Off Limits (1988)

Director:

Christopher Crowe

Writers:

Christopher Crowe (written by) &
Jack Thibeau (written by)

Release Date:

11 March 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Thriller | War | Drama

Tagline:

Being a cop is tough. But in Saigon, 1968, being a cop is crazy.

Plot:

McGriff and Albaby are probably doing the worst law enforcement job in the world - they are plain clothes U.S...

Plot Keywords:

Sniper | Nun | 1960s | Ethnic Slur | Racism

US TV Schedule:

Mon. Nov. 23

1:45 AM

MAX

Cast

Willem Dafoe	...	Buck McGriff
Gregory Hines	...	Albaby Perkins
Fred Ward	...	Dix
Amanda Pays	...	Nicole
Kay Tong Lim	...	Lime Green
Scott Glenn	...	Colonel Dexter Armstrong
David Alan Grier	...	Rogers
Keith David	...	Maurice
Raymond O'Connor	...	Elgin Flowers
Richard Brooks	...	Preacher
Thuy An Luu	...	Lanh (as Thuy Ann Luu)
Richard Lee Reed	...	Colonel Sparks
Woody Brown	...	Co-Pilot
Ken Siu	...	Plowboy
Viladda Vanadurongwan	...	Sister Agnes

Also Known As:

Saigon (UK)
Saigon: Off Limits (Philippines: English title)

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | UK:18 (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating) (cut) | USA:R (certificate #28772) | Belgium:KNT (original rating) | Australia:R | New Zealand:R18 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: In one scene where a prostitute is being interviewed Rogers, David Alan Grier translates the question from English into Vietnamese, but she replies in Thai.

Quotes:

Dix: [confessing his crimes in third person] Dix had lead several succsessful missons and his general was ready to reward him... until he saw his tattoo... very working class... the general was so disgusted that he ensured Dix would never get his comisson. Of course he was married
[grunts]
Dix: ... whore... but he did love her... yes siree... killing her was the only way Dix could make the general feel like he did... for being cheated out of his comission. Their were others after her
[mimes shooting his gun]
Dix: pow... pow... pow. Then he behaved... for years he behaved going from one godforsaken barracks to another.

Movie Connections:

Remade as Cop Game (1991)

Soundtrack:

It's a Man's Man's Man's World

A quasi-cult film for me...

Off limits became something of a quasi-cult film for me. I was in Vietnam with the Marines north and south of Danang in 1968 and once fantasized about hitching a ride down Highway 1 to see Saigon, no small feat as it is something like 580 road miles. But the highway was full of vehicles during the day and you could always catch a ride. I never did get Saigon during the war, but finally did with a group of war vets in 1994. One of my favorite quips in the movie is when Dafoe turns around and finds some South Viet QCs (MPs) coming toward him and says, "We've got mice." That's what we GIs called Viets wearing helmets with QC (Quan Canh) on them. I am now spending several months in Saigon on sort of a temporary assignment, i.e., staying with the in-laws of my Viet wife on a winter break. I would like to see Off Limits again just to critique the city backdrop it used and how realistic it was. I thought this movie could have become a TV mini series but realize it would have been more expensive than China Beach in coming up with SE Asian sets to shoot on. I give it a 7, perhaps too high of a rating, as it goes good on a rainy Saturday afternoon over drinks with friends, especially if they happen to be Vietnam vets.