Support This! Stories From the Trenches: Official Sam Firstenberg Book

Between The Expendables, Stranger Things, barcades, endless Transformers and Alien sequels and synthwave soundtracks everywhere, the 2010's have been very 80's centric. VHS remains a collector's niche and Cannon Film fans were treated to terrific documentary Electric Boogaloo. Cannon and Nu Image staple Sam Firstenberg is now the subject of proposed book Stories From the Trenches that will dig into his colorful history of breaking into the film business, working with independent film luminaries and genre stars. Firstenberg directed American Ninja, sequel The Confrontation as well as Breakin' 2, Avenging Force, Revenge of the Ninja, Ninja III and many more. His films were filled with the likes of Michael Dudikoff, Steve James, Kirstie Alley, Sho Kosugi, John Rhys-Davies, David Bradley, Mark Dacascos, Eric Roberts, Michael Madsen and Robert Vaughn.

Spearheaded by Marco Siedelmann, a journalist and author who has conducted hours of interviews with Firstenberg and his colleagues. Siedelmann has already provided genre fans with The Untold, In-Depth, Outrageously True Story about Shapiro Glickenhaus Entertainment, a deep dive into the foreign pre-sale, VHS fueled exploitation fun of the 80's and 90's that gave us Maniac Cop, Frankenhooker, Shakedown and other favorites. I'm currently halfway through that entertaining and educational tome of a bygone, go-go era and am looking forward to tales from some of my youth shaping flicks.

Stories From the Trenches has nearly reached it's Kickstarter fund raising goal so donate if you can before Monday, May 15th!

View In Peace: Robert Loggia

On Friday, news hit that veteran character actor Robert Loggia had passed away after a battle with Alzheimer's. With a career that started in the 1950's and included 230 plus acting credits, Loggia had a gravely voice and tough guy demeanor. Roles in Scarface and Big would be highlights but to me he'll always be the evil father in law to Stallone's truck driving, arm wrestling underdog in Cannon Films' shot at legitimacy Over the Top. As business magnate Jason Cutler, Loggia gave Lincoln Hawk (Stallone) a hard time over grandson Michael (David Mendenhall) as dying mother Christina (Susan Blakely) wanted the father and son to bond before she passed. Lincoln and Michael set out on a road trip and reconnect over truck stop menus, learning to drive, working out and taking it over the top as Hawk is competing in the national Arm Wrestling championships in Las Vegas. Cutler tries to kidnap Michael and pay off Lincoln but he just can't overcome the father-son relationship as Michael runs away to Vegas to watch his dad win the finals. It's an awesomely 80's, heartwarming flick that Stallone received an alleged $12 million bucks for but the film would go on to gross an anemic $16 million bones at the box office. In the 90's, Loggia would send up his tough guy image in a hilarious commercial for Minute Maid Orange Juice.

Damme Words: Bronson's Loose Again!

Over the Thanksgiving weekend I demolished Paul Talbot's Bronson's Loose Again! On the Set with Charles Bronson, a new companion volume to his original Chuck Bronson and Death Wish study released in 2006. Through in depth interviews old and exclusive with writers, actors, producers, directors and more, Talbot provides a fascinating look at the iconic movie star and 18 of his films from the mid-1970's to his final performance in 1999. A large chunk of the book looks at his infamous Cannon Films period where the stone faced onscreen tough guy churned out schlocky money makers for Go-Go producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. I hadn't read Loose as Death Wish has never been my favorite Bronson flick and I've never even seen the sequels. But now I'll have to do both as Loose Again is a terrific, informative and interesting read on one of my favorite movie personalities.

Hard Times is far and away my favorite Bronson leading vehicle and there's some great stuff here on the making of the Great Depression set, New Orleans street fighting tale. Each chapter gives you insight on the development, production and release of each film along with personal encounters with the man himself. After already reading the excellent Menacing Face Worth Millions: A Life of Charles Bronson by Brian D'Ambrosio and seeing multiple interviews, I was well aware of Bronson's standoffish attitude and sometimes off-putting lack of social effort. Some of my favorites from Loose Again include Bronson putting his hands on the back and chest of a co-star to move him off a sidewalk to size him up and telling a fan he didn't take photos, sign autographs or shake hands. While it's funny and awesome to read, in real life if that happened to you, you'd think that guy was a total dick. But he was who he was so I can respect it. A little more light is shed into his workout regimen that built an impressive physique that includes having a cup of coffee upon rising and going on a two mile run. A second, evening two miles would be added to reach optimal condition. Climbing a rope only using his arms is repeated but a strict diet of small meals with a weekly or monthly indulgent steak dinner may explain why he was so grumpy, is revealed.

As he got older, Bronson seemed to mellow out as many co-stars from the 80's mention becoming friends with him and the star being nothing but warm and supporting. While Bronson was a star worldwide, he never quite got his due in America. With his career waning, Bronson would end up making several films with Cannon Films, collecting a hefty $1 million bucks per flick for the likes of Death Wish sequels, 10 to Midnight and Messenger of Death. Only needing his face on a poster to insure foreign pre-sales, Bronson was one of the biggest stars of the emerging mini-studio along with martial artist Chuck Norris. A teaming of the two was planned for The Delta Force but pre-sales didn't justify the salaries of both Chucks. Through it all, Bronson never tried to produce his own vehicles like Steve McQueen or Kirk Douglas but preferred to play what audiences expected him to, a quiet ass kicker ready to explode.

Loose Again also provides insight on wife and frequent co-star Jill Ireland who was the kind and outgoing energy to Bronson's grumbling, perennially pissed off side. Bronson's inner nice guy is exposed as we learn about his homeless drug addict brother and adopting a family friend after her parents died among other snippets. All in a great book for action movie junkies or film buffs alike. Until next time, no dice! And this ain't ova!

Tell Me a Question: Sheldon Lettich & The Summer of Max Cannon

Dammaged Goods recently caught up with Sheldon Lettich, the writer, director and military veteran who has contributed to such cinematic classics Bloodsport, Lionheart, Rambo III and Double Impact. It was a busy summer for our friend and first event guest with Warner Brothers' dog of war flick MAX hitting theaters in June while Cannon Films documentary Electric Boogaloo premiered across the country and is now available on DVD. In October, Mr. Lettich heads to San Diego for the G.I. Film Festival for a special screening of MAX being held at the Midway Museum.

MAX did solid box office, beating out titles with more hype and higher watt casts like Entourage, Aloha, Hot Pursuit and Paper Towns. Any expectations going into opening weekend?

We were getting industry projections that it would make between $8-10 million for the opening weekend.  Instead we made $12.2 million.  The folks at MGM said they would be happy if the film grossed $40 million in the US.  To date we've grossed nearly $43 million.  So overall we're all pretty happy with the results.  Had our PG-rated movie not been book-ended by two PG-rated behemoths -- Inside Out and Minions -- I think we might have done even better.  Even so, MGM is in the process of developing a sequel with Boaz Yakin and myself, a sure sign that they're happy with the results.

There's real heart in the film with the family and military dynamics. When was the first time you saw it with an audience?

