Let's Get Harry

Yetserday, the music world suffered another loss with the death of Glenn Frey. I wasn't really a huge fan, I mean The Heat Is On was a catchy tune. Like many rock stars, Frey caught the acting bug. His thespian days were short lived however with a guest stint on Miami Vice, and an all but forgotten action picture, 1986's Let's Get Harry.

Mark Harmon stars in the title role as an American engineer sent to Colombia on business. While there he is abducted by local rebels. When Harry' brother Corey, Michael Schoeffling, gets word, he goes to Washington, D.C. to see what the plans are for his rescue. The U.S. government has no plans of a rescue attempt, so Corey mounts his own. He rounds up some of Harry's buddies, Frey, Rick Rossovich, and Thomas F. Wilson to help him with the escape. A local car dealer, Gary Busey, agrees to fund the mission as long as he can tag along. And they hire a former mercenary, Robert Duvall, to teach and aid them in their quest.

This movie is total machismo, kind of a long the lines of Red Dawn. But it is somewhat entertaining as well. The cast, especially Busey and Duvall, are pretty good. Even Frey holds his own with the rest of the ensemble as a coke addicted hothead. With such a big name cast, it surprises me that this isn't better remembered. Schoeffling, Wilson, and Rossovich aren't household names, but they were all in huge films, Sixteen Candles, Back To The Future, and Top Gun, around the time that this was released.

This is another Alan Smithee film. The director, Stuart Rosenberg, had his name removed when the film was reedited and new scenes were shot without his involvement. The Harry character wasn't even supposed to make an appearance till near the end of the movie. But Harmon's star was on the rise and the studio wanted more scenes with him. A lot of scenes that Rosenberg shot were cut to make room for the new scenes, including Duvall is training the men to be perfect soldiers. This angered Rosenberg, and led to his Smithee decision.

If you are in the mood for some mindless action with a great cast, Let's Get Harry is a good time killer.

It's not available on dvd or blu ray.