''The Hanoi Hilton'' is a 1987

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

film which focuses on the experiences of American prisoners of war who were held in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison in

Hanoi Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

during the 1960s and 1970s and the story is told from their perspectives. It was directed by

Lionel Chetwynd Lionel Chetwynd (born January 29, 1940) is a British-American screenwriter, director and producer. Life and career Lionel Chetwynd was born to a Jewish family in Hackney, London, the son of Betty (née Dion) and Peter Chetwynd. His family mov ...

, and stars

Michael Moriarty Michael Moriarty (born April 5, 1941) is an American-Canadian actor and jazz musician. He received an Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award for his first acting role on American television as a Nazi SS officer in the 1978 mini-series ''Holocaust'' ...

, Ken Wright and

Paul Le Mat Paul Le Mat (born September 22, 1945) is an American actor. He first came to prominence with his role in ''American Graffiti'' (1973); his performance was met with critical acclaim and earned him the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year ...

. Music was done by

Jimmy Webb Jimmy Layne Webb (born August 15, 1946) is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He has written numerous platinum-selling songs, including " Up, Up and Away", " By the Time I Get to Phoenix", " MacArthur Park", " Wichita Lineman", " Wo ...

. The film portrays fictional characters, not specific American POWs. It earned less than $1 million in its initial theatrical release, but a

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Vide ...

VHS release gained a cult following, especially among veterans. A

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

release of the film had been anticipated for some time in 2008, with the package to include a new interview with former POW and 2008 presidential candidate John McCain. However, the film's release was suspended by Warner Bros. when he became the Republican Party nominee. The week following the

2008 United States presidential election The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator f ...

, Warner Bros. went ahead with the DVD release.

Plot

A group of American POWs held inside

's Hoa Lo Prison during the

endure some brutal lessons in the art of survival and find

dignity Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. It is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable ...

in the bargain.

Cast

as LCDR Williamson * John Edwin Shaw as Mason * Ken Wright as Kennedy *

as Earl Hubman *

David Soul David Soul (born David Richard Solberg; August 28, 1943) is an American-British actor and singer. He is known for his role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch" Hutchinson in the television series ''Starsky & Hutch'' from 1975 to 1979; Joshua Bolt on ' ...

as Major Oldham * Stephen Davies as Captain Robert Miles *

Lawrence Pressman Lawrence Pressman (born David M. Pressman; July 10, 1939) is an American actor, probably best known for roles on '' Doogie Howser, M.D.'', ''Ladies' Man'', a recurring role on '' Profiler'', the title character on '' Mulligan's Stew'' and as a ...

as Colonel Cathcart *

Doug Savant Douglas Peter Savant (born June 21, 1964) is an American actor, known for his roles as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera '' Melrose Place'' (1992–97), Tom Scavo in ABC comedy-drama '' Desperate Housewives'' (2004–12), and as Sgt. ...

as Ashby * David Anthony Smith as Gregory *

Jeffrey Jones Jeffrey Duncan Jones (born September 28, 1946) is an American character actor, best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in '' Amadeus'' (1984), Edward R. Rooney in ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986), Charles Deetz in ''Beetlejuice'' (1988 ...

as Major Fischer *

John Vargas John Vargas is an American actor best known for his role in the films ''Primary Colors'' and '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan''. "Seduced By Evil" 1994. Early life John Vargas was born in the Bronx and moved to Puerto Rico when his father Jua ...

as Oliviera *

Rick Fitts Rick Fitts is an American film and television actor. He is known for playing the role of the ruthless businessman Martin Jackson on 120 episodes of the American soap opera television series '' Generations''. Fitts guest-starred in numerous telev ...

as Captain Turner *

John Diehl John Henry Diehl (born May 1, 1950) is an American character actor. Noted for his work in avant-garde theater, Diehl has performed in more than 140 films and television shows, including '' Land of Plenty'', ''Stripes'', '' City Limits'', ''Nix ...

as Murphy * Jesse Dabson as Rasmussen * Bruce Fairbairn as Shavik *

James Acheson James Acheson (born 13 March 1946) is a British costume designer. He was educated at Colchester Royal Grammar School and studied at Wimbledon School of Art. He has designed costumes and sets for television, theatre, opera, ballet and film, work ...

as Cummins *

Aki Aleong Assing "Aki" Aleong (born December 19, 1934) is a Trinidad and Tobago–born American character actor and singer who has also been active in songwriting and musical production. His first important role was in the 1957 movie '' No Down Paymen ...

as Major Ngo Doc * Gary Guidinger as Raymond * Mark Kemble as Jesse * Marii Mak as Voice of Hanoi Hilton (voice) * Natalie Alexander as Mrs. Fischer (uncredited)

Reception

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the film has a weighted average score of 32 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".

References

External links

* * * 1987 films 1980s war drama films American war drama films Films about shot-down aviators Films set in Hanoi Golan-Globus films Vietnam War prisoner of war films Films produced by Menahem Golan Films produced by Yoram Globus 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{war-drama-film-stub