We had a test screening in November of 2014.  The movie scored 100% in the Very Good to Excellent categories, which is an extremely rare occurrence for test screenings.  It was a great experience for me to sit there with that audience (the first time I had actually seen the entire movie without interruptions) and to see and hear them reacting to the movie exactly as we had hoped they would, laughing at the gags and the funny lines, wiping away tears during the funeral scene.  There was applause a number of times during the screening, and especially big applause at the end.

You're getting ready to attend the G.I. Film Festival in San Diego with a screening at the Midway Museum no less, what did you take away from the U.S. Marine Corps that helped you in life and in your career?

I took away a lot of stories and experiences which I have recycled back into numerous screenplays -- most of which have never been produced.  I wrote a Vietnam screenplay many years ago titled Firebase, which I got a lot of mileage out of as a writing sample.  That's the screenplay that got me introduced to Sylvester Stallone and resulted in an overall deal with his company.  It got me the co-writing gig on Rambo III.

Aside from story ideas and familiarity with military terminology, hardware, structure, mindset, slang, tactics, etc., as an NCO (non-commissioned officer) I learned some valuable lessons about leadership which came in very handy when I began directing movies.

You also popped up in Electric Boogaloo: The Wild Untold Story of Cannon Films and attended the star and crew studded Los Angeles premiere. Do you recall how you got involved with Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus?

As I recall, I was first introduced to them by Leon Isaac Kennedy, who was involved with them on Penitentiary 2 and Body & Soul.  I had written a screenplay with Leon which was originally intended to be a sequel to Lone Wolf McQuade, the Chuck Norris film Leon had co-starred in. When he failed to get Chuck interested, Leon and I changed the title to Stryker's Force, and then tried to get the movie made at Cannon with Leon and Jean-Claude Van Damme co-starring.  Menahem liked the script and approved me as the director, but he did not want Van Damme to be the co-star.  This was before Bloodsport had been released, and at the time Menahem had little faith in the film doing well and even less faith in Van Damme ever making it as a movie star.  He wanted to make the movie, but with Michael Dudikoff starring instead (with Leon playing the co-lead).  I met with Michael, who had read the script but wasn't crazy about it.  The project sort of fell by the wayside after that. 

Then, after Bloodsport opened and did spectacularly well, Menahem did a complete 180 regarding his opinion about Van Damme.  Now he felt that Leon wasn't a big enough star to be the co-lead alongside Van Damme! 

I talked a lot about Menahem and Van Damme and Bloodsport when Mark Hartley interviewed me on-camera for the documentary.  In fact, I told that same story about Menahem and Leon and Van Damme.  Mark told me he had put together an entire segment about Bloodsport for the documentary, but at the last minute there was some kind of a legal snafu involving the rights to Bloodsport, and the lawyers at Warner Brothers told Mark he had to yank the entire segment.  Really a shame.  Bloodsport was one of Cannon's biggest surprise hits, but there's nothing at all about it in the documentary, except one very quick shot of Van Damme throwing a kick at Bolo Yeung.  Who knows, maybe Mark will manage to sneak it in as a special feature on some future Blu-ray?

You co-wrote Bloodsport and met Jean-Claude Van Damme, beginning a long and successful collaboration. What was it like in those early days? Did you feel like the film would be something special? 

Jean-Claude and myself and many of the people who were involved with the film felt we had something very special on our hands, but unfortunately the folks at Cannon Films did not feel the same.  Despite their misgivings, the film did spectacularly well when it was released.  I had actually tried to bet Menahem that the movie would do better than his pet project at the time, Braddock: Missing In Action 3.  His response to me was "You're dreaming, my friend!"  Well, history had proven that my prediction -- my "dream" -- was correct.  MIA3 grossed $6.2 million at the US box office, while Bloodsport grossed $12 million, almost double.  Since then it has never stopped making money.  I'm still getting residuals to this very day.

Many thanks to Mr. Lettich for taking the time to chat, he's a great storyteller and be on the look out for more Dammaged Goods presents events soon. Until then, Sheldon will be appearing at the USS Midway Museum for MAX on Friday, 10.16 at 7:00 PM. The G.I. Film Festival runs Tuesday, 10.13 through Sunday, 10.18 and showcases documentaries, narrative features and films from local artists.

Ask Me a Question: Electric Boogaloo

It's going to be a crazy weekend with the two part He-Man event and things kicked off in appropriate fashion with a screening of Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films over at the Landmark Theatre. On the way in, I introduced myself to the American Ninja himself, Michael Dudikoff! Joe Armstrong was looking sharp, still in shape and very gracious. Cannon trailers for Death Wish sequels, Invasion U.S.A. and more warmed up the audience where you could spot familiar faces at every glance. Written and directed by Mark Hartley and produced by Veronica Fury and Brett Ratner, Boogaloo tells the story of two movie loving Israeli immigrants Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus who changed Hollywood with their Go-Go approach to movie making with a focus on product and hype versus story and taste. Over 100 former executives, script readers, actors, directors and producers were interviewed for the flick that is a breezy, funny and informative 100 minutes that serves as both an inspirational and cautionary tale. Schlock is always a term used to describe Cannon's output of titles that usually involved sex, nudity, horror and action. Films like The Last American Virgin, Breakin', Death Wish 2-5, Missing In Action, Lifeforce, Over the Top, Runaway Train, Bloodsport and Masters of the Universe would define their eclectic output of big and small titles, always looking to break out.

Interviewees look back with a sense of fondness and hilarity at the ridiculousness of the era where junk bonds financed Cannon's slate and the two cousins were known as charming, overly passionate film fans and expert salesmen. So much that the Cannes film festival was nicknamed the Cannon film festival during their heyday as they promoted so many films and closed so many deals. Stars like Charles Bronson and Chuck Norris anchored their stable of stars that would also include Dudikoff, Lucinda Dickey, Catherine Mary Stewart, Robert Forster, Franco Nero, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Sylvester Stallone and many more. While filmmakers like Sam Firstenberg, Tobe Hooper, Michael Winner, John Frankenheimer and Cassavetes and Franco Zeffirelli spent their cash. While in those days studios were putting out 8-12 films a year, Cannon cranked out dozens, many of the low budget and near exploitation variety. Even when they had a good movie like Runaway Train or Otello, people wouldn't give them credit. But the lack of quality control and never stopping to assess the situation seemed to spell their doom. After expanding too quickly, buying up cinema chains and financing films that flopped, Cannon eventually could not keep up with their debts and Golan and Globus parted ways in a less than amicable split. The film does a great job of setting up who the two mini-moguls were, their personalities, vision, success and eventual failure. More than one participant had to put their foot down to get paid from time to time but the money was never going into the pockets of the producers, rather back into the film. Boogaloo is a terrific look back at a long bygone era that produced some truly memorable movies. The flick hits DVD on Tuesday, 9.29 and comes with 30 minutes of Cannon trailers along with 20 some minutes of deleted scenes. Can't wait!

