Off Limits

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Leo E A well thought out, fast paced, gripping thriller that doesn't let up for the entire movie. Most movies today have plotlines you can guess each and every turn, but this keeps you guessing and the audience is always playing catch up. The acting is excellent and one of Dafoe's best works. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/03/25 Full Review Steve D Predictable and ineffective. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/02/23 Full Review Audience Member Two American plainclothes police officers working in Vietnam during the war (they had those?) investigate a string of murders of Vietnamese prostitutes who had babies with American fathers. Cover-up seems likely as the officers are ordered out of the country. Decent enough film but probably not good enough to be remembered long-term. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member This was the second half of a DVD double feature and I wasn't sure what I was getting into, but it turned out to be a very watchable murder mystery set in Saigon during the Vietnam war. Worth a rental. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member Sergeant First Class Buck McGriff (Willem Dafoe) and Sergeant First Class Albaby Perkins (Gregory Hines) are two joint services Criminal Investigation Division (CID) agents on duty in a war torn Saigon during the Vietnam War. When a prostitute is found murdered they discover that the prime suspects are high ranking U.S. Army officers. As they investigate they find that there have a string of at least six murders in the last year, but the previous inquiry was shut down from higher up the chain of command. Investigations lead them to Colonel Dexter Armstrong (Scott Glenn), but Armstrong rules himself out of inquiries by committing suicide. With the help of a French nun Sister Nicole (Amanda Pays) and their non-commissioned officer in charge, Master Sergeant Dix (Fred Ward), they finally close in on their target... "Saigon" as it was called when it came out in 1988, the change to "Saigon: Off Limits" (The term "off limits" referred to the area where the original crime took place, an area of Saigon off limits to military personnel) must have happend afterwards during the global release, was pretty ok as far as I remember. Reseeing it now, doesn´t change my point of view. The story itself is very much a product of the 80´s, a typical buddy buddy cop thriller structure with a nasty murdercase in the focus. The feeling of trying to cash in on the success of "Platoon" from the year before is there for sure, thus I reckon the storyline was set in Saigon due to this. And casting Dafoe as one of the main characters makes it even more apparent. The general vibe of the movie is very 80´s with an ending were the bad guy gets what he deserves and then everything is happy and dandy. That feels somewhat strange in 2013. What makes "Saigon" stand out for me is the acting and the great dynamics between Willem Dafoe and Gregory Hines. I love Hines intense acting. The film marks Willem Dafoe's second Vietnam War movie. Dafoe had previously starred in Platoon and would go on to play roles in both "Born on the Fourth of July" and "Flight of the Intruder". And it was nice to resee the stunning Amanda Pays. A scene I still haven´t forgotten is the one with Colonel Armstrong (Glenn) throwing out Vietcong prisoners from a helicopter. A scene that ends with his own suicide. Intense and crazy. The movie offers some nice tunes in the midst as well such as "Funky Broadway" by Wilson Pickett and "Stand!" by Sly and the Family Stone. "Saigon" is a fast-paced, suspensefull and at times violent thriller. Not that bad in my book. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Ennalta-arvattava mutta ajoittan varsin tehokas. Scott Glenn tekee lyhyen mutta tehokkaan sivuosa! Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Off Limits

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