Death Before Dishonor (1987) User Reviews

"I like the odds"

[lost-in-limbo · 6/10 · 13 May 2012]

I don't know how many times I've come across the film in stores that were selling their ex-rental tapes, to have the film in my hands to only put it back. I don't know why; as it seemed it could be a juicy throwback to the Reagan era of dumb-down patriotic action set in the Middle East. "Delta Force" anyone. Well after watching it, you can't say it disappoints on that point. Strangely it starts of slow, but then its wears its pride with ridiculous glee with gung-ho activity with brutal and unsparing carnage as the tersely hardened Fred Dyer goes berserk (sometimes with a rocket launcher, all maybe a shotgun) when one of his men and close friend/colonel are kidnapped by Arab terrorists who are working with some German/or were they Russian mercenaries. I'll go German. They were extremely evil too, especially in their intro were they completely demolish a dinner table by machine gun and I almost forgot a diplomatic family. Dyer's Sgt. character likes to do things his way, but Paul Winfield's American ambassador does things by the book. They clash in the most clichéd manner, but this won't stop Dyer. He wants payback. And boy does he get it. So what we get is explosions galore… you know suicidal bombing, slow-motion car chases that end in explosions and then the chaotic ambush filled with explosions / gunfire at the bad guy's hideout. Throw in robotic bad guys - the German pair takes the cake, cringe-worthy torture, stilted dialogues, macho posturing, marine instincts, flag waving, dummy stunt work and a stunning Joanna Pacula as an internationalist photographer. The material is quite one-sided in its viewpoint, but because of this it manages to strike some unintentional laughs in its leave no one behind mindset. Brian May contributes to the funky score. Simple, raw and cheap, but effectively busy in what it sets out to achieve; chintzy, but no-bull action exploitation that makes a lot of noise.

"You're dead marine"

Paint the rocks....

[FlashCallahan · 4/10 · 23 August 2013]

Sergeant Burns reports for duty the American Embassy in the Middle East. Due to the 'enlightened' views of the Ambassador, the marine security detachment he is in charge of is severely restricted in their functions and presence to avoid upsetting the host government.

As a result, when terrorists attack the compound, they are able to kidnap hostages and escape with little opposition.

Burns ignores the Ambassador's restrictions, as he becomes a one man army in an attempt to rescue the hostages, and wipe out the terrorists.....

This has been one of those films I've been curious about since I saw it on a video shelf in 1989, and I finally got the chance to see the film after 24 years. Lets just say it might have been good when I was 12, but seeing it now, it didn't entertain.

Its basically a poor mans Heartbreak Ridge, with Dryer playing the grizzled lead who turns into Rambo come the end. For a generic action movie, its pretty violent and some if the scene are shocking, so kudos to the makers for that.

But the rest of the film is dull, and not very exciting. You've seen one explosion you've seen them all, you've seen the enemy shot a hundred rounds, and the hero firing one, yep, it happens here all the time.

If your a connoisseur of eighties action movies like myself, you'll be clock watching around the thirty minute mark.

Peace through superior Dryer power.

[janus-20 · 6/10 · 17 April 2011]

Cardinal Richelieu said: "War is one of the scourges with which it has pleased God to afflict men."

The scourge who afflicts men in this wheeze is Gunnery Sgt. Burns (Fred Dryer). Burns is a career soldier, battle hardened and grizzled. He has his own interpretation of American foreign military policy, all foreigners are suspect by default and therefore subject to his military policy.

Armed only with this simple misunderstanding (and highly powered automatic weaponry), Burns' ire is aroused when his superior and friend, Col. Halloran (Brian Keith) is bushwacked and spirited away by babbling, machine gun toting "types". Burns' initial bafflement with his superiors reluctance to blame and incacerate every non-American in a hundred mile radius soon gives way to righteous indignation.

Bullets are soon being chambered, grenades are attached to bandoliers and rocket launchers hefted. Before you can say "United Nations peacekeeping envoy" Gunnery Sgt. Burns is (with the help of a few other people who don't stand on ceremony when there are asses to be kicked) laying siege to the desert fortress of a large man who looks like the product of an unholy union between Chewbacca and Dave Lee Travis (sorry, not funny if your not from the UK). After the smoke clears (and we have learnt that any combatant who has received a knife to the chest still has to be punched in the face really hard and fall from a terrace to ensure neutralisation), everyone who deserved to be (except the writers) is riddled with bullets, blown up and in one case has had a jeep dropped on them.

