Red Dawn
Directed by John MiliusIt is the dawn of World War III. In the western mountains of America, a group of teenagers band together to defend their town, and their country, from invading Soviet forces.
Red Dawn Ratings & Reviews
- NumiSeptember 11, 2025Red Dawn (1984) is a cult favorite that channels Cold War anxieties into a bold, action-packed narrative. Set in a small Colorado town under Soviet invasion, the film follows a group of high school students turned guerrilla fighters. While fans admire its raw patriotism, gritty combat scenes, and the earnest performances of young stars like Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen, critics have long pointed to its alarmist premise, heavy-handed messaging, and uneven pacing. Despite its flaws, the film’s emotional intensity and survivalist spirit have earned it a nostalgic place in the Fictional Military genre. Rating: 4/5
- CubaneAugust 31, 2025Has the benefit of '80s budget charm, with the added bingo board free space of having 32 year olds play high schoolers. Unfortunately, there isn't really any plot to tie together the disparate scenes of guerilla fighters sometimes winning and sometimes losing battles.
- Das_LamaJune 16, 2025This movie was gripping from beginning to end. R.I.P Patrick Swayze. It didn't start off too slow or too fast. Probably the best WW3 movie ever made.
- mickerdooJuly 10, 2025Some of the dialogue feels a little contrived. But an otherwise well executed idea. Not Swayze's best.
- jackmeatAugust 24, 2025My quick rating - 6.5/10. Very timely to get a rewatch of this one in. I remember seeing this one in the drive-in as a kid. Don't snitch on my Mom since I wasn't old enough to see the first PG-13 movie that was released in the USA. Pretty much what is happening right now in Ukraine. I wonder if the kiddos were sitting in class yesterday watching tanks drive into town. The scary thing is that it is really happening now, yet in this movie, a bunch of kids were sitting in class in Colorado when Russian forces started dropping out of the sky. During the invasion, a soon-to-be all-star cast, including the late Patrick Swayze are able to escape into the mountains after stopping to load up on supplies. For the time that this was made, it was a clear political piece with the Cold War still being a very hot and relevant topic. Try to put all of that nonsense aside since this is not some propaganda flick for the USA but merely a patriotic piece of entertainment. After a few months of camping, they head back to town and find out that the Cubans/Soviets have taken control of a portion of the USA and either killed or imprisoned their parents. So back to their hideout with a couple of extras to add to their soon-to-be fighting cause, "Wolverines." In between times of silly action, the flick actually does portray some of the brutal nature of war. But for the most part, it is just an action flick that captured that "what would you do" spirit that many saw and either hated or loved about it. The "Wolverines" start their own little guerrilla war against the invaders with smart and sneaky attacks to agitate them. It works for entertainment and surprisingly still holds up well after all these years. The casting of the adults in this flick is just as good as the younger cast and is quite strong. Especially when William Smith shows up to motivate the troops and hunt down the "ferocious animals". The explanation for the whole invasion is silly, to say the least. "From here they came up from the Mexican border, mostly Cubans," if you get my meaning. Those pesky Cubans in Mexico. As the movie goes on, they do tackle some of the issues that you assume kids would be running into while playing military games, such as death and betrayal. Since the movie is nearly 40 years old, there have been plenty written about all the politics of this flick, so I'll leave that to you to find, but if you are like me, just sit back and watch it for the effective action scenes and that "YAY America" feeling that it really drives down your throat. BTW, they did throw a reboot on this in 2012, in case you would like North Korea invading, which was nowhere near as good.
- Jacob O’NealMarch 21, 2025Unrealistic propaganda has never been so much fun. Red Dawn was originally written by Kevin Reynolds, the man behind 187, Waterworld and Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves and then rewritten and directed by John Milius, maker of Conan The Barbarian and writer for the TV series Rome. The film starred Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey before they hated each other on Dirty Dancing, C Thomas Howell before he turned black in Soul Man, Charlie Sheen before all hookers and drugs, Lea Thompson before she developed a crush on her son in Back To The Future, Powers Booth and Harry Dean Stanton. The film centers on a small Colorado town that is invaded by communists during the invasion of the USA and it is up to a rag tag group of high schoolers armed with piss and vinegar, along with a few weapons to stop tanks and trained military to save freedom for future generations. That last paragraph sounded ridiculous, but this was peak 80’s cinema. We loved our anti-commie propaganda films. Between this, Iron Eagle, Top Gun, Rambo and Rocky IV, this was a genre all its own. Sure, the concept seems cheesy. But this is such a fun sub-genre for its era. Red Dawn is much better acted than you’d expect. Milius directed it well. The screenplay is pure unbelievable cheese. And it doesn’t matter. It’s still just plain awesome. Just don’t poke holes in the plot - like how can kids living in the Forrest to evade capture look so good after six months of starving, not showering and being exposed to the elements? Or how can they walk right into a town taken over by Russians and Cubans, have a few conversations and visit the concentration camp (I mean “re-education camp”) even though their being hunted? Don’t do that. Don’t poke holes in it like I just did. Just enjoy the ride and remember… “WOLVERINES!!!”
