A former fighter pilot now working as a radio station traffic reporter witnesses a bank robbery. He chases down the bank robbers and a hostage in his helicopter.A former fighter pilot now working as a radio station traffic reporter witnesses a bank robbery. He chases down the bank robbers and a hostage in his helicopter.A former fighter pilot now working as a radio station traffic reporter witnesses a bank robbery. He chases down the bank robbers and a hostage in his helicopter.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe Hughes 500C that "Walker" flew throughout the film is one of the few turbine-engine helicopters (worldwide) which is flown single-pilot from the left seat. Since people tend to scan visually from left to right... the same way they read a book... it was more effective to have Walker in a left-facing helicopter like the 500C, as opposed to say, a Bell JetRanger, or a Fairchild FH-1100 which are flown from the right seat. Director William A. Graham shot all of the close-ups from the left side of the ship, usually looking slightly upward, with a tight depth-of-field. This threw everything behind Walker's shoulders out of focus. However, this was a dual-control ship! Note particularly the take-off after Walker fueled-up from the tanker truck. If you look closely (despite the fuzzy focus) you can readily see that the right-seat position looks unusually lumpy. That's because the film pilot who was doing the actual flying, was crouched in there, under a black shroud.
- GoofsThe Hughes/MD 500 (369) helicopter has a jet turbine engine that uses Jet-A fuel. Filling up with auto gas from the tanker truck would not work well. The engine would be damaged and would not get very far.
- Quotes
Jim McAndrew: [after Walker saves him by ramming the robbers' helicopter] Damn it, Walker! Nobody asked you to do that!
- ConnectionsReferenced in Three's Company: Two Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1981)
Featured review
Janssen's best
David Janssen and Ralph Meeker are perfectly cast in this TV movie as World War II flying buddies who have had disparate levels of success in adjusting to post-war life. Meeker's character, McAndrews, is an apparently well-balanced police captain in Salt Lake City. Janssen's character, Harry Walker, flies a helicopter for a local radio station and has not been able to put the war behind him.
Janssen's character witnesses a bank robbery and chases the perpetrators, who are also in a helicopter. The aerial stunt work is top-notch, and the film was made on location in Salt Lake City at a time when you could fake very little with special effects.
But the core of the movie is the relationship between Walker and McAndrews. Walker feels alive for the first time in a long time as he chases the bad guys. McAndrews tries to restrain Walker through most of the movie, although it's clear he sympathizes with his old friend. And at the end he's as crazy as Walker.
When the movie was originally televised, a beautiful and perfectly appropriate version of the song "I'll Get By" played over the opening credits. I have searched long and hard for a recording of that version of that song without success. It wasn't the cover by Keely Smith, or by Billie Holliday.
I wouldn't have looked so hard for a recording if the song was included in the videotape of "Birds of Prey." I suspect that whoever put the movie on video would have had to pay royalties to someone if the song was retained. So this despicable person replaced "I'll Get By" with an instrumental big band song that is probably in the public domain.
This thrifty gent likewise axed a song from the body of the movie to which Janssen's character sings along. So the videotape viewer is left to wonder what song Janssen is singing as an instrumental big band number plays.
Janssen's character witnesses a bank robbery and chases the perpetrators, who are also in a helicopter. The aerial stunt work is top-notch, and the film was made on location in Salt Lake City at a time when you could fake very little with special effects.
But the core of the movie is the relationship between Walker and McAndrews. Walker feels alive for the first time in a long time as he chases the bad guys. McAndrews tries to restrain Walker through most of the movie, although it's clear he sympathizes with his old friend. And at the end he's as crazy as Walker.
When the movie was originally televised, a beautiful and perfectly appropriate version of the song "I'll Get By" played over the opening credits. I have searched long and hard for a recording of that version of that song without success. It wasn't the cover by Keely Smith, or by Billie Holliday.
I wouldn't have looked so hard for a recording if the song was included in the videotape of "Birds of Prey." I suspect that whoever put the movie on video would have had to pay royalties to someone if the song was retained. So this despicable person replaced "I'll Get By" with an instrumental big band song that is probably in the public domain.
This thrifty gent likewise axed a song from the body of the movie to which Janssen's character sings along. So the videotape viewer is left to wonder what song Janssen is singing as an instrumental big band number plays.
helpful•221
- Ralpho
- Sep 8, 2001
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Duell der Helikopter
- Filming locations
- Wendover Airport - 345 S. Airport Apron, Wendover, Utah, USA(helicopter chase)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $400,000 (estimated)
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