Last night I watched Red Dawn, that 80s tribute to isolationism, guerrila warfare, and the prospect of a badass C. Thomas Howell. (For another badass C. Thomas Howell film, check out my July 2003 review of him cavorting with Brian Austin Green.) And why on Earth would I watch this flick? Well, because I wasn't allowed to back to the 80s, because my mom declared it was paranoid American pro-gun silliness. As usual, Mom was right.
I'll admit a few things: I now have the wild urge to call out, "Wolverines!" as I make my way around the office. Patrick Swayze was sort of cute when he was young. And, yes, I flinched a few times during the endless killings.
But, the overall film was so ridiculous that I couldn't get into it. Since when are high schools strategic points worthy of a full-scale invasion? Why did their horses disappear for almost four months? Why couldn't I keep track of who anyone was? And, most importantly, why did Toni receive the same mortal wound twice?
But this has given me an inspiration. I would like my Netflix queue to reflect a white-knuckle fear of the Soviets. So I'm following up Red Dawn with The Day After (nuclear strikes on Lawrence, Kansas). I tried to get Amerika (the Soviets machine-gun Congress), but it's not available on DVD. Any other ideas for a Cold War Film Fest?
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6 comments:
How about Rocky IV? That's the one where Rocky fights Dolph Lundgren, the terrifying Soviet. (I'm guessing there's not a waiting list for it on Netflix.)
I remember seeing it in the theater, and after the movie ended, some clown shouted out, "Let's go kill some Ruskies!" Sounds like the propaganda worked on him.
PS. I like your blog. :)
Thanks! That's a good one for the list. I've added The Day After and Testament to my queue, so I think I'll be ready to move on from nuclear winter to boxing in the next week or two.
You could also add War Games, I suppose. That had some over-arching threat of nuclear annihilation, if I recall. There was also an animated film called When The Wind Blows, made in 1986, which was a morbidly depressing tale of an old English couple constructing a bomb shelter, preparing for a nuclear strike. Not available on NetFlix, though. Perhaps the local Blockbuster.
"The Russians are Coming..." may not be available on Netflix...
I remember seeing this in a Peace War and Defense class... very funny.
How about on the obvious scale...
"Dr. Strangelove..." Everyone should have seen this, already.
Or ...
"The Hunt for Red October" Ditto.
Or
"Firefox" a classic campy airplane movie with Clint Eastwood. Enough said.
Hello! "Spies Like Us"!!!
I've seen Spies Like Us - hilarious (especially if you've ever worked for the government). Dr. Strangelove is totally going onto the list.
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