Bat*21

1988
R
1h 45m

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

9.7K

YOUR RATING

Danny Glover and Gene Hackman in Bat*21 (1988)

During the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.

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Drama War

During the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.During the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.During the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.

Director
- Peter Markle
Writers
- William C. Anderson
- George Gordon
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

9.7K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Peter Markle
Writers
- William C. Anderson
- George Gordon
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 nomination

Trivia
As a U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, "Gene" Hambleton commanded the 57first Missile Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, from 1965 to 1971. He is better known as by his tactical radio call-sign, "Bat 21", he used in Vietnam when he was shot down in 1972, while jamming enemy radar, and parachuted behind enemy lines. When on the ground, Colonel Hambleton found himself in the midst of an invasion force of over thirty thousand North Vietnamese troops. While evading capture for eleven days, he used his survival radio to call in air strikes against the invasion force. Rescue crews gave him coded instructions for where to go to be rescued, based on golf courses, on which he had played, at different Air Force bases. Hambleton's harrowing ordeal was recounted in the book Bat 21 (1980), which was made into this movie. He died from cancer on September 19, 2004 at age 85.

Goofs
In the movie, the aircraft flown by "Bird Dog" was not actually a Cessna O-2 observation aircraft, but was a civilian Cessna 337 Skymaster, painted gray. An O-2 would have multiple windows in the doors and floor to allow visibility of the ground.

Quotes
Capt. Bartholomew Clark: Let's get the basic relationship down... I'm the lifeguard, you're the drowning man. If you relax, I can bring you to shore. If you fight me, then I'll have to slap you around.

Connections
Edited into Stealth Fighter (1999)

User reviews56

Review

Featured review

movie very poor

In 1969/70 I was a US Army Huey pilot in Northern I Corps of South Vietnam. I was on Hamburger Hill in the A Shau valley, flew in Laos and some in North Vietnam. BAT 21 is the first Vietnam War movie I have ever seen.

The truth of the war and how it was done and flown is terrible enough. This movie is way off the mark as to who flew aircraft and how they were flown.

When the UH-1N was in a left turn the the camera man made a shot out the left door showing the ground and the shadow of the aircraft, the shadow was a Bell Jet Ranger! Very poor quality. Of course the UH-1N was really a Bell 212, just look at the tail rotor. I have over 4,000 hours of helicopter time, 886 hours of which is in combat.

This movie cheapened everyone in the war, I would assume it is the norm rather than the exception.

From what I have read about the real Bat 21 I would say that truth is more interesting, shocking and horrible that this 10th rate film.

Jimmy L. Ratcliff former US Army Chief Warrant Officer