After the film, producer and financier Brett Ratner took the microphone and introduced an awesome panel that included director Hartley, editor Mark Helfrich, director Sam Firstenberg, actress Dickey and Michael Dudikoff. A shoutout to audience members and Cannon alumni like Sheldon Lettich, James Bruner and Diane Franklin among many more. Ratner has always seemed like a chill guy but his asking the panel to tell a story not in the film was not the greatest way to moderate:

- Ratner loved Diane Franklin in The Last American Virgin so much, he ended up dating lookalike Rebecca Gayheart for 13 years and nearly marrying her.
- Mark Helfrich was an assistant editor who would go in and fix things at night the actual editors messed up. Lead to a career long association with likes of Ratner and Craig Baxley.
- Firstenberg worked with Golan and Globus at their company prior to Cannon as a messenger and worked his way up to directing Revenge of the Ninja, Ninja III, Breakin' 2, American Ninja 1 & 2.
- It always sounded like Golan and Globus were arguing in Hebrew when they were usually just talking about what to eat for lunch.
- Lucinda Dickey was a gymnast and classical dancer turned green actress who signed a deal with Cannon but retired after the Breakin' series and Ninja III to raise a family. Apparently did not get along overly well with Sho Kosugi or her Breakin' co-stars at the time.
- Michael Dudikoff had been a contract player at Paramount doing comedy, got called in to Cannon's offices, which were quite dingy and sloppy, became one of their poster boys and would be "James Dean" of the company. Had to play hardball to get paid for a few projects but overall felt like he was part of the family and treated well.
- Cannon always wanted to be first when it came to similar movies and would push projects into production at the drop of a hat. If you landed a meeting, there was a 90% chance you'd leave with a deal. One filmmaker threatened to cut his fingers off if his film wasn't made.
- Boaz Davidson, John Thompson and Avi Lerner would go on to build a modern Cannon Films, Nu Image. Lerner offered Ratner $10 million bucks to direct a Hercules movie but wouldn't specify how much would be left to make the movie. Ratner declined and set up his own Hercules project with The Rock. Lerner asked him to shoot it at their studio in Bulgaria, when Ratner declined, Lerner said he was going to "fuck him" by making his own Hercules movie and releasing it first.
- The Cannon renaissance is upon us as Firstenberg has provided a half dozen commentaries and the cult fan base is still alive and well.

Much more was talked about and several audience members who worked at the studio shared quick stories. One saying it was a truly harrowing yet educational experience that taught him more than any school ever could. It was a great night that put the spotlight on many unsung heroes of my cinematic upbringing. Now bring on Masters of the Universe!

Dolph Days: The Long September

We're just over a week away from Masters of the Universe on the big screen at The Egyptian Theatre where we'll be joined by several several members of the cast and crew. It's been a busy summer for the big Swede as Lundgren was recently in the news when photos from the Vancouver set of Kindergarten Cop 2 hit the web, Thor screenwriter Christopher Yost had been hired to take a crack at the MOTU reboot set up at Sony and passion project Skin Trade hit Blu-Ray shelves. But that's not all, folks. This past Labor Day weekend saw the El Rey Network playing the Rocky marathon on repeat hosted by Sylvester Stallone and Robert Rodriguez which means you got to see The Iron Man in all his 80's yoked and flat topped glory punching bags, killing Apollo Creed, training with high tech equipment, doing roids and fighting the Cold War against Rocky set to Vince DiCola's glorious synth soundtrack at least twice a day.

Tonight at the Hollywood Arclight, Dolph is expected to attend the premiere of War Pigs, the World War II action flick co-starring Luke Goss (Blade 2), former UFC champion Chuck Liddell and Expendables co-star Mickey Rourke. Ryan Little directs from a script by Adam Emerson, Andrew Kightlinger and Steven Luke. I'm a sucker for WWII men on a mission flick and a lot of love and work went into the project so here's hoping for an action packed and entertaining 90 minutes. Next week you can catch Dolph on the big screen three days in a row! On Thursday, 9.17, Warner Brothers premieres the long awaited documentary, Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films at the Landmark Theatre on the west side. Roger Corman, Lucinda Dickey, Mark Helfrich and the American Ninja himself, Michael Dudikoff are scheduled to attend for Q&A. The following night, you can catch Cannon's mini-epic Masters of the Universe at The Egyptian with me while War Pigs hits select theaters the same night.

If that weren't enough Dolph for ya, the actor, karate expert, chemical engineer and filmmaker takes the stage for TEDx Fulbright Santa Monica to discuss Human Trafficking. This is an independently organized event to bring people together in TED like environments to spark discussion and connection. More information HERE and tickets over HERE. Phew, I'm tired just trying to keep up with him, see ya at the shows!

(Pre)Ask Me a Question: He-Man & She-Ra Celebration

Dammaged Goods Presents is back! With our biggest and craziest line up yet, a He-Man and She-Ra Festival! That's right, we've teamed up with The American Cinematheque and He-Man World for  a night and a day of all things He-Man, She-Ra, Skeletor and The Masters of the Universe! Cannon Films' 1987 classic Masters of the Universe starring Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella kicks things off Friday night, September 18th at The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood; home to Dolph Night, An Evening With Carl Weathers, The Sunbow Animation Celebration and most recently, Conan the Cinematic Barbarian. A clip show of animation, commercials, oddities and rarities will precede the film. A stellar line up of guests join us for pre and post Q&A including director Gary Goddard, production designer William Stout, actors Chelsea Field, Anthony De Longis and Robert Towers as well as SFX lead Max Cervantes!

On Saturday, September 19th, the theatre lobby will be transformed into Eternia as a mini-convention with displays, guests and exhibitors including Mattel, Pretty In Plastic, Super7 and La-La Land Records along with voice actors Alan Oppenheimer (Skeletor) and Melendy Britt (She-Ra) continues the event. The nostalgic fun doesn't stop there as a full day of programming and panels follows beginning with a very special appearance by Erika Scheimer who will discuss all things Filmation, her iconic father Lou as well as voice acting and song writing on He-Man, She-Ra, Ghostbusters and BraveStarr. Then it's on to the origins of He-Man with co-creator Mark Taylor and prolific brand designer Errol McCarthy. Filmation Animation is highlighted next as we screen clips from the original 1983 after school phenomenon and hear from storyboard artist and director Tim Sito, writer Larry DiTillio, writer Marc Zicree along with voice actors Oppenheimer, Britt and Diane Pershing.

But wait, there's more! Much more! 1985's theatrical release and She-Ra introducing film The Secret of the Sword gets a rare repertory screening, on 35mm no less. Our day closes with the west coast premiere of documentary Toy Masters, Corey Landis and Roger Lay Jr's amusing look at the iconic toy and cartoon series. The duo will be on hand for a post film Q&A as well.

Tickets are on sale now, going for the astoundingly low price of $11.00 for Friday night and $15.00 for all day Saturday. You have the power! And Good Journey!

What the Chuck?! The Delta Force

After a nice morning workout it was time to finish up one of Chuck Norris' greatest flicks and successes, 1986's The Delta Force. A full on Cannon production as co-studio head Menahem Golan directed the flick and co-wrote with regular Norris and company collaborator James Bruner. Inspired by the 1985 Trans World Airlines hijacking where Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad members took control of Flight 847 and demanded the release of 700 Shi'ite Muslims from Israeli custody. Passengers of Jewish descent were separated from the others, traveling military personnel were beaten, U.S. Navy Diver Robert Stethem was killed and it took two weeks and intervention from then U.S. President Ronald Reagan along with Lebanese officials to free the remaining hostages. The hijackers original demands were met when Israel released over 700 prisoners. Many of the original perpetrators remain at large while one was arrested in 1987, sentenced to life in prison but paroled in 2005.