Possibly you may think I don't care much for this film, based on the above, but you'd be wrong. This is a slightly above average actioner, decently edited action scenes and pushes all the politically wrong buttons to get any red blooded blockhead like me baying for blood.

Its a shame Fred Dryer couldn't bring the same understated, laconic charm to this effort that he did to seven years of the excellent cop show Hunter, but he does make a pretty good action hero. Not a bad action pot boiler and I didn't even know it was Islamophobic until I looked it up on wiki.

Death before watching this again!

[udar55 · 3/10 · 25 August 2005]

I decided to dust this one off and give it another watch. I don't know if that was a good thing. DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR is the quintessential one-sided, "We're good, they're bad" action film. Not since John Wayne's THE GREEN BERETS (1968) have I seen a film so amazingly biased.

The scariest thing about DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR is the film's politics. The film is so glaringly jingoistic that it landed itself on the "Worst List" of the book "Reed Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People." While set in the fictional country of Jemal, it is quite obvious who these guys fighting Israel are supposed to be. And who the good guys are. While discussing the complex problems in the Middle East, Ellie asks Burns, "Are you the kind of person who knows what is exactly right and what is wrong?" "Yes," replies Burns before he tells her "don't get us mad." DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR is the kind of film where multiple bad guys can't hit the hero (granted his underlings do die for the cause) with machine guns, but he can blow them up with a rocket launcher while driving a car. Where a "by the book" bureaucrat finds out the hard way (via car bomb) how "savage" these people really are. I think The Phantom of the Movies summed it up best in his review when he said, "it may well be the best 1943 war movie made in 1987." It would be funny, if it weren't so darn frightening.

Actually, there is a bit of fun to be had with DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR. Director Leonard, a veteran stuntman, crafts some nice car chases with a rather nice car stunt at the film's end. The film definitely holds its own against its contemporaries such as THE DELTA FORCE (1986) in that regard. Dryer, with visions of Eastwood in HEARTBREAK RIDGE (1986) dancing in his head, is amazingly bland as the tough as nails Marine. Watching him drag around here, it is hard to believe he carried a TV series for so many seasons. You can tell he was hoping for a cross over opportunity into theatrical features, but failed miserably. But there is something inherently funny in his featureless performance. Finally, fans of "what in the world" moments should also keep an eye out for the scene where Brian Keith, being photographed by terrorists, gives them the finger…with his ring finger!

Hunter Rescues Uncle Bill

[wbhickok · 3/10 · 29 May 2001]

About the kindest think I could possibly say about this movie, is that it is funnier than 'Commando.' Starring Fred 'Where the hell did my career go' Dryer as a Marine who lives by his own rules.(clever huh?) After the killing of all his buddies, and the kidnapping of his gruff but loveable Colonel, Yep... you guessed it, he goes on a one man rescue mission (against orders naturally) to rescue the Colonel, and to kill as many non-english speaking persons as possible. Laughably cliched from start to finish. Whoever wrote this should have their crayons taken away.

Angry marine

[Dr. Gore · 3 September 2005]

*SPOILER ALERT* *SPOILER ALERT*

I bought this video for two bucks. "Death before Dishonor" is one of those shameless pro-American military flicks they used to make back in the 80's. And what the heck is wrong with that? I mean, granted, Fred Dryer is no Rambo but he gets the job done. He destroys anyone he perceives as a threat to the American way of life. Dryer has to guard the American embassy in some fictitious Arab country. Soon the rebel army will attack his embassy, kidnap his colonel and generally upset him. They've pushed this marine to the breaking point.

As a ridiculous action movie, "Death before Dishonor" is mildly enjoyable. One car chase scene has him driving after the bad guys through various back alleys. He then takes his windshield out and shoots a rocket at them while driving! Yeah! That'll show them not to mess with the marines. Of course, they never learn and soon they're back to harass Dryer again. If you're expecting subtlety from this flick or any particularly enlightened attitude toward affairs in the Middle East, you will be sorely disappointed. "Death before Dishonor" is all about the Americans, (good guys), killing rebel Arabs and their Russian masters, (bad guys). So if you're looking for a simple, (and cheap), B-war flick, "Death before Dishonor" fits the bill.

