Blue Thunder DVD

Blue Thunder
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, All Movie Guide

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

Crew Cate Bangs - Art Director Sydney Z. Litwack - Art Director Gregg Champion - Associate Producer Dianne Crittenden - Casting Marianna Elliott - Costume Designer Jerry Ziesmer - First Assistant Director John Badham - Director Frank Morriss - Editor Edward M. Abroms - Editor Phil Feldman - Executive Producer Andrew Fogelson - Executive Producer Arthur B. Rubinstein - Composer (Music Score) Philip Harrison - Production Designer Sydney Z. Litwack - Production Designer John A. Alonzo - Cinematographer Gordon Carroll - Producer Mickey Michaels - Set Designer Charles Gaspar - Special Effects Jeff Jarvis - Special Effects Peter Albiez - Special Effects Tim Cooney - Sound/Sound Designer Terry J. Leonard - Stunts Chuck Gaspar - Special Effects Supervisor Dan O'Bannon - Screenwriter Dean Riesner - Screenwriter Don Jakoby - Screenwriter

Blue Thunder
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, All Movie Guide
 

Edward M. Abroms: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Editing (nominated) Frank Morriss: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Editing (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French Subtitle Options: English, French Sound Processing: DDS: Dolby Digital Surround Additional Features: Theatrical trailer Scene selections DVD Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1: Cinemascope 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: R DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 2 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 108 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- Side 1: Blue Thunder: FULLSCREEN 0. Scene Selections 1. Start [3:49] 2. Seeing what's to see [1:17] 3. Two-eleven [2:31] 4. Abandoned vehicle? [1:35] 5. Punctuality [2:39] 6. Rape-in-progress [2:13] 7. Public complaints [5:00] 8. Kate [4:40] 9. The top story [5:31] 10. Blue Thunder [5:39] 11. Col. Cochrane [3:47] 12. Following the leader [3:52] 13. "You theatening me?" [2:09] 14. Thor [3:14] 15. How she works [3:02] 16. Test flight [7:19] 17. Checking Cochrane out [2:39] 18. Federal Building [6:08] 19. Breaking Lymangood [2:39] 20. Hit & run [4:00] 21. Message from Richard [1:32] 22. Stealing Blue Thunder [2:50] 23. The drive-in [3:04] 24. Aerial attack [7:49] 25. At Channel 8 [1:19] 26. "Engage and destroy" [2:54] 27. Arco Towers [8:43] 28. Immelman turn [7:01] Side #2 -- Side 2: Blue Thunder: WIDESCREEN 0. Scene Selections 1. Start [3:49] 2. Seeing what's to see [1:17] 3. Two-eleven [2:31] 4. Abandoned vehicle? [1:35] 5. Punctuality [2:39] 6. Rape-in-progress [2:13] 7. Public complaints [5:00] 8. Kate [4:40] 9. The top story [5:31] 10. Blue Thunder [5:39] 11. Col. Cochrane [3:47] 12. Following the leader [3:52] 13. "You threatening me?" [2:09] 14. Thor [3:14] 15. How she works [3:02] 16. Test flight [7:19] 17. Checking Cochrane out [2:39] 18. Federal Building [6:08] 19. Breaking Lymangood [2:39] 20. Hit & run [4:00] 21. Message from Richard [1:32] 22. Stealing Blue Thunder [2:50] 23. The drive-in [3:04] 24. Aerial attack [7:49] 25. At Channel 8 [1:19] 26. "Engage and destroy." [2:54] 27. Arco Towers [8:43] 28. Immelman turn [7:01]