In the film, events more or less unfold as they did in reality for the first half. We meet Captain Scott McCoy (Norris) during the disastrous Operation Eagle Claw where poor planning and communication, unexpected conditions and inefficient training ended with the deaths of eight Delta Force members and the failure of rescuing hostages in Iran. Tired of the bureaucrats planning and his men dying, McCoy resigns after rescuing his teammate Pete Peterson (William Wallace) from an exploded helicopter. Cut to five years later and New World Revolution terrorist Abdul (Robert Forster) and one accomplice hijack a plane waving guns and grenades. Passengers with Jewish sounding names are separated, three military divers are beaten and the hostages come to grips with the possibility of dying. Meanwhile the smartass and crusty Colonel Nick Alexander (Lee Marvin) is given the greenlight to make up for Eagle Claw and get the hostages free. McCoy gets the call and rejoins his crew which includes Bobby (the always great Steve James) and Pete. It's a good thing McCoy came voluntarily because Alexander had a Presidential decree ordering him back to service.

While the events that inspired the film are harrowing, frustrating and sad, the film derived is a fantastic time in the 80's vein of action film that no longer exists. In actuality, The Delta Force is a bit of a odd case as it's part docudrama, part deeply cast disaster movie and part ridiculously entertaining action movie. Joining Norris, Marvin, Forster and James are familiar faces from the 60's and 70's like Rat Packer Joey Bishop, 12 Angry Men's Martin Balsam, The Inglorious Bastards' Bo Svenson, The Magnificent Seven's Robert Vaughn and The Poseidon Adventure's Shelley Winters. There's plenty of human drama in the first hour as families are separated, there's flashbacks to the Holocaust, the young Navy diver is killed and dumped on the runway and the Jewish hostages are taken while the women and children are released. This all builds up for a cathartic second hour where the commandos are given the go ahead and resources to bring the hostages home.

After landing in Beirut, the movie veers from history and gives us the story many viewers would like to have seen. Basically, the Delta Force commandos roll in on dune-buggy's and motorbikes to take out the bad guys with extreme prejudice. Like this is how America kicks ass, extreme prejudice. Working with Mossad intelligence, McCoy and Pete infiltrate the terrorist hive where their local contact is taken by Abdul and plunges to his death. His sacrifice doesn't go wasted as Chuck and his buddies do the Damme thing and show up to get the job done. There's three sites where hostages are being held and rolling in under the cover of darkness with blue lights on their vehicles and U.S. flag patches on their shoulders, it's finally showtime. By this point the action takes us by air, land and sea and into the streets. You get a pretty destructive car chase with Chuck hanging out the side firing his Uzi and several jeeps and cars being flipped and exploded. Then there's the mass hostage rescue where McCoy and Bobby blow out the floor from beneath, emerge and waste the terrorists using machine guns and night vision goggles. Plenty of baddies get riddled with squibs and tumble down stairs, Steve James gives a strong thumbs up and Chuck wastes a dude hiding under a bed then delivers "sleep tight, sucker". Outside, the main force attacks with missile equipped motorcycles and dune buggy's mounted with M-60's in a hail of explosions and property damage.

The physical stunts and destruction are pretty incredible. McCoy uses a bazooka to blow up some bad guys then takes a zip line down the building because Marvin's Alexander is in a hurry. Gunfire and squibs destroy rooms and bodies, motorcycles ramp and fly all over the place, flames burn right next to actors, every other car explodes, Norris and James fire bazookas near simultaneously then shake hands and the final big stunt involves Chuck Norris' double chasing a moving airplane, riding on on the seat of a motorcycle, grabbing a rope and climbing up...it's just terrific stuff set to Alan Silvestri's exciting and way overused yet effective electronic score. Then when McCoy catches up to Abdul, it's payback time to the max as Chuck flies in through a window on his motorbike and proceeds to thrash Abdul with punches, karate kicks and Judo throws all over the house through furniture, out a window, smashes his arm in a car door then blows him up with a rocket from his bike. Phew!

Once the hostages are freed and everyone is headed home, the Delta Force hands out cans of Budweiser beer and everyone sings "America, The Beautiful" before coming back to reality as Pete dies from his wounds. With their families waiting, the freed hostages celebrate while Delta Force carries off their dead and heads off to their next mission. I couldn't help but think this would make a great double feature with 1990's Charlie Sheen and Michael Biehn starring Navy Seals, another middle eastern terrorist tinged tale of heroism, sacrifice, skill, one liners and showcase of America's ass kicking acumen. Originally set to star Cannon's "two Chucks" Norris and Bronson, the latter fell out over unknown reasons. Probably financial as they both took home up to $5 million a picture. Marvin made his deal within 20 minutes after speaking with Golan and settled for a somewhat paltry $50,000 for 8 weeks of shooting towards the end of his career. Marvin was a much better choice than Bronson at this point as he was still lithe, dignified and trim while Charlie was no longer the granite featured muscleman of his youth.

Opening on Valentine's Day of 1986, The Delta Force grossed nearly $6 million at 1,720 theaters behind Down and Out in Beverly Hills and The Color Purple on it's way to a $17.7 million total. That put it at #50 for the year but would be one of Norris' highest earners alongside Missing in Action, The Octagon, A Force of One and Good Guys Wear Black. 1990's sequel would earn less than half of the original. The Delta Force would be Oscar winner Lee Marvin's final film as he died in 1987. Cool and buff sidekick Steve James would go on to re-team with American Ninja star Michael Dudikoff in Cannon's Avenging Force and Ninja sequel The Confrontation before showing up as Norris' cop buddy in Hero and the Terror. James sadly passed away in 1993. Cannon Films would be on it's last legs as 1987's costly trio of under performers Over the Top, Superman IV and Masters of the Universe along with a crashing bond market spelled doom for the mini-major known for genre and art house films alike.

What the Chuck?! Hero and the Terror

Did you miss it? I sure did. Tuesday, March 10th was the 75th birthday of one Carlos Ray aka Chuck Norris! The Air Force veteran turned martial arts expert and champion turned movie and TV star turned internet sensation spends his days living in rural Texas, working out on his Total Gym and speaking at conservative events. We know and love him for his awesome 70's and 80's action flicks so let's dive into 1988's Hero and the Terror. This puts us on the tail end of his go-go years with Cannon Films following hits like Missing In Action, Invasion U.S.A. and The Delta Force.

