Year:  1983
Rating: 7.0

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I recall that when I saw this film some 35 years ago the technology in it seemed ridiculous and yet frightening. Even though the film is prefaced with a notice saying that all the technology seen in the film exists that seemed unlikely to me - but frightening because if so it was a terrible invasion of our privacy. Well now of course the technology seems a little quaint with governments easily able to listen in on conversations or hack Internet messaging. Still this is a pretty enjoyable thriller with a stellar cast of Roy Scheider, Daniel Stern, Candy Clark, Warren Oates, Joe Santos (The Rockford Files) and Malcolm McDowell. And how many films have helicopter chases through and around the skyscrapers of Los Angeles.


This is directed by John Badham who had a few big hits but who could never be buttonholed into anything that seemed a specific style or genre. There isn't much similar between Saturday Night Fever, Dracula, WarGames, Short Circuit, Stakeout I and II, Point of No Return and Bird on a Wire other than being directed by Badham. It seems that he was more of a contract director with no ambition to be an auteur. After these films he basically has gone into TV for the past 20 years. I don't know if that was from choice or a lack of film offers. And though I wouldn't say any of these films are classics they are all very competently made and quite entertaining.


In this one Murphy (Scheider coming off a series of terrific films - Jaws, Marathon Man, Sorcerer, Last Embrace and All that Jazz) is a helicopter pilot for the police along with his partner (Daniel Stern). He has a few rough edges and like so many cops in the movies he is a bit of a maverick. He gets chosen to be in a new program to test an ultra super helicopter (Blue Thunder) that has machine guns, can go silent, has long range listening capabilities, heat sensors and even high end video that can look down a woman's cleavage from a hundred feet up. Though he is told by an old enemy (McDowell) that it is only to protect the city from terrorists, it seems a little bit of an overkill (again with the militarization of our police forces perhaps not so much any more) and Murphy puts his long range listening devices where they shouldn't be and the chase is on. And it is terrific. 35 years ago the technology and the plot may have seemed unbelievable but not so much today.