Bullet Points: McBain (1991)

1991’s McBain, written and directed by James Glickenhaus, is my latest “How in the hell have I never seen this before?” movie and is now the topic of this edition of Bullet Points…

• The War is Over: The movie begins in Vietnam, where a group of soldiers has received the good news that the war is over and they are going home. The soldiers gather their things before they get to the chopper… but as they fly over the Vietnamese jungle they spot a P.O.W. camp and considering they were nearly fired upon moments earlier, they realize that the Viet Cong may not have gotten the “war is over” memo and there’s a very good chance that there are prisoners at the P.O.W. camp. Knowing they would not be able to live with themselves if they potentially left some of their own behind, they ask the pilot to circle back so they can check things out.
• Cage Fight: Sure enough, the camp is functioning and the sadistic commanding officer in charge has put on his ear necklace so he can properly enjoy a fight inside a bamboo cage between a muscle bound VC and P.O.W. Bobby McBain (Christopher Walken, A View to a Kill). With all the guards focusing on the cage fight… the team of Roberto Santos (Chick Vennera), Frank Bruce (Michael Ironside, Total Recall), Gill, Dalton and Eastland (Steve James, The Exterminator) swoop in guns blazing and take out the enemy soldiers with Santos directly responsible for saving McBain’s life as he was exiting the cage. McBain knows he owes his life to Santos, that’s when Santos rips a $100 bill in half, gives Bobby half and tells him if the other half of the bill ever finds him, that is when McBain can repay him.

• 18 Years Later: Roberto Santos has returned to his roots in Colombia, where a dictator president and the drug lords are now in control. Santos has built himself a rebel army and has the support of the people of Colombia. Now Santos has a bold plan that he hopes will get them the assistance of the United States government so they can overthrow El Presidente and bring democracy back to Colombia. Before Santos embarks on this dangerous mission, he gives his half of the $100 bill to his sister Christina (Maria Conchita Alonso, The Running Man) and tells her if anything happens to him, to go find Bobby McBain in New York City… which is a huge red flag that Roberto Santos is not going to survive this mission… Things start off well for Santos and his troops. They get into the presidential palace and interrupt El Presidente as he is making a televised speech, Santos then gets on camera pleading with the United States to act quickly and help their cause… but when El Presidente’s army outside the palace threaten to crush innocent women and children with tanks. Roberto Santos has no choice but to surrender and El Presidente then shoots Santos in the head for the entire world to see.
• If You Can Make It There: Christina then does what her brother instructed her to do… she makes her way to New York City, where Bobby McBain was expecting her. McBain saw the horrific footage of the man who saved his life 18 years earlier, Roberto Santos, being executed on TV. McBain is more than happy to repay Roberto by helping Christina finish what Roberto started, but he’s going to need a team and money. Getting the team together is relatively easy… Eastland, Gill and Dalton are more than happy to help. Frank Bruce is a bit more reluctant, however he has access to the weapons they will need and all said (even with the “old times” discount) it is going to cost $10 million dollars.. so while McBain figures out a way to raise the funds, Christina returns to Colombia to get the rebels ready to take the airstrip they are going to need to make this plan work.

• Business Is Picking Up: The action is on simmer for a bit as McBain and the team fly to Columbia where they eventually encounter fighter jets, which should have been more exciting than it actually was…. Once our heroes actually gets on the ground the action heats up with bullets flying and explosions as our heroes break off into two teams, one heading for the Presidential Palace , the other looking to take over the government run television network. Both missions give the movie an ample amount of action and for me the real highlight was getting to see the late, great Steve James do his thing (which was honestly why I decided to watch McBain in the first place).

There is no mistaking the fact that McBain is a James Glickenhaus film especially the portion shot in his native New York City. The NYC portion does break up the jungle action first in Vietnam and then Colombia and has some memorable moments, but it almost felt out of place or like that could have been a separate movie. Also, what are the odds that all of Santos’ Vietnam friends would all end up in New York City when they got home? Also, did I miss something or did none of them get married and start a family?

Christopher Walken would not have been my first choice as an action hero, but he gives it his all. Walken had a strong supporting cast around him… although I felt like the villains were a bit weak. The heroes prevailing in the end is pretty much a given in any action movie, but there was never a point where I even had the slightest doubt that McBain and company would triumph.

There should be no doubt that this review will wrap up with some Bonus Bullet Points…

• Nice Hat: Steve James can be seen sporting a WrestleMania hat at various times during the movie… like after waking up from a drunken night with the boys or while blowing up a control tower.
• Familiar Face: Luis Guzman of The Substitute and Black Rain fame, played Papo the drug dealer, who points McBain and the team in the direction of mob boss, John Gambotti, if they are looking to shakedown anyone for $10 million dollars. Which leads to two great back to back scenes at the expense of the mafioso.
• The Name Game: Not to be confused with the McBain movies from The Simpsons or any of the Ed McBain 87th Precinct movies, like Lightning.
• Fun Fact: Bobby McBain was at the historic Woodstock concert in August of 1969.