Missing in Action (1984)

Missing in Action is a 1984 American action film directed by Joseph Zito and starring Chuck Norris. It is set in the context of the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue. Colonel Braddock, who escaped a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp 10 years earlier, returns to Vietnam to find American soldiers listed as missing in action during the Vietnam War. The film was followed by a prequel, Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985), and a sequel, Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988). It is the first installment in the Missing in Action film series. “Missing In Action” was actually intended to be a sequel to “Missing in Action 2”, but when it became clear that “Missing in Action” was a much better film with stronger commercial prospects, “Missing in Action 2” was turned into both a sequel and a prequel that detailed events before those in “Missing in Action.”

It is the first of a series of films themed around the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue that were produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus and released under their Cannon Films banner, with whom Norris would have a long professional relationship. Norris later dedicated these films to his younger brother Wieland. Wieland, a private in the 101st Airborne Division, had been killed in June 1970 in Vietnam while on patrol in the defense of Firebase Ripcord.[5] The film, however, was criticized heavily as being a preemptive cash-in on the Rambo franchise. Despite the overwhelmingly negative reception from critics, the film was a commercial success and has become one of Chuck Norris’s most popular films. It was also Chuck Norris’s first film with The Cannon Group.

Plot.

Colonel James Braddock is a US military officer who spent seven years in a North Vietnamese POW camp, which he escaped 10 years ago. After the war, Braddock accompanies a government investigation team that travels to Ho Chi Minh City to investigate reports of US soldiers still held prisoner. Braddock obtains the evidence then travels to Thailand, where he meets Jack “Tuck” Tucker, an old Army friend turned black market kingpin. Together, they launch a mission deep into the jungle to free the US POW’s from General Tran.

Development.

The name of Braddock was inspired by The Graduate character, Benjamin Braddock, played by Dustin Hoffman. The producers’ idea was to create a Vietnam War hero with the name of a lazy Californian student. The concept for the film originated from a treatment, written by James Cameron in 1983, for the film Rambo: First Blood Part II that was floating around Hollywood at the time. This explains the similar plotlines between Rambo franchise and the Missing in Action film series. Representatives from Cannon Group said Cameron’s script served as inspiration to the film and subsequently produced and released the first two Missing in Action films two months before the release of Rambo: First Blood Part II, in order to avoid copyright violation lawsuits. Norris says he was approached to make the film by Lance Hool, who had a script about American POWs in Vietnam.

Classic Film Review- Missing In Action (1984)

Norris was enthusiastic as he wanted to pay tribute to his brother Wieland. Vietnam films were not popular at the time however and Norris and Hool received numerous rejections. Norris said he tried “to instill a positive attitude” about the Vietnam War by making the film. He did say “Vietnam was a tragic mistake. If you don’t want to win the battle, don’t get involved.” He added, “I am a conservative, a real flag waver, a big Ronald Reagan fan. I’m not so much a Republican or Democrat; I go more for the man himself. Ronald Reagan says what he thinks, he’s not afraid to speak his mind, even if he may be unpopular. I want a strong leader and he is a strong leader. And ever since he has been in office there has been a more positive, patriotic feeling in this country.”

Filming.

Filming was to have started in Saint Kitts in January 1984. However the films ended up being shot in the Philippines. “I’m not quite as anti-government as Rambo is”, said Norris. “When the helicopter comes to rescue Rambo and the American MIA (missing in action), and then leaves them stranded, I found that unrealistic. There is not an American pilot alive who would leave them there. They’d have to shoot me to stop me from picking them up, because I’d be dead inside if I didn’t.”

Box office.

The film was popular at the box office, one of the most successful ever made by Cannon. It made $6 million in its first weekend and earned over $10 million in rentals in the US. It resulted in a profit to Cannon of $6.5 million on the basis of its US release alone. By 1985 it earned $26 million.

Cast:

Chuck Norris as Colonel James Braddock
M. Emmet Walsh as Jack “Tuck” Tucker
David Tress as Senator Maxwell Porter
Lenore Kasdorf as Ann Fitzgerald
Ernie Ortega as General Vinh
James Hong as General Tran
E. Erich Anderson as Masucci
Pierrino Mascarino as Jacques
Joseph Carberry as Carter
Avi Kleinberger as Dalton
Willie Williams as Randall
Bella Flores as Madame Pearl
Augusto Victa as General Yung
Jean-Claude Van Damme as An Extra Soldier (uncredited)