Hero is a weird one, more of a thriller than an action flick as we meet Danny O'Brien (Norris) as he's tracked down the man-brute-child Simon Moon aka The Terror (Jack O'Halloran) and fighting for his life under a pier. Moon nearly chokes and drowns O'Brien to death but trips and dazes himself, which makes arriving back up think The Chuck managed to put the big man down. Thus becoming a hero and a trauma survivor at the same time. Cut to three years later, O'Brien is slowly getting his confidence back and moving in with his pregnant lady Kay (Brynn Thayer). There's an awesomely ludicrous workout scene where Chuck is bench pressing while having flashbacks of Moon's hands wrapped around his throat, intense! American Ninja's Steve James shows up as one of his cop buddies and with another friend scream at O'Brien to complete his reps and joke he's prepping for the Olympics. I should mention that Norris is really pumped up in this one with a smooth hairless chest and a 80's style spaghetti strapped tank top. Competing with Stallone and Arnold perhaps? He rocks sweet sweaters and blazers while tooling around in his Corvette.

Thought dead for the last three years, Moon returns, killing women with his bare hands. His once abandoned lair has been remodeled and scheduled to open as The Wiltern Theatre. Hiding in unmapped cubbies, Moon eludes O'Brien and the police until they figure out there's more to the joint than thought. Alone, O'Brien finds the secret compartment Moon has been bringing his victims back to and faces off against The Terror one last time. Like I said, this was kind of a weird one but very watchable, Chuck doesn't have a ton of fight scenes, just one against some thugs on a bust and the final confrontation with Moon. His usual odd charm and humor is put on display in his scenes with Kay and one where he burns toast, etc. It was nice to see Steve James pop up for a few scenes even if he spoke with a kind of strange nasally, hero voice in this. There's one scene where James is on a stakeout in the theater and decides to get a work out in by running laps listening to Mozart!

After making his name in martial arts and action fare to big box office but few critical accolades, Norris hit both with 1985's Code of Silence. Follow ups Invasion U.S.A., The Delta Force, Firewalker and Missing in Action III would see diminishing returns and be viewed as less challenging and more exploitative fare. Hero and the Terror, based on the novel by Michael Blodgett, adapted by Dennis Shryack and directed by William Tannen was an attempt to broaden Norris' range. His character isn't the silent badass, he's got fears and even sees a therapist. Throw in the pregnant ladyfriend and some delivery room humor and you've got yourself a character similar to but also very departed from Lone Wolf McQuade, Invasion U.S.A. and The Delta Force where it was more about revenge or taking down scumbags cold, hard and fast. After so many years of that, it was time to be strong yet vulnerable. While the flick is easily a Saturday afternoon repeater, it did little to broaden Norris' fanbase. Opening on August 26th, 1988, Hero and the Terror grossed an anemic $1.8 million for the weekend coming in 12th place behind long released fare like A Nightmare on Elm Street 4, Die Hard, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Young Guns and Coming to America on it's way to a $5.3 million total.

Hero and the Terror's weak performance was Norris' worst showing in years. A proposed team up with Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Cowboy and The Cossack was planned but never materialized. A Delta Force sequel would do little to turn the tide and 1991's The Hitman would fare even worse. Norris himself deemed the picture OK and not one of his favorites. Director William Tannen would reteam with Norris nearly 20 years later on entertaining DTV flick The Cutter. Novelist Michael Blodgett would have more success on the cop-canine comedy Turner & Hooch the next year before passing away in 2007. Screenwriter Dennis Shryack had previously written Clint Eastwood vehicles The Gauntlet and Pale Rider as well as Norris' Code of Silence (originally meant for Clint) and would go on to co-write Turner & Hooch and the Peter Weller actioner Fifty/Fifty.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Norris, keep pumping!

The Action Elite Presents: Icons of Action

Last week, The Action Elite unveiled their top 70 list of the Best Action Heroes of All Time. Main man Eoin Friel enlisted the help of fellow writers, bloggers, screenwriters, directors and #MovieBros to chime in with write ups of their favorite heroes. I picked up two Jean-Claude Van Damme performances, first as Chance Boudreaux in John Woo's 1993 shooting, explosion and face kicking fest Hard Target at # 46 (ahead of Tom Cruise as Mission Impossible's Ethan Hunt and behind Chuck Norris as Lone Wolf McQuade):

“Hunting season is over.”
While Jean-Claude Van Damme was never known for machine gun mayhem a la Stallone in Rambo or Schwarzenegger in Commando; Hard Target’s Chance Boudreaux comes dangerously close to pure action movie territory.
As a decorated former member of Marine Force Recon turned down on his luck sailor, Boudreaux stumbles into a deadly game put on by rich hunters. Their prey? Military veterans. When beautiful and smart yet out of her neighborhood lawyer Natasha Binder (Yancy Butler) comes looking for her missing father, she uncovers the darker side of Dixie in the violent and seedy underworld of New Orleans.
Teaming with Chance, the pair take on the evil Fouchon (Lance Henriksen), his right hand man Pik van Cleef (Arnold Vosloo) and their small army of well-armed sportsmen (including Arnold’s buddy Sven-Ole Thorsen).
Recruiting Hong Kong action maestro John Woo for his first American film, Hard Target is full of violently slick, slow motion fight and shootout sequences that see Van Damme filling the bad guys with lead before finishing them off with a spinning hook kick to the face.
Like a greasy mullet’ed samurai in a denim shirt and tight jeans; J.C.V.D.’s Chance fights, chases and shoots it out with Fouchon’s crew using fists, pistols, shotguns, pigeons, gasoline, roundhouse kicks and one-liners. All of this while moto-surfing on a motorcycles standing up, outrunning a helicopter on horseback through Louisiana’s streets, back country and of course a warehouse to save the girl and take revenge for their dead comrades.
If that weren’t enough, Chance flexes his muscles, gets shot, doesn’t get burned by fire and drops a grenade down Fouchon’s pants during the explosion and bullet filled finale.

Followed by Frank Dux in the underground fighting epic Bloodsport at # 18 (ahead of Steven Seagal in Under Siege, suck it! And behind Robocop, respect.):

“You told me to use any technique that worked.  Never to limit myself to one style. To keep an open mind!”
The appeal of Bloodsport and Frank Dux is twofold.  The purported true story of a covert military operator who fights in secret no holds barred tournaments seemed tailor made for the big screen.  Especially an 80’s, Cannon Films produced flick starring a then unknown Jean-Claude Van Damme.
While many of Dux’s military and martial arts claims have been debunked, the tale of an underground competition to find the world’s supreme warrior and fighting champion has entertained and influenced a generation. From video game Street Fighter to Mixed Martial Arts giant the UFC, Bloodsport’s world warrior, style vs style inspiration lives on nearly 30 years later.
In J.C.V.D.’s breakthrough and signature role, the Muscles From Brussels combined his background in karate, weight training and ballet to create a powerful yet graceful onscreen presence that more than made up for his lack of acting experience.  As A.W.O.L. Air Force Captain Frank Dux, Van Damme puts his career and life on the line in order to fight in the Kumite, a full contact event held every five years.
With high kicks and the ability to do the splits at his disposal, Dux battles the best in karate, sumo and muy thai to try and be the best he can be while honoring his mentor and avenging fallen friends.
Whether enduring nearly inhuman physical training, doing the splits between two chairs, fighting blindly in the final match, running the streets of Hong Kong in a Mustard suit or telling another man “I love you my friend”; Jean-Claude Van Damme shows us how an action hero can be kick ass, yet sensitive.

