While Chuck Norris started his career in action movies with 1977’s Good Guys Wear Black and Breaker, Breaker (a few years after playing Bruce Lee’s opponent in Way of the Dragon), one could argue that he only truly hit his stride in the mid-eighties. In fact, Norris’s best run of movies coincided with him signing a long-term deal with The Cannon Group, who produced many of his best-remembered films. Among his fans, one of the movies most often cited as one of his best is 1985’s Invasion U.S.A.
If you haven’t seen it – wow – you’re in for a demented treat. A classic example of Cold War paranoia, in it the Soviet Union invades America via Florida, pulling off brutal acts of terrorism to destabilize the government and strike fear into the hearts of Americans everywhere. Only one problem – a retired CIA agent named Matt Hunter...
If you haven’t seen it – wow – you’re in for a demented treat. A classic example of Cold War paranoia, in it the Soviet Union invades America via Florida, pulling off brutal acts of terrorism to destabilize the government and strike fear into the hearts of Americans everywhere. Only one problem – a retired CIA agent named Matt Hunter...
- 5/27/2024
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
In 1985, Cannon Films brought us a Chuck Norris action movie called Invasion USA, which involved Norris’s character – former CIA agent Matt Hunter – trying to stop an invasion of the United States that’s being carried out (in December) by a team of Soviet and Cuban guerrillas headed up by a villain played by Richard Lynch. It’s a violent, explosive shoot ’em up that makes for good Christmastime viewing alongside classics like Lethal Weapon, First Blood, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and Die Hard. It wasn’t a massive hit (it made $17.5 million on a budget of $12 million) and didn’t go over well with critics – but it has its fans, and apparently even helped overthrow the Communist government of Romania!
Directed by Joseph Zito from a screenplay that Chuck Norris and his brother Aaron crafted with James Bruner, Invasion USA has the following synopsis: Retired CIA agent Matt...
Directed by Joseph Zito from a screenplay that Chuck Norris and his brother Aaron crafted with James Bruner, Invasion USA has the following synopsis: Retired CIA agent Matt...
- 3/18/2024
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
If you were a movie fan in the 1980s, then you have at least a little soft spot for the Cannon Group. Walk through any video store, and you’d be greeted by covers featuring oiled up men, steely ninjas, and so many guns. If you wanted low-quality, instantly satisfying trash, you looked for the Cannon logo.
Although it had been around since the late 1960s, Cannon became Cannon in 1979, when Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus took over, ushering in a golden age of low-budget, deeply satisfying shlock. Under the cousins’ reign, the Cannon Group pumped out movie after movie, hitting its peak in 1984, when it put out 42 features in one year. So dominant was Cannon that they very nearly produced a Spider-Man movie directed by none other than James Cameron. However, that same hubris drove the cousins to overreach, and after the flop of their big-budget play...
Although it had been around since the late 1960s, Cannon became Cannon in 1979, when Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus took over, ushering in a golden age of low-budget, deeply satisfying shlock. Under the cousins’ reign, the Cannon Group pumped out movie after movie, hitting its peak in 1984, when it put out 42 features in one year. So dominant was Cannon that they very nearly produced a Spider-Man movie directed by none other than James Cameron. However, that same hubris drove the cousins to overreach, and after the flop of their big-budget play...
- 3/17/2023
- by Kirsten Howard
- Den of Geek
“The Cannon Film Guide is a treasure trove of info for Golan/Globus fans. Even diehard Cannon scholars will learn from this tome.” – Paul Talbot, author of the Bronson’s Loose! books
The unbelievable story of the legendary 1980s B-movie studio continues in The Cannon Film Guide Volume II, which covers the company’s output from 1985 to 1987, their peak production years under maverick moguls Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. This highly-anticipated sequel to the original Cannon compendium takes an up-close look at sixty Cannon movies, from deep cuts to cult classics, including American Ninja, The Delta Force, Over the Top, Invasion USA, Masters of the Universe, Runaway Train, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, King Solomon’s Mines, Lifeforce, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, and many more. Order the book Here
With hundreds of photos and more than forty interviews with Cannon directors, writers, and stars, this is an indispensable reference book for...
