Red Dawn (1984)

It is the dawn of World War III. In mid-western America, a group of teenagers band together to defend their town, and their country, from invading Soviet forces.

Director:

John Milius

Writers:

Kevin Reynolds (story), John Milius (screenplay)

Stars:

Patrick Swayze, C. Thomas Howell, Lea Thompson

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Swayze	...	Jed
C. Thomas Howell	...	Robert
Lea Thompson	...	Erica
Charlie Sheen	...	Matt
Darren Dalton	...	Daryl
Jennifer Grey	...	Toni
Brad Savage	...	Danny
Doug Toby	...	Aardvark
Ben Johnson	...	Mr. Mason
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Mr. Eckert
Ron O'Neal	...	Bella
William Smith	...	Strelnikov
Vladek Sheybal	...	Bratchenko
Powers Boothe	...	Andy
Frank McRae	...	Mr. Teasdale

Storyline

From out of the sky, Soviet, Nicaraguan, and Cuban troops begin landing on the football field of a Colorado high school. In a few seconds, the paratroopers have attacked the school and sent a group of teenagers fleeing into the mountains. Armed only with hunting rifles, pistols, and bows and arrows, the teens struggle to survive the bitter winter and the Soviet K.G.B. patrols hunting for them. Eventually, trouble arises when they kill a group of Soviet soldiers on patrol in the highlands. Soon they will wage their own guerrilla warfare against the invading Soviet troops under the banner of "Wolverines!"

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Plot Keywords:

russkies | teenage girl | propaganda | thin girl | invasion | 

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Taglines:

A full scale military invasion by foreign troops begins. Total surprise. Almost total success . . . .

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Genres:

Action | Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

Leif Garrett was considered for a major role.

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Goofs

The Colonel empties his 45 while standing on top of the tank. It continues to fire after the slide has locked back.

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Quotes

Col. Andy Tanner: [his dying words, after being killed while dropping a smoke bomb into a Russian tank] Come on, buddies! Come and get 'em! Shoot straight for once, you Army pukes.
[gets blown up by an American tank]

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Crazy Credits

None of the actors are in the opening credits

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Connections

Referenced in The 5th Wave (2016)

User Reviews

Sums up US feelings

Man o man. This movie is great. As a history student its awesome to look back on these types of things and see what the buzz was around the time of the movie's release. The plot is insane, acting over-the-top, but the historical commentary is amazing. People actually believed that such a thing as this was possible in the mid-80s, pre-Gorbachev. This is not "low-level propaganda," its the most obvious pro-American movie I have EVER seen.

On the movie alone, the "film" shouldn't even rate. But as a Cold-War barometer, every interested person should see this to peer into the height of US-Soviet tensions.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian Spanish

Release Date:

10 August 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ten Soldiers

Filming Locations:

Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$17,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,230,381, 12 August 1984

Gross USA:

$38,376,497

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$38,376,497

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Valkyrie Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo (4 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1