The A-Team Movie

[megoobee · 5/10 · 15 March 2015]

Rather than the abomination that was released in 2010, this is what the A-Team movie should have been like. The necessary pieces are all there, desperate situation, chase scenes with vehicles jumping/flipping over or crashing through things, people falling or being flung through the air, thousands of rounds of ammunition expended and last but not least, big explosions.

Even with all that going on, this feature is only marginally entertaining. It is ham and cheese at it's best (or worse depending on your viewpoint). The dialog is bad and the plot is so formulaic that you know what will happen well before it happens. The buddy-buddy bonding scene in the beginning is not believable and adds no real value other than to give the audience a quick introduction to the team and their "We are bad ass" attitude/history.

There is a fair amount of violence which includes a graphic torture scene. The story, what little of it lacks cohesiveness and as a result jumps around more than a Mexican jumping bean on a pogo stick.

For those looking for mindless entertainment with gun play and explosions, they will probably be satisfied. For those wanting a good story to go along with the violence, probably not.

Bring on the cheese... USA! USA!

[Corpus_Vile · 7/10 · 1 March 2010]

Some Spoilers to follow

Fred Dryer (That guy who played bad ass cop Hunter on TV in the 80s) is bad ass veteran of um, El Salvador, Gunnery Sgt Burns, who is sent to the fictitious country and terrorist haven of Jemal, to whip Jemali terrorist ass, which he does with gritty gusto.

However, the terrorists kidnap his crusty cigar chomping superior Brian Keith, and subject him to a spot of surprisingly graphic power drill torture, partly to get information, and partly for chuckles because they're evil. Not only that, they then evilly suicide bomb the US embassy, killing his buddy.

Burns goes ballistic, but is hampered by a lot of wussy crap from uptight pen pushing US Ambassador to Jemal Paul Winfield, who constantly bleats things like "You gotta do this by the book Sergeant! By the book!!"

However, Gunnery Sgt. Burns is bad ass, played Hunter and does things his way by gawd, and to hell with the consequences, so Winfield's whining only enrages him and causes him to whip even more terrorist ass, this time aided by a handy and intrepid Israeli hit squad, (Who fortunately happen to be in Jemal on an ass kicking mission at the time) thanks to that damn girlie Ambassador Winfield and his "My hands are tied, by the book!" b.s.

Death Before Dishonour is critically... well, not great.

However, it more than makes up for this with cheerful xenophobia, awesome bad ass-ery and testosterone fueled cheese. It also obligingly throws in scenes of evil German terrorist ringleaders in cahoots with those sneaky Jemalis, heroic soldiers who fearlessly throw themselves in front of grenades before patriotically gasping "Take... me... home... sir!" and hot Polish babe Joanna Pacula as a mysterious and alluring war photographer, and will sadden you that the cold war is over, as they just don't make 'em like this no more.

Recommended for rabid right wingers, angry loners, addled military vets, stoners and lovers of jingoistic cheesy goodness, such as myself.

Waste of time

[seekingallthetime · 3/10 · 7 October 2019]

Imagine 6 terrorists in a truck and 2 terrorists in a car all with sun-machineguns and firing/killing every living thing in their path, shooting heavily on cilvilians and killed them earlier, yet ou hero with a pistol which had only 1 or 2 bullets left, is chasing them, avoiding all of heavy bursts magically, omg thats a true failry tail, no my mistake, its like some lonely tunes cartoon. And the terrorists AKA 47s were bult in a way that they kill any person other than our hero. OMG, thats all. here I stopped watching this and fast forward just to see a scene where Joanna Pacula invites our hereo. The truth is I just wanted to see Joanna Pacula, but this highly intelligent film even stopped me to watch any further. Hope you get the rest.

