battle itself, director John Irvin may have seen real fighting but he's not cinematic enough yet. There are lots of shooting and explosions but they're not really that exciting. Overall, the movie is just too long and trying to do too much.

James Shannon is an American mercenary hired by a mining concern to perform a reconnaissance mission in the fictional West African nation of Zangaro; his task is to determine whether or not it would be possible to depose its current president, a psychotic megalomaniac called General Kimba. He goes in posing as a wildlife photographer and learns a little bit about the countries history; after gaining independence from Britain there were three candidates for president; General Kimba, the now exiled Colonel Bobi and the now gaoled Dr. Okoye. It isn't long before he comes to the attention of the authorities and soon after that he is severely beaten before being deported.Back in the Unites States he is approached once again; this time they want him to put together a mercenary force; return to Zangaro and overthrow Kimba so somebody more biddable can be installed in the presidential palace. Shannon sets about recruiting mercenaries before heading to London and arranging to get all the equipment they will need on the mission. He also learns who the new president is to be; Colonel Bobi; a man motivated solely by greed who is unlikely to be any better for the people of Zangaro than Kimba. Once everything is arranged they take a freighter to Zangaro and storm the barracks in the capital where Kimba resides and once he is dealt with they wait for Col, Bobi to arrive; but when he gets there he will be in for a surprise.This is a solid mercenary action film that should please fans of the genre. The final action sequence is both exciting and spectacular but that isn't the real meat of the film. The thing that makes this film interesting is the way it focuses on the preparations. The reconnaissance section was almost as exciting as the finale as Shannon was alone and unarmed in a very dangerous place; where any mistake could, and nearly did, get him killed. The preparations were interesting as we see the team discussing what equipment they will need and haggling to acquire it at the lowest price to maximise their profit. Christopher Walken puts in a good performance as Shannon and the rest of the cast are decent enough if not exactly spectacular. The action is well directed and it looks good although some scenes felt rushed... although I fear that is because I saw the shorter version of the film and I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't some 'cuts for television' as well so I can't really hold that against the film! If you like films such as 'The Wild Geese' I'm sure you will enjoy this too; it is well worth watching even in its abridged form.

...this movie no doubt severely disappointed most Forsyth fans. It had very little to do with the book. It seems that (as usual) some Hollywood wonk, noting that the novel was a best-seller, gave some hack the basic premise from the back-cover blurb and got him to make something up that would appeal to Joe Sixpack and his girlfriend. The result? A cliché-ridden B-movie. Forsyth must have been livid.It's competently handled (for such an old film it holds up amazingly well), but what presumption! The original story was just fine. What made them think that their version would be better?Pity they didn't have the sense to hire Kenneth Ross to do the screenplay. He'd already done two of Forsyth's other books (Day of the Jackal and Odessa File), and at least made the effort to be faithful to the originals.