It was a lot of fun and a pleasure to be included. The full list is fantastic and houses contributions from a spectrum of devoted action movie junkies. It skewed a little modern and of course male but John Wayne, Charles Bronson, Steve McQueen, Sigourney Weaver, Linda Hamilton and Uma Thurman made it in while we could have used some Lee Marvin or Kirk Douglas for The Dirty Dozen and Spartacus. And Michael Biehn as Kyle Reese aka the Father of the Future!

What the Chuck?! Invasion U.S.A.

I don't know why it's taken me so long getting around to writing about Invasion U.S.A. from 1985. It's one of Chuck's greatest flicks and I enjoyed the hell out of watching it with some whiskey at my side. Apparently, by the mid 80's, America hadn't been invaded for 200 years. Evil Russian spy guy Mikhail Rostov (Richard Lynch, View In Peace) is looking to change that with the help of a Communist army made up of his fellow countrymen, Cubans and some Arabs.  Landing on the beaches of Florida, they kill civilian men, women and children ruthlessly.  The C.I.A. tries to recruit former operative Matt Hunter (Norris) to look into the case but he's too busy wrestling and wrangling alligators in the Florida Everglades.  The company wouldn't let Hunter kill Rostov when he had the chance so now it's their problem. You see, Hunter once caught Rostov during a thwarted assassination by bazooka attempt and the Red is still plenty pissed and scarred about it.  Nightmares of Hunter sticking a gun to his temple and telling him, "It's time to die..." have him waking up in anger and fright before dispatching some dudes to take care of The Chuck.  They miss of course but kill his airboat riding, frog eating buddy John (Dehl Berti, View In Peace) so now it's on and Hunter is gonna show those dirty Commies how America kicks ass!

Meanwhile, the mercenary army creates violent havoc on the streets of Miami. Posing as cops they commit terrorist attacks and stoke the fire of social and racial unrest until civilians begin fighting each other. In a key scene the baddies attack a shopping mall during Christmas but Hunter saves the day with his jacked up truck, denim shirt and twin Uzi's. Now with a taste for bloody revenge, Hunter starts offing Rostov's army with extreme "guns, karate, explosion and knife through the hand" prejudice.

Man what a great flick.  It's funny, ridiculous, intense, violent and near exploitative.  Rostov is a real shitbag, seeing Americans as soft and not realizing how their own safety can be used against them. In an early scene, Rostov shoves a snorting with a steel straw cokehead's head into the table then throws her out the window AND shoots a dealer in the nuts. It was an interesting twist to have him so mentally messed up by Hunter and thus making some bad strategic decisions out of fear. Joseph Zito directs a script by James Bruner, Chuck himself and brother Aaron with that sleazy 80's vibe where people are violently killed via squibs and shots to the head. Chuck's unexpected but welcome dry humor is on display early talking about Social Security and being sick of eating frogs. After friend John is killed, Hunter goes sullen as it's time for Rostov to die. Norris delivers several lines in awesome yet intense whisper giving "I'm not interested or You're beginning to irritate me and Not this time" surprising menace and quotability. All in, Norris whispers "It's time to die" three times throughout the running time and makes good on his words at the end with a frigging bazooka duel!

Hot on the heels of the well received cop thriller Code of Silence, Norris would enter his Cannon Film days for schlock masters Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus with Invasion. Norris was loyal to the Go-Go boys stating that they were there for him when he needed them.  Making an estimated $2 million a film in 1985, Invasion U.S.A. is said to have cost a then staggering $16 million clams with $5 going to the mall scene alone shot over 3 nights with thousands of extras that's as harrowing as it is impressive with explosions, squibs and trucks crashing through glass and storefronts on location in Georgia. Opening on September 27th with a healthy $6.8 million weekend take, putting it ahead of flicks like Romancing the Stone sequel The Jewel of the Nile, St. Elmo's Fire, Fright Night and The Breakfast Club and behind action flicks Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Commando, Pale Rider and Rambo II.  Although Invasion opened up strong, it would gross less than all of those films on it's way to $17.5 million; putting it ahead of To Live and Die in L.A., Death Wish 3, King Solomon's Mines, Remo Williams, American Ninja and Lifeforce.

From here, Norris would team up with Lee Marvin for hit The Delta Force before facing diminishing returns on Mission in Action III, Hero and the Terror, Delta Force 2 and The Hitman. Director Zito already had successes Mission in Action and Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter under his belt and would go on to the big budget Dolph Lundgren vehicle Red Scorpion before seemingly fading away from filmmaking. The character of Matt Hunter would appear in 1986's Avenging Force with Michael Dudikoff taking over the role when Norris passed.

Monday Madness: Miami Connection

How the heck did I not know about Miami Connection?  The title drifted across my plate a couple of years ago, something about a martial arts rock band fighting ninjas with an 80's vibe.  But there's been a lot of throwback 80's in the last few years.  Movies like The Expendables, Hobo with a Shotgun and Manborg.  A Cannon films documentary.  Video game Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon with music score by Power Glove.  Blood Bros' playlists on Mad Decent.  All of those VHS style trailers.  Little did I know that Miami was a film actually made in the 80's, released and quickly forgotten about in 1987 and by some minor miracle was given a second chance!  Thanks to Turner Classic Movies Underground banner and a 2:00AM airing, now I know.  And knowing is half the battle...

The story begins with immigrant and Tae Kwon Do master Y.K. Kim, who landed in the United States from South Korea in 1978.  By the mid-80's he was kicking ass with a chain of successful martial arts schools, public speaking, authoring books and generally being liked by those around him for his positive outlook on life and charitable efforts around central Florida.  While on a television program in South Korea, action movie director Woo-sang Park figured he'd made a good cinematic hero and the two set off to create a flick that would encapsulate Kim's philosophy of friendship, loyalty and martial arts.  Against the advice of his closest friends, Kim sold his car, mortgaged his home and franchise to fund Miami Connection.  With no prior background in filmmaking or even an interest in it, the shoot quickly devolved into a nightmare.  There was no script, director Park spoke little English and the entire cast was more or less farmed from Kim's network of 10,000 students.  With that pedigree you'd expect a fun home movie but instead Kim hoped Miami would be a blockbuster film that showed the greatness of Tae Kwon Do to the world.  What he got was a near $1 million dollar catastrophe that almost crippled his life and sent him into bankruptcy.

Miami Connection is the story of Dragon Sound, a synth-rock band made up of Tae Kwon Do blackbelts.  They jam on guitars and do kicks on stage.  Meanwhile, some ninjas kill off some local drug dealers and the band Dragon Sound replaced wants their gig back, teaming up with the bad guys to snuff out the band.  Mark (Kim) and his bandmates are all orphans who live and train together.  Jim (Maurice Smith), has been trying to find his black-American dad for some time and finally has a lead.  Meanwhile John (Vincent Hirsch) is trying to get to know Jane (Kathy Collier) whose brother happens to be leader of the evil gang.  Martial arts brawling, shirtless mail reading, hardcore Tae Kwon Do demonstrations, catchy synth pop, bros pooling money for a suit, poor English and of course, ninja mayhem ensues.  Miami Connection should not be a good movie or a good time.  Story developments go nowhere, the acting is hammy, random montages and vignettes add nothing...But somehow, the sheer earnestness of the cast and ridiculous concept shines through the amateur production values.  We don't get shoddy sets or cheap tricks to pull off elaborate stunts.  The practical streets, woods, creeks and college campus locations all give Miami Connection a texture that rises above a Chuck Norris or Bruce Lee imitator or ironic love letter made today.

