Behind Enemy Lines (2001) on Netflix
Flight officer Chris Burnett, ready to quit, flies a reconnaissance mission over Bosnia with pilot Jeremy Stackhouse. They photograph a site they were never meant to see, and their jet is hit.
- Netflix3.6/5
- IMDb6.4/10120,167 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes37%
Trailer
Plot summary
Lieutenant Chris Burnett, a Navy flight officer, and Lieutenant Jeremy Stackhouse, a pilot, serve aboard an aircraft carrier in the Adriatic Sea during the closing months of the Bosnian War. Preparing to leave the Navy, Burnett is at odds with his commander, Rear Admiral Leslie Reigart, who sends the pair on an aerial reconnaissance flight on Christmas. Over the demilitarized zone, the airmen notice unusual activity below, and Burnett persuades Stackhouse to take the jet off course to see it more closely. What they photograph is a mass grave, with Bosniak civilians being buried by Serb Volunteer Guard troops. The local paramilitary commander, General Miroslav Lokar, orders the aircraft shot down. Reigart hears Burnett's call for help, but the NATO regional naval commander, Admiral Piquet, warns that a rescue inside the demilitarized zone would endanger the peace process.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Behind Enemy Lines (2001)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The film bears some resemblance to the experiences of former U.S. Air Force Captain Scott O'Grady, who was shot down over Bosnia on June 2, 1995, and survived for six days before being rescued by U.S. Marines.
- O'Grady sued the makers of both the film and an earlier Discovery Channel documentary about him, arguing the productions had misappropriated his name, likeness and identity without his permission.
- O'Grady never flew an F/A-18F like the pilot in the film; his aircraft was an F-16 Fighting Falcon. The case he brought over the film was settled out of court.
- James Van Der Beek was originally attached to star as the lead before being replaced by Owen Wilson in mid-2000, after the project had already been announced with director John Moore making his feature debut.
- The U.S. military agreed to lend equipment and access for filming only after the script was rewritten to its request.
