I’ve always been a major fan of John Badham’s Blue Thunder (check out two separate deep dives I did into it HERE and HERE). A major hit when it came out in 1983, it’s been somewhat overlooked in the conversation surrounding classic ’80s action movies, likely because it doesn’t star a major action icon from the era. Yet it remains one of the most consistent, expertly assembled, lean-and-mean action films of its time.
The movie stars the great Roy Scheider as Frank Murphy, a PTSD-afflicted LAPD helicopter pilot tasked with testing a high-tech helicopter called Blue Thunder. Designed for use during the Summer Olympics and for “crowd control,” Murphy soon discovers a major conspiracy surrounding the aircraft. He steals the helicopter and finds himself pursued by an old Vietnam adversary, Colonel F.E. (“Fuck Everybody”) Cochrane.
Why Blue Thunder Still Holds Up Today
One of the reasons the film has aged so well is its reliance on practical effects. The year before, another movie about a futuristic aircraft, Firefox, was released, but it relied heavily on models, matte paintings, and other visual effects that were cutting-edge at the time but look dated today. Blue Thunder doesn’t suffer from those shortcomings.
It also benefits from ace direction by John Badham and a collection of memorable performances. Roy Scheider was arguably the last of the great ’70s everyman heroes, playing a low-key, realistic protagonist in the mold of that decade’s cinema. Had the film been made just a few years later, he likely would have been replaced by a more conventional action hero, and the movie wouldn’t have worked nearly as well.
He’s matched by a terrific antagonist in Malcolm McDowell, who gleefully chews the scenery as Cochrane. Meanwhile, Daniel Stern has an early role as Murphy’s young partner, JAFO, while Warren Oates, in his final screen role, plays Murphy’s captain.
Arrow Video Delivers Another Excellent 4K Release
Arrow Video has done a great job assembling a top-notch package for this re-release. The new 4K transfer faithfully recreates the film’s original 35mm appearance. As with many movies from this era, viewers shouldn’t expect a dramatic leap over the existing HD version, but the presentation is authentic and film-like. Arrow Video isn’t Criterion—they don’t excessively tinker with their transfers. The movie looks exactly the way it’s supposed to.
Special Features Worth Revisiting
The extras are terrific. Arrow has ported over all of the special features from the previous DVD and Blu-ray special editions, including a solid three-part documentary featuring interviews with the key participants. Most notably, it includes Roy Scheider, who sadly passed away not long after it was recorded.
For this new release, Arrow has also produced excellent in-depth interviews with John Badham, Candy Clark (who is terrific as Murphy’s eccentric love interest), and Malcolm McDowell. McDowell’s interview is particularly entertaining, as he fondly recalls working with Scheider while also discussing his fear of helicopters and flying, making his casting in the film somewhat ironic.
Physical Media Needs More Companies Like Arrow
In a perfect world, Arrow Video would secure the rights to all the great genre classics from the ’80s, ’90s, and early 2000s because they clearly understand how to package and preserve them. That said, Kino Lorber has also been doing impressive work with many of its recent releases.
In an era when major studios seem to have largely given up on physical media, it’s refreshing to see an independent company with genuine reverence for the classics we grew up with getting the opportunity to give these films the 4K upgrades they deserve. BUY IT HERE!
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