Blue Thunder [Blu-ray]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Ex-Vietnam chopper pilot Roy Scheider is now in charge of Blue Thunder, a high-tech copter designed to quell possible terrorism during the 1984 LA Olympics. His onetime comrade-in-arms Malcolm McDowell, now his bitter enemy, will stop at nothing to neutralize Blue Thunder and expedite an armed takeover of the United States. Well, there's the plot: now sit back and enjoy those eye-popping aerial scenes. Blue Thunder was later adapted into a weekly TV series. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: ABC
• Number of Discs: 1
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
• Audio: Dolby TrueHD
• Features:
  • Director, editor and motion control supervisor commentary
  • "Ride With the Angels": Making Blue Thunder multi-part featurette
  • "The Special": Building Blue Thunder: Making-of the helicopter
  • 1983 promotional featurette
  • Original theatrical trailer

AWARDS

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

•     Nominated Best Editing - 1983 (Edward M. Abroms, Frank Morriss)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Roy Scheider - Frank Murphy
       Malcolm McDowell - Cochrane
       Warren Oates - Braddock
       Candy Clark - Kate
       Daniel Stern - Lymangood
       Paul Roebling - Icelan
       David Sheiner - Fletcher
       Joe Santos - Montoya
       Ed Bernard - Sgt. Short
       Jason Bernard - Mayor
       Mario Machado - Himself
       Anthony James - Grundeltus

• Director:

  John Badham

• Producer:

  Gordon Carroll

• Screenwriter:

  Don Jakoby, Dan O'Bannon, Dean Riesner

• Cinematographer:

  John A. Alonzo

• Composer (Music Score):

  Arthur B. Rubinstein

• Editor:

  Frank Morriss, Edward M. Abroms

• Production Designer:

  Philip Harrison, Sydney Z. Litwack

• Art Director:

  Cate Bangs, Sydney Z. Litwack

• Associate Producer:

  Gregg Champion

• Executive Producer:

  Phil Feldman, Andrew Fogelson

• Set Designer:

  Mickey Michaels

• Costume Designer:

  Marianna Elliott

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Tim Cooney

• Special Effects:

  Peter Albiez, Charles Gaspar, Jeff Jarvis

• First Assistant Director:

  Jerry Ziesmer

• Stunts:

  Terry J. Leonard

• Casting:

  Dianne Crittenden

• Special Effects Supervisor:

  Chuck Gaspar

REVIEW:

• This 1983 production gets an A for its rousing action and an F for its farfetched plot and shallow characters. The film is really a rip-off of Steven Spielberg's 1975 classic, Jaws (whether witting or unwitting), with Roy Scheider again portraying a likeable Irish-American policeman. In the opening scenes, an innocent female dies in an attack, just as in Jaws, and Scheider discovers the perpetrator: a cabal of government conspirators operating in the undercurrents of Los Angeles after dark. But after the mayor brands him a troublemaking meddler (as in Jaws), Scheider -- this time in the role of helicopter cop Frank Murphy in lieu of Amity Island police chief Martin Brody -- decides to take on the conspirators himself with the help of a callow sidekick (also as in Jaws). Instead of a shark-tracking boat, Scheider uses a menacing helicopter (Blue Thunder) -- the conspirators' own weapon, which he commandeers -- in an attempt to vanquish the villains. The action sequences are impressive. After helicopters duel in skyscraper canyons, planes, trains, and automobiles get in on the action. Buildings collapse, a restaurant explodes, and a duct-taped captive kickboxes his way to freedom. Meanwhile, a car carrying a secret audio disk races toward a TV studio with incriminating evidence. But, alas, the dialogue and character development are as moving as a slow lane. ~ Mike Cummings, Rovi