Game For Vultures [DVD]

This largely forgotten 1979 British film tells of the sanction-busting efforts of Rhodesian patriot David Swansey (played by a seemingly sober Richard Harris) to procure U.S. military-grade helicopters for the Rhodesian military and the rebel guerrillas attempts to stop him. It's apparently based on a 1975 novel.Being a history buff and having a keen, apolitical interest in Rhodesia/The Rhodesian Bush War I was impressed by the level of authentic details depicted in the film and, perhaps more surprisingly, the broad impartiality exercised in its depiction of protagonists and antagonists alike (especially considering that the general tone of most contemporary British reports/documentaries/coverage on Rhodesia from the period were staunchly anti-Rhodesian).Certainly the filmmakers did their research on the conflict with impressive authenticity in uniforms and equipment and one particularly accurate scene where the guerrillas execute a black store owner because one of the radios they had previously [i]looted[/i] from him exploded, killing a couple of rebels. This actually happened as Rhodesian security forces became adept at rigging commercial radios with explosives (as well as deliberately poisoning food), secreting them in rural, isolated stores vulnerable to attack.'Vultures is an often frustrating film however, not least because Harris' character 'Swansey' - whose clandestine activities should render him a fascinating protagonist, is surprisingly one-dimensional. His girlfriend - portrayed by Joan Collins no less (!) feels somewhat extraneous too.Of far greater interest (and arguably better written) though is Richard Roundtree's Gideon Marunga - Swansey's opponent and an inspirational if deeply flawed guerrilla leader. Marunga is depicted pleasingly cynically and proves to be a refreshing antithesis to the noble, near-flawless 'freedom fighter' cliche one might've expected.Other minor issues within the film are the guerrilla's exaggerated combat effectiveness as they're shown mowing down scores of Rhodesian soldiers with ease (in reality the kill ratio between Rhodesian and guerrilla forces was something ludicrous like 50:1!). Worse, sub characters/sub plots seem to go nowhere or are left unresolved. Accents are all over the place too (Harris doesn't even attempt a Rhodesian accent) and from a technical perspective, post production dubbing is noticeably shoddy/un-synched in places.I'd imagine 'Game for Vultures' didn't exactly set the box office alight, not least because the film was the unwitting victim of real life events overtaking fiction with its 1979 release coinciding with major diplomatic breakthroughs that would end both the war and Rhodesia as a nation state within mere months.Much of what the film depicts then must've seemed like almost ancient history or indeed an epitaph of a practically dead nation to contemporary audiences.All that said hardly a classic but not bad either, holding some worth to those interested in the period, the Rhodesian Bush War and/or Rhodesia itself.

i am unable to make any comment on this film as it was taken to south africa by my sister when she visited england

A good film, although being American backed, the leader of the terrorists (not freedom fighters - terrorists are what they really were) is, of course, an American. He runs around the bush with a Colt AR-15 (M-16 to others) while all his other "comrades" are using communist equipment. A few of the scenes are a trifle predictable and it is a bit clichéd at times. Even so, I just loved the film! Richard Harris and Joan Collins star. Anyone who just wants an easy film to watch will like this one.

No comment on the film as I haven't yet watched it. The Cover does say the film is presented 16:9. It isn't. It's 4:3 (1.33:1). It's really rather annoying for films to be labelled wrongly. There should be some penalty for doing so under the trade descriptions act. Anyway, that's my info for potential buyers.

This movie is unusual in that it is about the Rhodesian bush war of the 1970s. Although it featured a number of big names, it was not commercially successful. By the time of its release, the Lancaster House Agreement was done and dusted, a general election was underway and the topic of Rhodesia/Zimbabwe was already starting to fade from public consciousness.The movie is based upon a novel by Michael Hartmann and reasonably reflects the sort of events that went on during the conflict. The two main protagonists are David Swansey (played by Richard Harris), a white Rhodesian who specialises in sanctions busting, and Gideon Marunga (played by Richard Roundtree), a black "freedom fighter" (his own description) with a conscience. An opportunity arises for the Rhodesian government to illicitly purchase 50 used American helicopters and Swansey is the middleman and facilitator (driven by a mixture of patriotic fervour and the prospect of making a lot of money).The motives of Swansey are easy to understand, but Gideon Marunga is a more complex character. He is not averse to killing people - the movie opens with him murdering a white farmer in cold blood - but his intelligence, experience and basic humanity cause him to question not the cause itself, but the means by which it is being pursued. For instance, he is part of a gang of guerrillas that kidnap a group of children from a missionary school and frogmarch them across the border to Mozambique for indoctrination and training. The young white couple who were teaching the children volunteer to accompany them to help ensure their safety but, when the group is caught by the Rhodesian security forces at the border crossing, the leader of the terrorist gang - a brutal man with the unlikely name of Sixpence - kills both the teachers. Gideon Marunga is appalled, both by the kidnapping itself and by the unnecessary murder of two "good" Rhodesians.Marunga is then transformed into a sort of superspy who is despatched to London and Europe to investigate the rumour of the Rhodesians trying to buy helicopters. Despite his efforts, Swansey manages to get away with it and the crated helicopters make their way to a military airbase in South West Africa (modern Namibia), from where the Rhodesians attempt to fly them out using their own aircraft. However, Marunga is aware of the plan and leads an assault on the base with a handful of men. Despite their meagre resources, the guerrillas inflict severe damage and the Rhodesians are lucky to escape with about half the helicopters. During the assault, Marunga and Swansey meet and fight each other, causing both to question their motives.This was a reasonable attempt at a movie about Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. It is lacking in several areas; for instance, the manner in which the helicopters are spirited away from a US military base to South West Africa barely gets covered. The success of the guerrillas in killing Rhodesian soldiers is unrealistic; the actual kill ration was around 50:1 in favour of the security forces, whereas if the guerrillas had been as good as portrayed here the conflict might have been over in 15 days rather than the 15 years it actually took! There is a shortage of authentic accents and, for example, Salisbury (modern day Harare) is pronounced in the English style (Sols-bury) rather than the Rhodesian manner (Sauls-bree). The intriguing character of Daniel Batten (a mixed race Rhodesian played by Tony Osaba of TV's "Porridge" fame) could have been explored in greater detail. However, politically the film is reasonably neutral and modern viewers might be surprised to find that Rhodesia was not a police state and that the average Rhodesian did not have two heads.Overall, this film will appeal primarily to those who already interested in the subject. For them, it is recommended. For others, it depicts a vanished world that is hard even to visualise these days.

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quite a violent film depicting the rhodesian bush war.if the trend is to return countries to their former tenantsthen united states to the indians and australia to the aborigines.chaos would reign cant go backwards only forward.anyway south africa withdrew their support of rhodesia causingmugabe to take control.

Anuncia pack de tres filmes y solo llega una película, vamos genial no creen, no lo he devuelto porque esa era la película que más me gustaba.

La versión está conseguida.La película simplemente bién.No es nada del otro mundo pero entretiene.Los actores correctos aunque Joan Collins es un florero.

Al margen de las brillantes actuaciones del elenco, las acciones se van desarrollando enmarcadas en una serie interminable de intrigas y traiciones. Muy buena!