Behind Enemy Lines

"His only weapon is his will to survive."

2001 1h 46m EN

😐

6.5

MID

🥫

35%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

6.4

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 1,732🥫35%Rotten Tomatoes●49Metacritic★6.4IMDB · 118,832

ActionDramaThrillerWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

While flying a routine reconnaissance mission over Bosnia, fighter pilot Lt. Chris Burnett photographs something he wasn't supposed to see and gets shot down behind enemy lines, where he must outrun an army led by a ruthless Serbian general. With time running out and a deadly tracker on his trail, Burnett's commanding officer, Admiral Reigart, decides to risk his career and launch a renegade rescue mission to save his life.

“His only weapon is his will to survive.”

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Cast

Owen Wilson
Lt. Chris 'Longhorn' Burnett
Gene Hackman
Admiral Leslie Reigart, Commander Adriatic Battle Group
Gabriel Macht
Lt. Jeremy 'Smoke' Stackhouse
Olek Krupa
General Miroslav Lokar
Vladimir Mashkov
Tracker (Sasha)
Marko Igonda
Bazda
David Keith
Master Chief Tom O'Malley
Charles Malik Whitfield
Capt. Glen Rodway, USMC

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Moore
Writers: John Thomas, Jim Thomas, David Veloz
Languages: Czech, English, Spanish, Serbo-Croatian
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

25 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 4 languages: Czech, English, Spanish, Serbo-Croatian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Behind Enemy Lines Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CAST

Did you know

226+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Moore, shot by Brendan Galvin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Don Davis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Paul Martin Smith shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Owen Wilson and Gene Hackman and Gabriel Macht carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Moore directs. Brendan Galvin behind the camera. Don Davis scores. Paul Martin Smith cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in Czech, English, Spanish, Serbo-Croatian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

125 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 4 languages: Czech, English, Spanish, Serbo-Croatian.
3Part of the "Behind Enemy Lines Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4226+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
5Directed by John Moore, shot by Brendan Galvin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Don Davis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Paul Martin Smith shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Owen Wilson and Gene Hackman and Gabriel Macht carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "His only weapon is his will to survive.".
10IMDB entry: tt0159273 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 26 themes, including "sniper", "war crimes", "bosnia and herzegovina", "rescue mission".

The technical file

Cinematography: Brendan Galvin
Original score: Don Davis
Editing: Paul Martin Smith
Production design: Nathan Crowley
Makeup / hair: Geraldine Jones
VFX supervisor: Cosmas Paul Bolger Jr.
Sound: Gary Gegan
Stunt coordinator: Steve M. Davison
Runtime: 106 min · 1h 46m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $40,000,000
Box office: $91,753,202
Return: 229% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Behind Enemy Lines (2001)
Rotten Tomatoes: 35% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 49/100
IMDB rating: 6.4/10 · 118,832 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

1 win & 2 nominations total

Part of

Behind Enemy Lines Collection

A film franchise about the trials and tribulations of when soldiers are caught behind enemy lines. The series began with Behind Enemy Lines in 2001, followed by films in 2006, 2009 and 2014. All four films feature the United States Navy.

Also by

John Moore

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-09-02
★ 6/10
Owen Wilson is a disillusioned pilot aboard an American aircraft carrier. Bored with the relentlessness of it all, he puts in his papers to the chagrin of his commanding officer. With two weeks left to go, he is flying a reconnaissance mission over Bosnia when he is shot down, his pilot murdered by rogue troops and he is forced to flee for his life - pursued by a ruthless sniper - whilst his task force colleagues try to find and rescue him. Based on a true story, it is actually quite a well paced manhunt with plenty of peril and pace. What diminishes it is the really poor choice of actor to lead. Wilson plays the disinterested flier well enough at the start, but as things heat up on the ground he really isn't good enough to hold the film up en seul. Gene Hackman is his boss (Adm. Reigert), and he isn't really up to very much either - though he does do the slightly gung-go "go get our boy back" role well enough. The premiss of the genocide being perpetrated on the locals is writ large, and having seen much news coverage at the time of this largely forgotten Balkan war, the story is not without it's potency. It is quite watchable, but is still a somewhat light-weight depiction of a truly difficult situation.
RalphRahal2025-02-02
★ 6/10
Behind Enemy Lines is one of those movies that doesn't try to be anything more than what it is, a straightforward action thriller with high-stakes chases and explosions. The plot is predictable, filled with familiar tropes and moments that feel like they were borrowed from other war films and stitched together. It doesn’t have much depth or originality, but it still manages to be entertaining. The directing leans heavily on fast cuts and a hyperactive camera style, which can feel excessive at times, but it keeps the pacing tight. The cinematography does a decent job of capturing the tension, with some impressive aerial shots and a gritty, cold war-zone atmosphere. What carries the film is the acting. Owen Wilson, stepping away from his usual comedic roles, delivers a solid performance as the lead, and Gene Hackman brings the expected level of authority and gravitas. The script is functional but nothing special, just enough to push the action forward without adding much depth to the characters. The score complements the tension well but isn’t particularly memorable. Despite all its flaws, I still found myself enjoying it. Maybe it's the mix of solid performances and non-stop action, or maybe it's just one of those movies that works as a guilty pleasure.