Operation Dumbo Drop (1995)

OK, many have criticized this little flick for not being the traditional ugly, violent Vietnam war flick that we have all come to except; but keep in mind that this is a DISNEY production BASED on a real operation, not a documentary of what happened.I do like this film for several reasons. First, it positively reflects the actions of the US military in Vietnam, whereas most movies on the subject don't portray our forces in the most positive manner. Secondly, it more accurately shows the mission of the Special Forces in working with indigenous peoples to counter an adversary, not the snake-eating, kill-everything-insight stereotype compounded by the Rambo series. Thirdly, I find the acting, dialogue and interactivity between the characters to be well done. This movie wasn't "dumbed down" to be family-friendly, it maintained a standard that showed Disney was serious about making a quality film.So it may not be historically perfect, and it may not fit into many's preconceptions as to what a Vietnam war film should address; but accepting it for what it was intended to be--a Disney film addressing positive subject matter--and criticizing it under those objectives makes the outcome a success in my book. If you want to see soldiers killing natives and burning villages there are plenty of other films that depict such acts, but if you want to watch a movie based on an actual operation by USSF to positively impact a Vietnamese village during the war that Operation Dumbo Drop is the best choice. It may not compare to Apocalypse Now or Full Metal Jacket, but it is not intended to be like those film; but judged on its own it succeeds in meeting its objectives!

I had seen Operation Dumbo Drop when it first came out and thoroughly enjoyed it. I just watched it for the 2nd time and enjoyed it even more. The love shown between humans and animals deeply touched me. We hear horrible reports of our military personnel and form a profoundly negative opinion. Then a movie like this comes along and shows the heart and soul of the majority of our soldiers. I can't imagine living in a secluded village like that one. What's even harder to grasp is how they actually got the elephant and the boy back to the same village. The lengths they went to just to keep a promise speaks volumes about keeping your word. And it's even more unbelievable that it actually happened in real life. I could watch this movie 100 times and take something new from it each time. EXCELLENT STORYLINE AND MOVIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This movie had some typically-good Disney aspects to it but also some typically- bad Disney agendas in here that just about made me puke.With modern-day Disney films - or at least the ones in the 1980s and 1990s - you can expect the following "good" and "bad:" This movie proves to be no exception.GOOD - Slick-looking photography with beautiful Vitenamese scenery; low profanity; an interesting story that moves well.BAD - Political-correctness run amok......an annoying kid who knows more than the adults; an ending that's always drawn out too long; a reverence for Eastern religions or anything that is not Christianity; a black and a white lead character in which the black is always the better of the two, etc. etc.A SURPRISE - Danny Glover and Ray Liotta losing their tempers but not swearing a blue streak. Wow, now that's different!

The Vietnam War makes a really unorthodox setting for a Disney movie, but this movie goes along quite well, thanks to its performances. Danny Glover and Ray Liotta star as the leaders of a rag-tag American platoon in charge of guarding an elephant and its young Vietnamese trainer on a trip to one part of the divided country to another.Because of its family-friendly base, OPERATION DUMBO DROP plays itsafe with it's war violence. But who says you need bloody, graphic action in order to make a good war-oriented film? As long as theperformances are stellar, the film wins. Case in point is OPERATION DUMBO DROP.