Enemy Mine (1985)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Wolfgang Petersen

Writers:

Barry Longyear (story)
Edward Khmara (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 December 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Drama

Tagline:

Enemies because they were taught to be. Survivors because they had to be.

Plot:

A soldier from Earth crashlands on an alien world after sustaining battle damage. Eventually he encounters another survivor...

Plot Keywords:

Planet | Alien | Friendship | Stranded | Reptilian

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Dennis Quaid	...	Willis Davidge
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Jeriba 'Jerry' Shigan
Brion James	...	Stubbs
Richard Marcus	...	Arnold
Carolyn McCormick	...	Morse
Bumper Robinson	...	Zammis
Jim Mapp	...	Old Drac
Lance Kerwin	...	Joey Wooster
Scott Kraft	...	Jonathan
Lou Michaels	...	Wilson
Andy Geer	...	Bates
Henry Stolow	...	Cates
Herb Andress	...	Hopper
Danmar	...	Wise Guy
Mandy Hausenberger	...	1st Medic

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:16 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Terry Gilliam was offered the chance to direct, but turned it down, preferring instead to develop his own project, which would eventually become Brazil (1985).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the Drax is sitting by the camp fire reading from his book, we see the open book for a few seconds. The page on the right is the same page as the left just upside down.

Quotes:

[opening narration]
Davidge: By late in the 21st century, the nations of the Earth were finally at peace, working together to explore and colonize the distant reaches of space. Unfortunately, we weren't alone out there. A race of non-human aliens called the Dracs were claiming squatters' rights to some of the richest star systems in the galaxy. Well, they weren't going to get it
[sic]
Davidge: without a fight. Space was the new battleground. For many of us, Earth became a precious memory, light-years away. Our only home was a fortress in space. As in any war, there were long periods with nothing to do but wait. And then...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Jack Black/Neil Young (#31.9)" (2005)

A Longtime Favorite

Maybe I'm dating myself here, but this movie is more than just a movie for me -- it's a childhood memory. My dad (Who raised me on a steady diet of scifi) and I probably watched this movie eight times together before I turned nine, and so part of my love for it stems from the memory of those times together.

But "Enemy Mine" has a lot more going for it than just fond memories. Sure, the effects are pretty bad by *today's* standards (it was the 80's, 95% of Americans didn't even *have* personal computers yet, and by the standards of the day those effects were pretty darn impressive!) But the story of two people who were trained to be enemies slowly becoming not just friends, but brothers, rings true despite the passage of time. (As Jerry [Lou Gossett, Jr.] says, "Truth is truth.") Lou Gossett, Jr. and Dennis Quaid are delightful, as always. And the scenes of Davidge (Quaid) interacting with Jerry's "son" are priceless.

People tend to knock 80's movies, especially 80's scifi movies, as being frivolous, self-centered and silly (like the decade they came from). But "Enemy Mine" definitely doesn't deserve this fate. It is a well-acted, well-meaning movie with a message we could all benefit from listening to.

Skybright's Score: 7.5 out of 10