Uninspired, maybe, but still fun.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 10 February 2013]

"Death Before Dishonor" is a cheesy, nasty, jingoistic piece of work, and pretty fun on that level. In any event, it does exactly what it should be doing, and that's delivering lots of gunfire, explosions, and brutality before revving up for a nicely rousing finale. The villains are utter creeps whose demise we eagerly anticipate, and our hero is a jut jawed type who everybody knows damn well will take on all comers in order to do what's right.

It's also the sole feature film vehicle for TV star Fred Dryer ('Hunter'), who plays Marine sergeant "Gunny" Burns, who's stationed in the Middle East. When terrorists manage to kidnap his superior, Colonel Halloran (a lovably crusty Brian Keith), he goes into action. Luscious Polish babe Joanna Pacula plays a dubious journalist covering the terrorists' activities, Paul Winfield (rather wasted) is an officious, typical bureaucrat (the kind of guy in this type of film who will insist that the hero do things by the book), Sasha Mitchell is one of Burns's young soldiers, and Rockne Tarkington, Mohammed Bakri, and Kasey Walker play our unsubtle villains.

This marked the only 1st unit directing credit for veteran stuntman and stunt coordinator Terry Leonard, who's worked on films ranging from "McLintock!" to "The Green Hornet". You know it's comfortably familiar stuff, when, even if you're watching it for the first time, you can easily predict upcoming lines of dialogue. The on location shooting is a bonus, as is the excellent music by the under-rated Aussie composer Brian May. The action is first rate, and keeps us happily watching for the duration. And just to show us how sadistic the baddies are, the most memorable scene has them mutilating Keiths' hand with a power drill and threatening his young associate with similar treatment. That makes it all the more glorious when Dryer and associates, with the assistance of the Mossad, launch the climactic attack on the stronghold where Keith is being kept. It's guaranteed to get you cheering and pumping your fist, right up to the final frame.

Seven out of 10.

Hunter goes on another hunting trip, in the middle east...

[fmarkland32 · 2/10 · 11 September 2006]

Fred Dryer stars as a gung ho marine who rounds up the troops and conducts a rescue mission in response to the U.S government's underwhelming response to his commanding officer's(Brian Keith) abduction. Of course it is the Arabs who are behind it and basically this is jingoism at it's most hideously lame. The movie has an interesting cast (Brian Keith, Joanna Pacula, Paul Winfield and Sasha Mitchell) but all of these counterparts are mainly wasted in favor of Fred Dryer's charisma-less performance which consists of grunting and looking deeply ticked off. The movie seems to live in a timeless vortex where repetition rules the day. Everything about the movie is tired and clichéd but the details are so groan inducingly lame and so absurd you just keep rolling your eyes in disdain. All of this would be enjoyable had Death Before Dishonor contained some punch in the action sequences but unfortunately these one sided action sequences feature a three digit body count on one side, while only one good guy dies. At this type of ratio, it is no wonder the movie went into obscurity.

* out of 4-(Bad)

My thoughts on "Death before Dishonor"

[cldurci · 9/10 · 17 May 2006]

I first saw the movie when my dad rented it many years ago and since have recently looked to purchase it again. It is one of my favorite movies aside from "G.I.Jane". I thought the cast did a wonderful job and the storyline was great. It shows just how dedicated the cast/characters are to protecting this country and that they won't dishonor the USA and with my brother who was in the U.S.AirForce, he also loved the movie.I love military movies and I think this one is definitely one of my favorites and always will be. I say that the directors,writers,producers and cast did a terrific job with a great movie.Nice job...

Thank You, Christina Durci

Standard, formulaic, but nevertheless OK

[sveknu · 6/10 · 21 February 2010]

This movie is an ultra patriotic, one-dimensional all-American military hero movie from the Reagan era. Do we like this kind of stuff? YES! It's great for relaxation at home. It's not great by any means, the action is OK/mediocre, the acting is (just forget about the acting), the story is standard, in total it's nothing we haven't seen before. I guess you have to be a fan of this type of movie to enjoy them. The movie itself knows what it is and doesn't try to do anything else than stick to it's safe formula. At least you know what you'll get from this.

6 out of 10

Typical 80s low budget action.

[Dodge-Zombie · 2/10 · 1 July 2022]

Nothing really to see with this one. There's some torture scenes and some people get shot and stuff.

