‘Under Fire’ blends both a message and entertainment

Press, 20 August 1984, Page 28

‘Under Fire’ blends both a message and entertainment

hons petrovic

UNDER FIRE Directed by Roger Spottiswoode Screenplay by Ron Shelton and Clayton Frohman “Under Fire” (Westend) manages to mix fact and fiction, action and ethical agonising about political and journalistic “truths” in the best war movie to come out of the United States in a long time. The action sets three American journalists in Nicaragua during the 1979 Sandinista revolution against the dictatorial regime of President Anastasio “Tacho” Somoza. Nick Nolte is a freelance photographer who has just managed to make “Time” cover with a picture of fighting in Chad, and who now finds himself in Nicaragua to continue his precarious calling. Revolutions seem to attract a certain type of humanity just as rotting meat attracts flies, and Nolte soon meets up with two of his colleagues: Gene Hackman, an editor of “Time,” and Joanna Cassidy, another journalist. The three have come to know each other over the years while covering trouble spots around the

The Peter Lorres and Sidney Greenstreets of this movie are provided by characters like Ed Harris (“The Right Stuff’), a cynical mercenary and hired killer who also follows the wars, sometimes without being able to distinguish between the sides; and Jean-Louis Trintignant, a sinister Frenchman who describes himself best: “In many ways I am a terrible spy. I used to be much better at it, but now it seems everyone knows who I am. I have too many girlfriends. I like to be photographed. I talk too much.” During the tense days before the fall of Somoza’s corrupt, United Statesbacked regime, the journalists sit about waiting (just 1 as they did in Djakarta for the fall of Sukarno in “The Year of Living Dangerously”), and when they witness an explosion in a night club, they know they have some news at least to send back home. Nolte is also in search of Rafael, the elusive, charismatic guerrilla leader who seems to be the motivating force behind the revolution. With the help of a lead from Trintignant, Nolte and Cassidy are led to the revolutionaries’ hideout, onlv to

discover -that Rafael is dead. From there, the story pivots on Nolte’s faking a picture of the guerrilla leader, making him appear to be alive in order to help the rebels. f = This, of course, is the point where the often-ques-tined ethics of journalism come under fire. When musing about whether or not to go along with the guerrillas’ request, Nolte asks: “Do I go back and say that I saw Rafael stone-cold dead ... or do I just say that I fell in love with the guerrillas because I found their Cause sympathetic?” Trying to explain his decision to Hackman, Nolte says: “I guess I just saw one too many bodies ... How many reasons do you want?” The faked ohotoerabh

does help the revolutionaries bring about the downfall of Somoza, but Nolte and his colleagues are still troubled by his action. Eventually, however, after more troubles and heart searching, one feels that he would do it all again. I feel this merely means that Nolte’s career as an objective news photographer is over. Since its release last October, “Under Fire” has proved popular at film festivals and as a statement against Reagan’s Latin American policies. As such, the film does a fine job, showing Somoza as a product of American training and 30 years of military and economic support, who was eventually even abandoned by the United States Government and forced to flee his country — to Miami. One gets the impression that the film makers, writers and actors have joined their talents to make this film as an outspoken criticism of United States foreign policy, and in fact, they all waived their normal salaries because of personal conviction as to the film’s importance. However, ignoring the political and ethical questions, “Under Fire” remains

a good entertainment movie. It has all the Hollywood ingredients for a good wartime escapade, including the main, hard-bitten characters, a touch of romance, exotic settings (filmed in Mexico) and a nice, brisk pace. Nolte, whom I usually dismiss as some kind of hammy heavy, actually gives a fine performance as the photographer forced to reassess his values. , Hackman is as good as ever, even when playing the piano and singing; and Joanna Cassidy (the replicant woman in “Blade Runner”) is .both feminine and strong in her sojourn through no-man’s land. Most effective is the atmosphere created by the excellent photography, which brings to life the eerie atmosphere of a dying country. It is as if one wanders oneself through the deserted streets of up-town Managua, joining the wretched and dispossessed, with the dreaded fear of what may be around the next comer. What bothered me most,, however, was whether to take “Under Fire” as a message film or entertainment. Possibly, you can take it as both.