The Delta Force - Wonderful eighties action romp

The Delta Force is, if you didn't already know, an elite band of American soldiers who do everything from rescue hostages to perform excessive wheelies on motorbikes while pursuing planes on runways. So, when some nasty ol' terrorists take a plane-load of innocent civilians hostage, the government calls in Lee Marvin and Chuck Norris. The terrorists don't stand a chance.

The current trend in Hollywood film-making is serious, serious, serious. Franchises like The Bourne Identity, Nolan's Batman saga and post-Brosnan James Bond are dark and moody. Sure, they're great films, but are they fun? Do you really find yourself cheering and laughing as you watch? I didn't. But I sure did with the Delta Force.

There's no way the Delta Force can be taken totally seriously. The Delta Force are basically indestructible and the terrorists unable to hit anything with their hopelessly inadequate machine guns (think the Stormtroopers in Star Wars). Chuck Norris therefore guns, hits and generally blows up hundreds of bad guys without even ruffling his beard.

Yes, it's daft. Yes, it's unrealistic. And, yes, it's probably a bit dated and maybe even a little politically incorrect in its representations of certain `non-western' cultures. But, if you can put all that aside, it's also damn good fun. My one regret is that I watched it alone. It's the perfect movie to invite the guys round and have a few beers to.

Seriously, they don't make `em like they used to. Tragic.

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one