The acting is terrible and the script is pretty abismal.

There are far better movies of it's kind out there.

Feature length enlistment infomercial

[BuzzardHawk · 4/10 · 20 May 2003]

This was typical of the one-sided, unintentionally funny, and jingoistic action movies that came out during the Reagan Administration, and as such, clearly shows its age.

See Edward Zwick's "The Siege" instead.

ahead of its time

[clif-moberg · 4 October 2011]

Good casting and good plot. Modern movie watchers can say "predictable"; however, they've seen lots of action films SINCE 1987 that make plot elements here rather familiar. Don't you think? They acted like marines; everyone was fit and could do the wall climbs, etc. People seemed to be willing to do things not for money--that was a bit unusual, to the end that the "good guys" won! It was patriotic, sure, but in this age (2011) of from the top-down complacency, this patriotism comes across as welcome, I'd say. Good Action. Only the blond photographer lady seemed miscast to me. As you can see from the high score, I liked it!

you've probably seen it all before

[disdressed12 · 5/10 · 13 April 2008]

to me,this was just a standard run of the mill military actioner.i didn't think it brought anything new to the genre.it wasn't very exciting.even the final gun battle at the end of the movie was ho hum.this thing is also very predictable.having said all that,the movie was passable entertainment.Fred Dryer(the 80's TV show Hunter,and ex-football player)plays the main character in the movie,while Kathryn Erbe( Eames-Law and order:Criminal Intent)lookalike Kasey Walker plays one of the main terrorists.Dryer is OK in his Role,but I thought Walker was very impressive.anyway,you've probably seen it all before.for me Death Before Dishonour is a 5/10

Don't mess with the U.S.

[dworldeater · 7/10 · 12 May 2016]

Death Before Dishonor is an ultra patriotic and macho 80's action in the same vein as Rambo-First Blood pt.2 and The Delta Force. It is not as good as the films I have just mentioned and is in many ways cliché and little bit on the cheesy side. It is mostly a recruitment poster for the US Marines, but is a good film vehicle for Fred Dryer.(who is best known as Hunter) Death Before Dishonor delivers big on action with some excellent stunts, explosions and shootouts. Fred Dryer may not be the best actor, but he is good with firearms and is athletic and rugged enough to be a good action hero and is convincing as a Marine Corps badass. Director Terry Leonard did a good job as his only gig as director and there is a good support cast with Brian Keith and Paul Winfield. Rockne Tarkington of Black Samson fame did well cast as main baddie Jihad. I remember watching this as a young lad with my father when this originally had its run on cable, while certain elements of the film are dated, it holds up pretty good with most action movies of the same period.

Honor this not bad action piece

[PeterMitchell-506-564364 · 7/10 · 21 January 2013]

Death Before Dishonor takes itself too seriously, and in this case it's a plus. Though it's lead isn't the best actor in the world, it's good to see someone different beside the Chuckies and Stallones. It's actually a really put together film, that I wouldn't call spectacular, but it treads the thin line between fair and good, where it's closer to good. It has a different setting too, the middle east. Sergeant Gunnery Burns (Dryer is caught in an ambush, his marines slaughtered, his commanding officer (Brian "Family Affair" Keith) is kidnapped along with two escorting marines, by merciless terrorists, who's ways of getting answers are brutal. One marine's hand takes a hell of a drilling from a Mackita, at a terrorists/bitch's hand. A nasty piece of role. When they go for the leg next, he folds, against that ever existing rule, as well as his shamed C.O, Death Before Dishonor. A great title. The ambush sequence is fantastically shot, where at the end of it, Dryer yells s..t after jumping from a bridge, into a gully, his jeep, he evacuates, prior, exploding. There's some other good action pieces too, that makes great use of location. Some of the violence is raw, but this is one of those better action pieces, a two week runner, that's not that far fetched as you would think. Joanna Pacula, (remember her) co stars, as a bold photographer who first gets on Dryer's bad side, a side you don't want to be on. We too see the loyalty of terrorists, one driving his van straight into the embassy.