The unbelievable story of the legendary 1980s B-movie studio continues in The Cannon Film Guide Volume II, which covers the company’s output from 1985 to 1987, their peak production years under maverick moguls Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. This highly-anticipated sequel to the original Cannon compendium takes an up-close look at sixty Cannon movies, from deep cuts to cult classics, including American Ninja, The Delta Force, Over the Top, Invasion USA, Masters of the Universe, Runaway Train, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, King Solomon’s Mines, Lifeforce, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, and many more. Order the book Here
With hundreds of photos and more than forty interviews with Cannon directors, writers, and stars, this is an indispensable reference book for...
- 5/6/2022
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
“You fool! You can not stop me! I am the ninja! No one, nothing can stop me!.”
BearManor Media has published The Cannon Film Guide, a Trilogy of Books About the Movies Released By the Legendary 1980s B-Movie Studio, Cannon Films. Order The Cannon Film Guide Here
Volume One Available Now: Over 500 Pages Covering the Company’s First Five Years under the Leadership of B-Movie Icons Golan and Globus
From 1980 until 1994, The Cannon Group was responsible for the production of more than 200 films. Quantity, rather than quality, was the key to Cannon’s game: their output included many of the 1980s’ most beloved (and notorious) b-movies. Along the way they dipped their toes into every imaginable genre of movies, made stars out of Chuck Norris and Michael Dudikoff, kicked off the ninja and breakdancing crazes, and kept Charles Bronson working into the twilight of his career. While it’s rare...
BearManor Media has published The Cannon Film Guide, a Trilogy of Books About the Movies Released By the Legendary 1980s B-Movie Studio, Cannon Films. Order The Cannon Film Guide Here
Volume One Available Now: Over 500 Pages Covering the Company’s First Five Years under the Leadership of B-Movie Icons Golan and Globus
From 1980 until 1994, The Cannon Group was responsible for the production of more than 200 films. Quantity, rather than quality, was the key to Cannon’s game: their output included many of the 1980s’ most beloved (and notorious) b-movies. Along the way they dipped their toes into every imaginable genre of movies, made stars out of Chuck Norris and Michael Dudikoff, kicked off the ninja and breakdancing crazes, and kept Charles Bronson working into the twilight of his career. While it’s rare...
- 6/26/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Chuck Norris is one of those figures who often tests my ability to separate the art from the artist. As much as I loved Chuck’s B-movie action antics of the Eighties and beyond, he has since become an irresponsible voice among the pack of celebrities who feel the need to offer an opinion on sociopolitical topics. I don’t begrudge the man for being religious, but it’s the way a celebrity used their platform, with which they should be judged. I realize that tensions run high, and especially during election years, but at one point Chuck took to his podium, and exclaimed that America as a whole either adapt Norris’ line of thinking, and support his specific candidate of choice, or suffer “1,000 years of Darkness.” Things like this are devoid of any and all value. But boy, do I love some Invasion U.S.A. and Missing in Action.
The...
The...
- 3/30/2016
- by Shawn Savage
- The Liberal Dead
The Delta Force
Written by James Bruner and Menahem Golan
Directed by Menahem Golan
U.S.A., 1986
Based on the real life plane hijacking by Hezbollah terrorists in 1985, just a year before the film’s release, The Delta Force follows a curious path to complete its narrative. Beginning some miles away from the Iranian capital of Iran, the U.S. special forces platoon Delta Force sees its operation to rescue hostages thwarted by poor planning in Washington. Disgusted by the bureaucracy’s incompetent meddling in their affairs, Major Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris) resigns under Colonel Nick Alexander (Lee Marvin). He is very soon encouraged to return to action however, as Lebanese terrorists, led by Abdul Rafai (Robert Forster!) have taken over an American flight heading from Cairo to New York with a stop in Athens along the way. The Delta Force must concoct a way to neutralize the fanatical villains...
