Let's Get Harry (1986)

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

In Columbia two Americans get kidnapped. One is the US ambassador and the other a plumber named Harry Burck ( Mark Harmon ) from a small town in Illinois. They are kidnapped by a drug-lord who wants some of his men released from a US jail. Harry's friends go to Washington to try and get the government to do something about it. They are stone-walled. Desperate they hire a mercenary ( Robert Duvall ) and head for Columbia to Harry's rescue! Daft idea huh? Yep. But our brave American heroes are determined to save their friend! It could have been a nice action-movie, but it's pretty bad acted and executed. Most actors are sleepwalking. Only Duvall and Gary Busey give slightly inspired performances. Can't really blame the actors though for this is terribly bad written with no logic or interesting dialog at all. Waste of time I'd say.

The cast and the plot outline suggested an action-packed thriller. Instead, through a lack of intelligence, or just laziness, we get a cartoon,filled with irksome inconsistencies...examples-they're captured and thrown in a hellhole prison, but manage to keep coke, cigarette lighters a large,fresh cigar and wardrobe changes, for later use. with no obvious bulges in their pockets, or travel gear of any kind, they find seemingly endless ammo clips They are able to survive without water(no canteens), and constantly endanger the mission with meaningless tantrums. Finally,successfully, they return home in triumph to be greeted by a bunch of people we've never seen before, or merely in passing. Lives were lost,but no one seems to care or remember.Even for me, a waste of time.

Director Stuart Rosenberg was so dismayed when he surveyed the finished film that he had his name taken off the credits. That should warn you just how bad this cheesy 80s action movie is. But on a certain level, there's a weird, voyeuristic pleasure to be gained from seeing so many good actors struggling with such awful material. Why is a personable leading man like Mark Harmon wasting his time in a badly-written glorified cameo? Why is a rugged, reliable old-timer like Ben Johnson slumming as an embittered father? And - biggest question of the lot - why is a dynamic, Oscar-winning talent as notable as Robert Duvall staining his amazing reputation on such a brainless, gung-ho production? Harry (Harmon) is an American plumber who has just spent several months working in Colombia on an ambitious major water-plant. The day he is due to return home, he is kidnapped by jungle guerillas who say they will only return him safely if some of their colleagues are released by the American authorities. Since the Americans have no intention of meeting the kidnappers' demands, things look pretty bleak for Harry. Harry's brother can't bear the thought of losing his beloved sibling, so he hires a tough mercenary, Shrike (Duvall), and puts together an unlikely rescue team. Their mission, plain and simple: "Let's Get Harry!" Coming hot on the heels of other rescue-in-the-jungle films (like Uncommon Valor, Missing in Action, P.O.W - The Escape, and Rambo), Let's Get Harry tries to be different by going for a South American locale instead of Vietnam. However, the story is utterly terrible, with totally unbelievable characters and situations, and an unhealthy attitude towards non-US citizens (who are here portrayed as corrupt, devious, violent, drug-fuelled and expendable). Other than Duvall, the performances are lazy and amateurish. Some reviewers would argue that I'm missing the point, and that the plot and characters have been intentionally sacrificed in the name of cheesy action - but the action is so intermittent (not to mention poorly filmed) that the film is a failure even on "mindless-adventure-movie" level. All things considered, Let's Get Harry can be summed up in three words: bad, bad bad!

Yes, it's a real Alan Smithee film, and it's pretty obvious why Stuart Rosenberg did not want to be associated with this dud. Basically an opportunity for pure hearted Young White Americans to pound the bejesus out of filthy Brown Skinned Drug Dealers, this Reaganesque paean to Manifest Destiny is boring and offensive. Avoid at all costs, unless you're a member of Aryan Nation.