Continuing my plan to watch every Mel Gibson movie in order, I come to his second movie of 1990 Air America.
Plot In A Paragraph: Air America was the CIA's private airline operating in Laos during the Vietnam War. After losing his pilot's license, Billy (Robert Downey Jr) is recruited into it, and ends up in the middle of a bunch of lunatic pilots, gun-running by his friend Gene (Gibson) and opium smuggling by his own superiors.
On the back of Lethal Weapon 2 and Bird On A Wire, Gibson was on a roll, but he didn't quiet make it three in a row. I'm tempted to say that its poor gross was down to poor marketing, but I'm not sure that's entirely accurate, but the trailer and poster of a grinning Gibson and Downey Jr make it look like more of a comedy that it actually is. The subject matter is serious with a few funny scenes and clever lines. Although the subject matter is serious, the film is best as pure entertainment. I can probably s
If you've not seen it, I say give it a go. It seems to have slipped through so many peoples viewing when it was released and had pretty much been forgotten about. I can see me watching it again in the next 10 years, or if I catch it on TV.
Air America grossed $31 million to end the year the 37th highest grossing movie of 1990.
