Fire Birds (also known as Wings of the Apache) is a 1990 action-thriller film directed by David Green and produced by William Badalato, Keith Barish and Arnold Kopelson. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Paul F. Edwards, Nick Thiel and David Taylor. The film stars Nicolas Cage, Tommy Lee Jones and Sean Young. Cage is cast as a helicopter pilot attempting to help dismantle a drug cartel in South America. Jones plays his pilot instructor and senior ranked military officer during his flight training, while Young portrays his love interest.
Production of the film was a joint effort between The Walt Disney Company and Nova International Films. It was commercially distributed under Disney's Touchstone Pictures banner. The movie featured elaborate aerial stunt sequences, involving combat helicopters.
Fire Birds premiered in theaters nationwide in the United States on May 25, 1990 grossing a modest $14,760,451 in domestic ticket receipts. The film was met with negative critical reviews before its initial screening in cinemas; generally due to its unfavorable dialogue and striking similarities to the more popular 1986 action film Top Gun, starring Tom Cruise and Kelly
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