Blue Thunder 4K 1983 Ultra HD 2160p

“Blue Thunder” is a state-of-the-art helicopter equipped with cutting-edge technology. It was designed to reliably protect Los Angeles from terrorists. But pilot Murphy discovers something he really shouldn't have known.

Now the pilot must defend himself, and his only chance of survival is to expose the high-ranking conspirators and their henchmen.

User Review

I’m surprised that this good old movie has received so little attention, yet John Badham’s film is worth watching not only for fans of movies featuring aerial combat, but also for anyone simply interested in 1980s cinema. “Blue Thunder” is a prime example of high-quality American cinema from the late 20th century—a film that’s still worth watching today, at least for me, since it left a lasting impression on me back in my childhood. After rewatching the film recently, I recalled all the forgotten moments and even the TV series of the same name based on it. My impressions were refreshed, and the film delighted me all over again, while thoughts flashed through my mind about a modern sequel that would make a worthy continuation and a powerful blockbuster. For its time, B Bedem’sB film looks more than impressive, if you don’t take into account its competitors in the sci-fi genre. As an adventure action film, B “Thunderbolt”B held its own in 1984 and nearly won an Oscar for editing, which, given the complexity of the shots, is more than good.

The film tells the story of a new military development, Project THOR—a state-of-the-art helicopter capable of conducting surveillance and precision strikes both in open terrain, with superb maneuverability, and in urban environments. The helicopter’s firepower is even capable of destroying an armed convoy or wreaking complete chaos in a small town. The demonstration shown to high-ranking officials is impressive, raising the question of whether to deploy the “Blue Thunder” into the ranks of a major city’s air patrol. The protagonist, pilot Frank Murphy, is interested in a more thorough testing of the helicopter; moreover, he begins to be kept away from the new machine. As a Vietnam War veteran who clearly remembers how the newly assigned pilot, Cochrane, behaved in the field back then, Murphy begins to doubt even more the proper purpose of the helicopter’s use. The film vividly depicts the clash of views and convictions between Murphy and Cochrane, which, in keeping with the requirements of straightforward action movie plots, escalates into a direct confrontation involving the use of weapons.

The first half of the film is devoted to introducing the characters and revealing several political and military secrets related to the protagonist’s colleague and the new aircraft—of course, with the help of “Thunder” himself. The second half of the film, however, is a tense action thriller that, toward the end, features a spectacular aerial chase-duel between the two pilots. The aerial shots in an urban setting—complex for their time—are truly impressive, considering that computer graphics were out of the question. The shots of flights over the streets of Los Angeles and the more urban scenes over the factory grounds, with two helicopters firing at each other, make you, just like back in childhood, want to savor every frame. Today, you can fast-forward through it, which doesn’t detract from the experience at all when rewatching these scenes. And at the controls, skillfully steering their machines away from collisions with buildings and enemy fire, sat Roy Scheider—familiar from Spielberg’s Jaws—and his antagonist, Malcolm McDowell. Left on the ground were Oscar nominee Candy Clark, who, in my opinion, overacted here, and the still-young Daniel Stern, one of the burglars from Home Alone.

Info Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (94.0 Mb/s)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1

Info Audio

#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
#English: FLAC 2.0
#French: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
#French: Dolby Digital 5.1

Info Subtitles

English SDH, Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Mandarin Traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish (Castilian), Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese.