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Year:	1982
Country of origin:	USA
Director:	Clint Eastwood
Genre:	Nostalgic espionage actioner
Starring:	Clint Eastwood, Warren Clarke, Freddie Jones
Rating:	4/5
IMDB link:	http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083943/
Tagline:	His job...Steal it.
Favourite line:	"You will not, of course, make it to wherever you are going. Goodbye, Mr. Gant!"|

Fondly remembered espionage thriller from the early eighties.
But does it stand the test of time?

The plot:
When the British and American intelligence agencies get wind of a new type of fighter plane, possessed by the Russians, they decide it is time to take immediate action. Joining forces, they pull Mitchell Gant, a retired Air Force Major, still suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress following his sting in Vietnam, out of retirement and quickly dispatch him to Russia.
But why the haste?
The plane – codename, Firefox – is reported to travel at Mach 6, faster than anything else known, has sophisticated anti-radar technology which renders it all but invisible to radar and, to improve response time, is controlled by the pilot’s thought’s alone.
Both Britain and America consider this a dreadful threat, and a crucial advantage to the Russian’s at the height of the Cold War.
Gant’s mission?
Steal Firefox, and get it to friendly territory, by any means necessary.

Does it stand the test of time?
Well, yes and no.
Directed by Clint, as well as starring the man himself, he exudes his usual masculine confidence in every scene, the cold, calculated confidence of someone who knows he is at the top of his game, certainly in terms of star power.
Here, we find him in a role which, in lesser hands, would actually seem comical but, somehow, he manages to get away with it. You see, Clint is in Russia, where everyone else speaks with a Russian accent. But he doesn’t. It’s an espionage thriller and, for the most part, goes for realism. But Clint just wanders around, speaking English with a strong American accent. He puts on a Russian Air Force uniform, struts about an airbase like he’s the Cock of the North, people salute him, call him Captain, but at no point does anyone say ‘Excuse me, Captain, why are you American?’
It’s a bit like Connery in Red October, I guess. You get to a certain age and status in Hollywood, and you don’t have to bother being anybody other than yourself when you turn up for work.
That silliness aside, this is a decent, nuts and bolts espionage thriller, which does flag a bit. The spy stuff goes on a little too long, and isn’t all that interesting. All of that is forgotten, however, as soon as he gets into the plane and, in the final thirty minutes, you have a gripping, action packed bit of plane pornography that is a joy to behold. Sure, some of the effects aren’t what they could be, with the aircraft clearly overlaid on top of the images you are seeing, but it’s 1982, people.
What the fuck do you expect?
Enjoyable, in the main, I can recommend this one, and not just for the nostalgia trip.