Written by James Bruner and Menahem Golan
Directed by Menahem Golan
U.S.A., 1986
Based on the real life plane hijacking by Hezbollah terrorists in 1985, just a year before the film’s release, The Delta Force follows a curious path to complete its narrative. Beginning some miles away from the Iranian capital of Iran, the U.S. special forces platoon Delta Force sees its operation to rescue hostages thwarted by poor planning in Washington. Disgusted by the bureaucracy’s incompetent meddling in their affairs, Major Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris) resigns under Colonel Nick Alexander (Lee Marvin). He is very soon encouraged to return to action however, as Lebanese terrorists, led by Abdul Rafai (Robert Forster!) have taken over an American flight heading from Cairo to New York with a stop in Athens along the way. The Delta Force must concoct a way to neutralize the fanatical villains...
- 4/1/2015
- by Edgar Chaput
- SoundOnSight
Missing in Action
Written by Arthur Silver, Larry Levinson, John Crowther, Lance Hool, James Bruner
Directed by Joseph Zito
U.S.A., 1986
In the aftermath of the Vietnam War, one of the contentious issues plaguing American-Vietnamese relations is the rumour that U.S. soldiers are still be held against their will in prison camps. This is something former Colonel James Braddock (Chuck Norris), who participated in the Vietnam campaign, firmly believes, unequivocally so, despite his inability to demonstrate it to the wider public. For reasons poorly explained, Braddock is brought along on a diplomatic mission to Ho Chi Minh where officials on both sides are to discuss the matter. Braddock is not the diplomatic type however, preferring to engage in a solo mission to discover the truth about his brothers in arms who are, supposedly, Missing in Action.
The funny thing about the movie is the way it begins, namely,...
Written by Arthur Silver, Larry Levinson, John Crowther, Lance Hool, James Bruner
Directed by Joseph Zito
U.S.A., 1986
In the aftermath of the Vietnam War, one of the contentious issues plaguing American-Vietnamese relations is the rumour that U.S. soldiers are still be held against their will in prison camps. This is something former Colonel James Braddock (Chuck Norris), who participated in the Vietnam campaign, firmly believes, unequivocally so, despite his inability to demonstrate it to the wider public. For reasons poorly explained, Braddock is brought along on a diplomatic mission to Ho Chi Minh where officials on both sides are to discuss the matter. Braddock is not the diplomatic type however, preferring to engage in a solo mission to discover the truth about his brothers in arms who are, supposedly, Missing in Action.
The funny thing about the movie is the way it begins, namely,...
- 4/1/2015
- by Edgar Chaput
- SoundOnSight
Stars: Lee Marvin, Chuck Norris, Martin Balsam, Joey Bishop, Robert Forster, Lainie Kazan, George Kennedy, Hanna Schygulla, Susan Strasberg, Bo Svenson, Robert Vaughn, Shelley Winters | Written by Menahem Golan, James Bruner | Directed by Menahem Golan
When you watch a Chuck Norris movie, you just feel that this is a movie built around him and the character he plays so well. The Delta Force is a film like that, but this time he has to share the spotlight with Lee Marvin. Now that the film has been given the Arrow Video Blu-ray treatment we not only get to watch the movie in excellent quality, but also have a peek at just why The Cannon Group were so smart at choosing the films they chose to make.
The Delta Force is based around the real life hijacking of Twa Flight 847 in 1985 where a group of Lebanese terrorists hijacked a plane and took hostages to Beirut.
When you watch a Chuck Norris movie, you just feel that this is a movie built around him and the character he plays so well. The Delta Force is a film like that, but this time he has to share the spotlight with Lee Marvin. Now that the film has been given the Arrow Video Blu-ray treatment we not only get to watch the movie in excellent quality, but also have a peek at just why The Cannon Group were so smart at choosing the films they chose to make.
The Delta Force is based around the real life hijacking of Twa Flight 847 in 1985 where a group of Lebanese terrorists hijacked a plane and took hostages to Beirut.
- 5/5/2014
- by Paul Metcalf
- Nerdly
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