Enjoyable action outing

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 14 January 2014]

Rugged U.S. Marine Jack Burns (Fred Dryer in excellent hard-nosed form) defies the orders of his commanding officers by going after a band of savage terrorists who have abducted his beloved superior officer Col. Halloran (a sturdy and engagingly gruff portrayal by Brian Keith). Director Terry Leonard, working from a compact script by Jon Gatliff and Lawrence Kubik, keeps the mean'n'lean narrative hurtling along at a brisk pace, maintains a serious gritty tone throughout, really lays on the gung-ho patriotism and testosterone-soaked machismo something thick, and stages the thrilling action set pieces with rip-roaring brio. The sound acting by the capable cast keeps this movie humming: The gorgeous Joanna Pacula as crusading photo journalist Elli, Paul Winfield as a stuffy by-the-book ambassador, Peter Parros as the eager James, Rockne Tarkington as the ferocious Jihad, Daniel Chodos as the wormy Amin, Mohammad Bakri as the vicious Gavril, and Kacey Walker as the ruthless Maude Winter. The jolting moments of brutal violence pack quite a harsh punch while the picture's fiercely jingoistic sensibility radiates a certain lovably crude 80's period charm. Brian May's lively score hits the rousing spot. The polished cinematography by Don Burgess supplies a pleasing crisp look. A fun flick.

It's a nice package of action where the good guys are good and the bad guys are bad.

[tarbosh22000 · 7/10 · 10 September 2014]

When Col. Halloran (Keith) assigns Gunnery Sgt. Burns (Dryer) and his young Marines - including Ramirez (Gian) and Ruggieri (Mitchell) - to the turbulent middle east country of Jemal, despite the willingness of the local military to use their help, at first they don't get to do too much. This is thanks to the politically correct, out-of-touch views of Ambassador Virgil Morgan (Winfield), who doesn't want to step on any toes. But Morgan, and the rest of the Americans, get a rude dose of reality in the form of a terrorist named Jihad (Tarkington) who is orchestrating acts of terror in the region. A photographer, Elli Baumann (Pacula) is documenting his rise to power. When he and his goons kidnap some of Burns' men, including Halloran, Burns decides to take matters into his own hands and becomes a one-man army bent on revenge! Will he face death, dishonor, or NEITHER? Find out today! Death Before Dishonor is a classic example of the Reagan-era patriotism film. It features good, noble Americans doing heroic deeds - and in this era of cynicism, irony and anti-Americanism, movies like this are not only highly refreshing, but also needed. It was just nice to see America portrayed as upstanding good guys for a change, something you rarely, if ever, see on TV these days. Based on the subject matter, the movie is perhaps more relevant today than it was back when it was released. They should release Death Before Dishonor back into theaters! Now wouldn't that be something? The great Fred Dryer is always cool, whether he's initiating his new Marines (which mainly involves a lot of beer-chugging and grunting), or chasing/shooting the baddies. The movie is peppered with little standout moments, and it all plays out as if an episode of Hunter took place in Iraq or Afghanistan. It was nice to see Dryer act out his personal vendetta, with the full might of the 1980's-era military. Of course, you know the main baddie is really bad when his name is Jihad. Kind of a dead giveaway that he might be a dangerous Arab terrorist. Of course, there is the prerequisite machine gun shooting, as well as the prerequisite torture, but Dryer gets off some great lines and is a leader you can believe in.

It was also cool to see a young Sasha Mitchell here in the ranks, before his Kickboxer 2 (1991) and Class of 1999 II (1994) (and of course Step by Step) fame. Joanna Pacula did the best she could in kind of an unnecessary role, and an off-camera Franco Columbu is credited as "body building coach". Because you're definitely going to need Columbu to work your quads so you can be in the proper shape to stop the terrorist bad guys. In all, "Death Before Dishonor" is sort of "What you see is what you get". It's a nice package of action where the good guys are good and the bad guys are bad. And in our uncertain, confusing times that we live in today, that's a comfort. Recommended.

So-so movie

[cuffdaddy · 15 August 2003]

Not a bad movie, I've seen worse. They overplay the "Marine Hymn". They play it about 10 times in the movie but it has some good action scenes. The scene where the terrorists are learning to use plastic explosives is funny, especially the look of relief on their faces when their instructor cuts the det cord before the plastic explodes.