Red Dawn which John Milius directed is a film that many love and many hate and my view is that it is a movie of its time, but it is fun, if a little silly to watch today.
When Soviet soldiers invade a small Colorado town, brothers Jed (Patrick Swayze) and Matt Eckert (Charlie Sheen) escape with friends to the forest. With their father, Tom (Harry Dean Stanton), a prisoner of the invading army, the children decide to fight against the Soviets. As the country comes under increasing attack, the group teams up with Lt. Col. Andrew Tanner (Powers Boothe) to take back their town.
Set in an alternate 1980s, it shows the idea of a group of youngsters battling the Russians / Cubans who have invaded parts of America while trying to survive in the harsh mountains of the region.
The action is almost from the start when parachuting Russians land on the school grounds and start shooting all who get in their way. Jed played by Patrick Swayze is the eldest of the small group who escape and at first, they struggle to know exactly what to do.
Laughably unrealistic in places, some of the dialogue is a little cringe-worthy but once you get into the film and go with the flow it has some enjoyable moments.
The young cast all went on to bigger things, such as Charlie Sheen (his first film), C Thomas Howell, Lea Thompson and Jennifer Grey. They are ably supported by Powers Booth, Harry Dean Stanton, William Smith and Ron O’Neal.
When it was released in the late summer of 1984, it was a big hit, which shouldn’t come as a surprise; this was the year when Reagan won the presidency in a landslide and the USA Forever theme was forcefully slapped in your face. An enjoyable if very dated romp and it was great to see the famous young cast in early roles.
Released on 4K UHD and Blu-Ray by Altitude Film Distribution/Capelight Pictures the remaster has a crisp and detailed picture, Blacks are deep and clear and colours are bold and solid. Audio has DTS-HD MA 5.1 and DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo tracks and both pack a punch.
Extras are just vintage featurettes Red Dawn Rising: Making-of, Training for WWIII, Building the Red Menace and WWIII Comes to Town. It’s a shame the HD feature from the Shout Factory release, A Look Back at Red Dawn could not have been added.
You have a choice of collector edition or limited edition steel book.
FILM – 6 PICTURE – 8 AUDIO – 7.5 EXTRAS – 5
