So we all remember that poster, the one of a grizzled Chuck Norris, an Uzi in each hand, custom Uzi holsters, shirt open right down to his belt buckle, super tight jeans, looking like he's about to unleash hell. Well, was this movie really as good as that poster made out?
The title is provocative; it gets your imagination running wild. When I was younger I thought the movie was about an alien invasion. No, this movie is a bit deeper than a mere alien invasion; the story delves into the possibilities of a foreign terrorist invasion and turning people against each other. But let's not get carried away here, this isn't a thinking man's drama, this is a balls-to-the-wall action flick that makes no sense.
The bad guys, in this case Latino guerrillas led by Russian Rostov (Richard Lynch), plan to invade the US and let loose a siege of targeted terror attacks against various people to trigger an internal war. Presumably, their aim is to take control once enough chaos has been enacted. I guess their main goal is simply to take over America and make it a communist country? Anyway, you would think this would be hard enough, but their Russian leader is far more concerned about one man, that man being badass Chuck Norris...who plays badass Chuck Norris. No wait, he plays CIA agent Matt Hunter.
So, when I said this movie makes no sense, I meant it. Right from the start, things don't make much sense. At the start the bad guys murder a boatload of Cuban refugees for no real reason other than to get some drugs stored on board. I'm not entirely sure who or where the drugs are supposed to have come from. We also don't get any information about these bad guys or their Russian leader. All we know is Rostov knows about Hunter and what he is capable of, so he wants to kill him, that's it. They obviously have history, maybe they should have made a prequel. Their evil plan isn't really fully explained either. It simply seems to be, get our small army to America, kill lots of innocent people, and hopefully this will trigger mass conflict which will allow them to take over.
When it comes to the killing, this movie doesn't mess around either, talk about nasty. I don't mean nasty as in lots of blood and gore, I mean nasty as in just senseless cruelty in the violence. Once on US soil, the bad guys waste no time. They try to blow up a mall during the peak Xmas shopping period. They try to blow up a church during a service. They go around blowing up suburban housing in residential areas. They attack a fun fair, try to blow up a school bus full of kids etc...These guys are merciless! You notice I said try, that's because Hunter manages to stop most of it, but the fact that they try is still hard viewing. It is funny how Hunter just conveniently pops up every time to foil these attacks, no matter where these terrorists try something.
The action itself is a mixed bag. There are moments of coolness such as seeing Hunter running around with his twin Uzis, clearly his trademark weapons. Sure, he should have died ten times over by the end of the movie, but we all know that. There are plenty of decent practical effects, including squibs, explosions, large, destructible sets, gun battles etc...The big finale set piece is an impressive sight showcasing tonnes of National Guard and tanks attacking the terrorists (think the finale in the 'Blues Brothers'). Norris himself doesn't do that much martial arts, he relies on the Uzis to do the talking. The main car chase was obviously filmed at a slow speed, bit cringeworthy.
The finale is somewhat comical because Rostov is so obsessed with getting Hunter, that he orders his entire army of terrorists to storm this government building, where he thinks he can get him. The military then surrounds the building and wipes them all out (in a sequence that could have come straight out of 'Commando'). Hunter stalks Rostov through the offices in this government building, gives him a bit of a beating, and then blows him away with a rocket launcher at point-blank range. The movie then ends right there, just like that, straight to credits. I mean, can you get more 80's than that?
This is easily one Chuck Norris's most recognised movies from the 80's. We've established that with the poster. Back in the day, it was somewhat shocking due to the violence, if I remember correctly. It was looked upon as a bit more adult, or nastier, than other similar action flicks from other stars of the genre. Rewatching now, the violence is still quite nasty in a moral sense, not so much visually. But as for everything else, on the whole, this movie is actually pretty poor frankly. The story is just total nonsense, laden with plot conveniences, goofy action, and a main villain who is so evil that he actually killed Billy Drago in the first ten minutes! You can't do that!
5.5/10
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