Nighthawks

This week, I watched:

Nighthawks (1981).

Not to be confused with Nighthawks (1978) which is a movie about a gay man living a double life, or the famous painting by Edward Hopper, this action thriller stars Sylvester Stallone, Billy Dee Williams and Rutger Hauer.

We meet Deke DaSilva (Stallone) and Matthew Fox (Williams), two highly effective NYPD sergeants who work on the decoy squad. In other words, they pretend to be vulnerable targets to tempt muggers and then drop the hammer on said muggers. They're tough badasses who always get the job done.

Then we have Wulfgar (Hauer), a freelance terrorist whose brutal savagery has him on the outs with the major terror groups. He goes to New York to prove himself so that the terrorists will beg for his services. DaSilva and Fox are assigned to the new ATAC squad and given anti-terrorist training so inevitably the two sides are going to clash violently.

Nighthawks is an interesting movie. It balances the action with the thriller elements quite well, with neither dominating the film. It's not too long and doesn't overstay its welcome. The actors are all good, the scenery and the cinematography are excellent, so I don't have anything to complain about at all, but there is something missing, and I don't know what that is.

Stallone was still riding high on Rocky when he made Nighthawks, and according to himself he was an insufferable know it all. He did make one cut of the movie and the studio likewise did one as well, so some stuff was lost on the cutting room floor. I really can't say what it is that I'm missing, but whatever it is, it's what's holding this movie from being great.

The contrast between Stallone and Hauer is great. Stallone's dark intense gaze is perfectly matched by Hauer's ice blue eyes. DaSilva is driven but has his limits, while Wulfgar has no limits but is equally motivated. Williams is a great partner to Stallone, staying with him beat for beat without being overshadowed.

This is the first (but far from last) movie where Stallone plays a cop and he did all his own stunts, including climbing down from a hovering helicopter and being winched up to a cable car. All this despite being horribly afraid of heights.

So, do I recommend this movie? Yes I do. Nighthawks is good, no doubt about it. Good but not great. Solid but missing an edge, something that makes you want to watch it again and again. That said, I do urge you to watch it. For being a Stallone action movie, Nighthawks is almost subdued, but in a good way. It's nothing like the action movie's he'd go on to make. It has a very realistic feel, with the grimy, dark New York streets and the high quality acting.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great week!