Enemy Mine (1985)

Waste of time

One of my all time favorites.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Blistering performances.

ENEMY MINE is a movie that walks a fine line between being good and being not-so good. Half of the time, it has an intelligent story, more original than most and with a nice moral message which cries out against prejudice - it's no coincidence that the actor playing the alien is black. The film remains unpredictable throughout and thanks to strong characterisation you learn to sympathise with the two leads and their predicament. But, unfortunately, the script isn't so hot. Dennis Quaid is resorted to acting like an idiot and using childish insults for the first half before his character "matures", and then when we learn that the alien is having a baby, the screen is suddenly awash with sentimentality and schmaltz. This intensifies once we're introduced to the incredibly annoying alien kid, but then it's okay because things quickly change track for an action set-piece finale.The direction is steady under the hand of Wolfgang Petersen, who handles the various action sequences with some aplomb (remember, this is the guy who breathed life into the cat-and-mouse antics of aircraft hijack thriller AIR FORCE ONE in 1997). As for the special effects, well they look just like that, effects, and are pretty dated, but I did like the hostile alien landscape and the excellent meteor showers that take place. As for the various monsters and alien bugs inhabiting the planet, well they're about the same level of quality as STAR WARS, so can be enjoyed for what they are. Keep an eye out for the pit-dwelling beastie which drags victims to their death with a nasty tentacle/tongue - amusing stuff.As for the acting, well Dennis Quaid is just Dennis Quaid, as always, and mildly likable when he's not being a jerk. Louis Gossett Jr manages to deliver a good performance despite being hidden behind an alien reptile mask. Brion James shows up briefly and goes way over-the-top, as per usual, as a scarred psychotic villain. The film's finale is odd and more than a little jarring. After a relatively slow-paced running time (a little overlong, incidentally), we're suddenly treated to a cheesy action-fest as Quaid single-handedly invades a mining camp and takes down the sadistic guards who rule it. This bit is fun thanks to the imaginative deaths for the villains (which are pretty unpleasant, although bear in mind this is only a PG-13 film), including a nice arrow through the throat, a guy falling in a crusher and another man falling into a vat of molten steel - "frying tonight", indeed. The final outcome is more than a little predictable, however. Despite the many flaws, Enemy Mine is a watchable slice of family science fiction and it's a film which has its heart in the right place, and as such deserves credit.

This movie was made in 1985 by a once great director but it looks like made in 1965 by some cretinous dilettante. Everything just feels badly made up and carried out. The set-design is awful, the sfx are poor, the script is clumsy, implausible and offers no believable development of characters, and the musical score is probably one of the worst ever made! The only thing that is amazing is the acting of L. Gossett Jr. which even works through the massive latex mask.The rest is just... oh, forget about it. It is just unbelievable that those who made it did not die of embarrassment, like I would do.

Wolfgang Petersen directed this science fiction story, a remake of "Hell In The Pacific", starring Dennis Quaid as an Earth astronaut/pilot in the future where humans are at war with a lizard species nicknamed "Dracs". One such alien crash lands along with the human on a hostile alien world, where they at first avoid each other, but because of mutual needs, are forced to join together to survive, and of course a friendship develops, especially after the "Drac" gives birth, and its child must be protected, even from the humans who eventually rescue them from their plight... Uneven film has good direction and ideas but goes into excessive and obvious melodrama once the evil miners show up. A shame.

I was surprised and disappointed to read about the gross this film got comparing to a well deserved budget... Guess advertising and big slogans are the major theme nowadays . But it's up to the true fans of this art to give "Enemy Mine" the credits it deserve .. I've seen this movie like 20 years ago and it always made a good impression on me . I remember also forgetting its name , but not its humanitarian story . It was a thrill and joy to rediscover that movie lately .. This is a movie , essentially , about life's respect ..., what humans should adopt and stick too.. I saw in it a strong message maybe , to preserve even the nearly extinguished species on Earth , assuming that many humans consider animals " aliens to kill " ... The best part that kept it strongly in memory is the enthusiasm that Quaid shows to rescue Zammis as if it was his own son , how much he was ready to sacrifice his life to save him . Simply a beautiful and rigid story of friendship and sacrifice ...And a movie not to be missed .