release year: 1983

genre: action/drama

viewing setting: home DVD, 7/14/01

what I expected: couldn't remember

what I got: pretty good thriller

synopsis: A nearly-burned-out police pilot gets the chance of a lifetime: test-flying a super-helicopter. Unfortunately, there are bad guys and a conspiracy tied in with it all.

impressions: Good human and copter elements. I really like super-vehicles, whether helicopters (like this) or cars (Knight Rider) or whatever. It was cool that the helicopter wasn't 100% invincible - this made the movie more realistic, rather than a farce. The plot moved along fairly fast, and was tight and filled with human nastiness. I wanted to see Frank use the Blue Thunder to annihilate all the bad guys, but you can't always get what you want.

acting: Roy Scheider was great as the weary but still sharp protagonist. Malcolm McDowell made a slimy bad guy. The girl who played Frank's girlfriend (?) was quirky enough to make an impression on me.

final word: This is, without a doubt, the best super-helicopter movie ever made.

rating: C+