The fights in the flick are pretty solid in that 80's, awkward, kinda telegraphed, wait for it style. Given that the entire main cast are blackbelts, they get to show off their high kicking TKD skills and even fight with swords in a bloody final confrontation against the ninjas.  Kim is not exactly the world's most charismatic leading man but really he's just there to support his friends and kick ass, which he does just fine.  Two of his students turned co-stars, Angelo Janotti and Kathy Collier, were musicians in their own right and provided two memorable tracks; Friends and Against a Ninja.  Friends reminds you of Nowhere Fast from Streets of Fire a bit and has awesomely simple lyrics like "loyalty, honesty, we'll stick together through thick or thin" with it's hand clapping drum beat.  Against a Ninja starts with extreme guitar riffs and more hand clapping and lyrics about you know, ninjas being evil. 

At the end of production, Park departed for Korea and Kim set about trying to sell the movie for exhibition.  He estimates 100 companies turned him down, told him it was trash and that he shouldn't spend another cent.  That seems pretty hardcore considering some of the low budget turkeys Cannon was producing at the same time.  I guess those just had more famous and bankable actors.  Feeling like a failure, Kim took the film to Cannes to drum up interest but struck out once more.  One insider suggested several changes and Kim along with co-star/student Joseph Diamond read some books on writing screenplays and directing films to realize it needed things like a beginning, middle and end then reshot scenes.  One distributor finally ponied up $100,000 to release the film in 8 theaters around Orlando with Kim working overtime to promote the flick via store demonstrations and local media.  But a prominent local critic called Miami the worst film of the year before it's release and after 3 weeks, the movie was pulled and forgotten.  Kim rebuilt his empire, stronger than ever and continued to spread the gospel of personal, financial and emotional fitness.

Cut to 2009, Alamo Drafthouse programmer Zack Carlson came across a print of the film on eBay and bought it for $50 bucks.  After audiences responded well to the first reel, Carlson and his boss Evan Husney began their quest to redistribute the film.  Kim thought it was a joke and hung up on Husney several times before being informed that Miami Connection had all the makings of a cult classic a la the also forgotten Troll 2.  From there the film played in several film festivals and midnight screenings across the country to fevered reaction, several with Kim and cast in attendance, demonstrating moves and even playing Friends on stage.  Today you can get a special edition blu-ray, vinyl soundtrack, band shirts and much more.  That's the power of movies, baby.  And a nice spinning roundhouse kick.

The 80's Called: Go-Go

Looks like the 80's just ain't going nowhere, fast, as this week showed people still want their Starlog Magazine, 8-bit video games, VHS movie trailers and schlocktastic studio of the future, Cannon Films.  So cancel your Saturday night date, break out the 2-liter of Shasta and crank up the synth wave as we round up all things great eight...ies.

- Non-profit The Internet Archive out of San Francisco looks to provide historians, scholars and the general public permanent access to digital records.  Amongst their archives are over 200 issues of Starlog Magazine, the publication devoted to science fiction films, books and television series that had it's heyday in the 80's.  Started by Kerry O'Quinn and Norman Jacobs with a later assist from David Houston as a one off guide to Star Trek, Starlog expanded into regular printing and ran from 1976 to 2009 for 375 issues.  The company also published Comics Scene and Fangoria, focusing on comic book adaptations and horror films among other titles.

- The Internet Archive also unveiled over 900 8-bit coin-operated arcade game titles emulated for online play.  As mall arcades died out in the 90's, you can save your quarters and spend your free time playing classics like Bionic Commando, Street Fighter II, Galaga, Golden Axe, Q*Bert, Dig Dug and Burger Time online instead.

- Speaking of video games, remember River City Ransom?  The Double Dragon-esque NES beat'em up game where you went around punching dudes with brass knuckles and eating ramen?  An officially licensed sequel, Underground, is on the way via a successfully funded Kickstarter campaign that revisits and expands upon Alex and Ryan's army'ing into River City looking for a kidnapped girlfriend.

- YouTube masher upper extraordinaire Chiefbrodyrules dropped his latest creation, a VHS, 80's style trailer for Captain America: Winter Soldier.  Complete with Cannon Films logo, tracking lines and synth soundtrack, Brody culls footage from the Cap flicks, Avengers, Robocop, Scott Pilgrim VS The World, Machete and Nick of Time to create an awesome time capsule made way outside the actual era.

- And we can't reminisce about the 80's without talking about Cannon Films now can we?  It's been a busy year for the former Go-Go boys of Hollywood with two documentaries hitting screens heightening their profile and the passing of co-founder Menahem Golan cementing their legacy.  After several years in the making, Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films finished production and began rolling out at various film festivals.  Featuring interviews with studio staples and stars like Michael Dudikoff, Dolph Lundgren, Tobe Hooper and Sam Firstenberg; the love letter to pre-sold, hastily made, schlocky exploitation fare sure to include nudity, action and or horror has been a hit with viewers.

Founders Golan and Yoram Globus were scheduled to participate but then in true Cannon fashion, created their own documentary called The Go-Go Boys: Inside Cannon Films to beat Boogaloo to the punch.  At the Cannes Film Festival in May, the two former mini-moguls held court for a screening and attendees could check out both documentaries over the festivals run.  Sadly, in August, 85 year old Golan passed away.

Bronson of the Day: Death Hunt (w/Lee Marvin & Carl Weathers)

Tucked in my dvd collection has long been a copy of Death Hunt, a flick starring no less than Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin and Carl Weathers.  Released in 1981, I wasn't too keen on watching Bronson and Marvin in the elder years of their lives and careers.  As younger men the two had co-starred in 1966's biggest box office earner, The Dirty Dozen and were the epitome of badassness; quiet, cool,  hard and unflinching.  Back then, Marvin was top dog and Bronson was one of the 12 convicts given an opportunity to acquit themselves of charges by going on a suicide mission.

Cut to 1980 and Charles Bronson has become one of the world's biggest movie stars thanks to action vehicles from the states and Europe.  His bankable days numbered and formerly granite face softening, Death Hunt is a welcome surprise as Bronson would embark on his payday Cannon Films/Death Wish sequel days immediately after. Filmed in and around the beautiful and snowy Canadian Rocky Mountains, Death Hunt was co-produced by Raymond Chow's Golden Harvest, of kung-fu and Bruce Lee flicks then Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fame.  The tale is based on a true story of a trapper who kills a man and then becomes the target of a huge, country wide man hunt in 1931 which of course is highly fictionalized for the big screen.  James Bond veteran Director, Editor and 2nd Unit Director Peter Hunt helms a not great but ruggedly entertaining affair with surprising bursts of old school squib violence.  The vista of nature, log cabins, muddy towns, fur coats and snow give it a very authentic feel and change of pace from Bronson's usual shitty city or European countryside motifs.

Basically, Bronson's Albert Johnson walks into a town one day where a gang of men are watching a dog fight.  Johnson doesn't like what he sees and buys the injured, losing dog off cruel owner Hazel (Ed Lauter) with a smack in the kisser and non-negotiable price.  Loud mouth Hazel approaches the local Mounties, Millen (Marvin) and partner Sundog (Carl Weathers) to do something while new recruit Alvin (future film producer Andrew Stevens) arrives looking to do things by the book.  Of course, the law doesn't always apply to remote areas so Millen and Sundog have to school the eager youngster on what and what not to act on.  While Millen, Sundog and Alvin get to pal around, talk about women and booze, Bronson as Johnson surprisingly doesn't share many scenes with anyone for the duration of the film.  With new dog in tow, Johnson purchases two new rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition before retreating to his secluded cabin in the woods where he fortifies the joint, saws off a shotgun and practices shooting two rifles from the hip.  Some of Hazel's buddies arrive looking for revenge and leave dead.


Things go bad and Johnson hits the trails, trekking across the snowy terrain and living off the land with Millen, Sundog and Alvin in pursuit as well as an angry mob of justice seeking townies.  Millen, being an old school, crotchety fella who's seen a few things may be tasked with bringing Johnson in but Damme it if he doesn't respect him.  He doesn't even think Johnson is guilty of anything and would have acted the same way in the situation.  When things aren't going as quickly as HQ wants, The Royal Air Force is called in, thinking technology will win the day.  Then we learn that Johnson is an old school badass himself, having served in the Great War working intelligence and secret op stuff.  Bronson isn't overly iconic in the role but his calm demeanor and weathered face are more than enough to infuse his portrayal of Johnson as a man looking for peace but unable to stay out of trouble due to jerks and injustice.  Marvin is expectedly crusty and salty, the cool asshole who's seen it all.  Weathers is fine as the buddy who likes to drink, crack jokes and have fun with the ladies with a little snow on the mountains while Stevens is effective as the coiled up new guy.

With a reported budget of $10 million, Death Hunt would only muster $3 million in box office revenue.  On set it's said that Bronson was very to himself which isn't surprising considering he doesn't really share scenes with many actors and you know, he was just like that.  Marvin was the center of attention and entering the twilight of his career, appearing in only 3 additional films. Bronson would go on to star in his first Death Wish sequel then move into his million dollar payday, near parody performances Cannon Film years, reuniting with director Hunt on Assassination.  Fresh off of Rocky II, Weathers would go on to co-star in Rocky III and IV before appearing opposite Arnold in Predator and headlining Action Jackson.  Andrew Stevens would reunite with Bronson shortly after for 1983's 10 to Midnight before becoming a schlock-tastic producer and director for 90's fare like Scorned, Body Chemistry, Virtual Combat and Storm Catcher.

Zombie Squad Cinema: Cobra

What happens when you hear that Beverly Hills Cop was originally going to star Sylvester Stallone but he dropped out 2 weeks before filming was to begin and took his ideas and put them into a different script and then you can't sleep one night and need a movie to pop in at 3:00 AM?  Yup, you sit down and put on 1986's Cobra!  Based on the novel Fair Game by Paula Gosling, I have no clue if Stallone's screenplay follows the book.  I kind of doubt it... Basically, a cult, a New Order of psychos is looking to kill the weak and let the strong survive.  One of their young, ambitious leaders is witnessed killing a woman on the street by a super model and she must go into protective custody.  Enter Lieutenant "Cobra" Cobretti, a hard ass legend who works the Zombie Squad squashing murderers, rapists and thieves in a hard charging, shit talking, no rulebook, violent fashion that draws the ire of wussy bureaucrats and hypocritical journalists.

From the film's gravelly yet sneering opening voiceover of Stallone reciting stats on violent crimes and the ensuing grocery store melee where Sly drops kick ass lines like: "I don't deal with psychos, I put'em away" to "You're a lousy shot, I hate lousy shots" to telling the armed assailant to go ahead and blow up the joint because he doesn't shop there to the knife throwing followed by multiple gunshot death, Cobra is just too hardcore for words.  80's hardcore.  Bankrolled by Cannon Films 80's hardcore.  Clad in tight jeans, black Henley, black jacket, black gloves, black boots, shades and a pistol with a Cobra on the white grip, Stallone is equal parts gunslinger, superhero and badass.  Then there's Cobra going home to his bachelor pad and some homie is parked in his spot.  Cobra first pushes the car out of the spot then puts his hand over the thugs mouth to pull a cigarette away and tears his shirt open.  What?!  Yup.  Alpha as fuck.  Then how does he relax?  By watching TV, eating cold pizza and cleaning his gun.  What a man!

So anyway, the New Order and their leader The Night Slasher (Brian Thompson from Terminator, Lionheart and The Van Damme Double Dip) are on the hunt for "dances with robots" model Ingrid (Beverly Hills Cop II's Brigitte Nielsen, then Stallone's wife) who saw him waste some chick on the street.  After a botched assassination attempt at the local hospital, Cobra and partner Sergeant Gonzales (Dirty Harry's Reni Santoni) take Ingrid upstate to a safe house but not before engaging in a huge car chase scene which showcases Cobra's suped up 1950 Mercury and his trusty submachine gun.  Betrayed and tracked down, Cobra has to finish off the New Order army, protect Ingrid and face off with The Night Slasher.  Guess who walks away from that scrap?

Cobra is only 87 minutes long so you'd think it would be go go go, in your face action all the time but honestly there's a surprising amount of quiet moments worked into the film that gives you just enough meat to keep you interested between action scenes.  I was surprised at the build up before set pieces with a great use of eerie music and sweeping vistas of worn down, back road California settings.  Character wise, Cobra is the man, Gonzales is his trusted sidekick, Ingrid is the target/love interest, The Night Slasher is bad and then you have supporting characters like Cobra's supportive superior, his bitch ass superior and a chick who sells him out.  You don't need to know more about them then what you're given and it works perfectly.  While many probably just cast off the flick for it's violence, it's important to note how funny this movie is.  Stallone has always had a dry sense of humor and Cobra showcases it in spades with comments about his partner eating too much sugar and being violent to watching Ingrid drown her fries in ketchup and waking her up because he's putting guns together to naming his character Marion to offset his manliness.  Fight scenes are crisp and pack a wallop with Stallone showing off the best punches and running in cinema (sorry, Tom Cruise) then you throw in car/truck/motorcycle chases, ax fights and some light slasher movie antics and you have the feel good movie of Memorial Day weekend.

While lambasted by critics, Cobra opened to $12 million bucks, which at the time was distributer Warner Brothers' biggest opening ever!  Like he did on Rambo: First Blood, Part II, George P. Cosmatos acts as a capable shooter to Stallone's influential star/producer with a heightened reality, western style confrontations and kinetic action sequences.  It's said that the original cut ran just under 2 hours but after the success of Top Gun, WB and Stallone got nervous and went to cutting the flick down to it's sub-90 minute released form so theaters could play it more times in one day in the same way First Blood helped revolutionize the action film.  While Cobra wouldn't be Stallone's next Franchise after Rocky and Rambo, it's still one enjoyable piece of action cinema.  Especially at 3:00 AM.

You're a disease.  And I'm the cure: