Movies-TV

Arnold's action packed charisma is at its peak

It's almost like watching a cartoon, however out of all the Arnold movies, Commando is probably the most entertaining. My favorite scenes include the initial rade on Matrix and his guards, the airplane, Galleria, Hotel fight with cook, and of course the island battles. I also thought Rae Dawn Chong was Arnold's best female co-star.I like this movie a lot because Arnold's character is supposed to be a person rather than a robot, but he still has the raw power of the terminator. Scene after scene nothing can stop John Matrix and his relentless pursuit of finding his daughter...I know there's tons of violence but it's a great movie to watch if you're trying to get psyched up and stay focused on a goal.

Great action flick!!!

Commando is essential for all Arnold Schwarzenegger movie buffs! Arnold stars as Matrix, a retired member of a special ops commando unit. Freddy Mercury took a sabbatical from Queen to star as Bennett, a villain who kidnaps Matrix's daughter Jenny(played by Alyssa Milano).

In addition to superb action sequences, there are so many funny 1-liners! For example, after Arnold throws a steam pipe through Bennett, he says "Let off some steam, Bennett." Also, right before dropping Sully, another bad guy, off a cliff, the following banter occurred:

Matrix: "Remember, Sully, when I promised to kill you last?"
Sully: "That's right, Matrix. You did!"
Matrix: "I lied."

I highly recommend Commando! It's a barrel of fun!

"Any carry-on luggage?"Just him."

Commando was released the year after I was born, but I've never seen it up until now. But I've heard absolutely loads about it. There are some people out there, who visit Bennett forums, and can quote every line in the film constantly. Every day in fact. It's getting to the point where I can finish the quotes. And I don't want to be that sad. But I still hadn't seen the movie. Until he got the blu ray.

There's not much of a storyline to Commando. It's your typical Arnie fare, with plenty of muscle, plenty of brilliant one liners (especially from Bennett), lots of deaths, and a very young Alyssa Milano. Does it get any better than this? (Yes, add a tall as he is wide Danny DeVito and I'm as happy as a pig in manure.)

Commando starts with a bang, some nice happy father/daughter scenes between Arnie & Alyssa, and there's plenty of action after that. And I mean plenty of action. Bennett is played by camp Freddie Mercury lookalike Vernon Wells, and I'm wondering how on earth any of the crew managed not to laugh during any of his scenes. It freaked me out a couple of times, he's so over the top in some scenes and some of his lines are unintentionally hilarious and have developed a small cult following online. (There are actually websites devoted to this guy.)

I started laughing as soon as Alyssa appeared on screen. She looks exactly the same as she does these days, hair's the same etc, but just a bit older, and more polished. And slightly taller, but she's not that tall to begin with (5foot 2, and she's still taller than me.) She's such a little cutie in the movie even if she is wearing DUNGAREES and even she manages to pull it off.


I was thoroughly impressed with Commando, and it looked amazing in high definition. Arnie can do no wrong in my opinion (yes, even in Twins, BRILLIANT movie) and maybe now I'm in the mood to re-watch all his films. Purely for the movies of course, not for the muscle at all.

Schwarzenegger + 1985 = action sludge

Synopsis:
John Matrix (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is an ex-commando who lives with his daughter (Alyssa Milano) up in the mountains. His life is Idyllic until a band of thugs come after him and kidnap his daughter. To get her back, he must assassinate the leader of a South American country. It becomes a race against time as Matrix races to save her before the thugs realize that he's not exactly doing as told.

About the Movie:
You know how people talk about movies that are so bad they're good? Well, this is one of them. It's sort of like watching a train wreck in progress. It's horrible, but you can't stop watching it till it ends.

If you're looking for a clever, intelligent and witty film, this is not it. In fact, it has none of these qualities at all. What it does have to make up for it, is violence, one line groaners, violence, super-unrealistic action segments and violence (did I mention the violence?).

This film is Arnold Schwarzenegger typecast to the max, playing John Matrix an ex-commando (with the subtlety of a tank) out to save his daughter. During the course of the film, he shoots a man in the forehead, breaks another's neck, beats up a bunch of mallcops, drops a third man off a cliff, impales another with a piece of wood, destroys a shop filled with illegal firearms, kills about 50 soldiers with such implements as rotary saw blades, and throws a steel pipe through the main villain's gut.

All in a day's work for a 1980's action hero.

This move is extremely unimaginative and cliche'd. It's clearly intended as not so serious, but much of the humor in it is completely unfunny, right down to the stereotypical one-liners. "He's DEAD tired." Yikes. Who comes up with this stuff?

Rae Chong's as the lead female character (and Matrix's slightly unwilling sidekick) doesn't help much either as she whined and stumbled her way through much of the film, making you wonder why Matrix didn't chuck her out the door the first chance he got.

And as far as villains, music star Vernan Well's, pudgy and laughingly unimposing Bennett was a yawner as a villain. He didn't even look like he could take a punch from Matrix, much less beat him in a fist fight.

The only character I rooted for in this movie was Matrix's daughter. She shows the only bit of intelligence in the whole film and manages to escape on her own. Too bad her daddy didn't leave it to her. A lot less people would have died.

This is a typical 80's action movie. High on gratuitous violence and gore and low on plot, intellect and subtext. But then again, you don't go to this type of movie for any of those.

The only thing that this movie really has going for it is Arnold as the lead character. Switch in any other actor with the possible exception of Sylvester Stallone and you would have a movie that would have been completely forgotten by today's audience. With Schwarzenegger, you have a bad, yet more memorable film. That said, there are a good number of Schwarzenegger films that are just as violent yet are a far better watch (Predator, True Lies, Total Recall).

That all said, there's something about this film that makes you come back to it again and again. If anything, it's a great movie to make fun of with a bunch of friends.

About the DVD:
This DVD comes in a hard snap case in widescreen with Dolby Digital sound. The picture quality of the DVD is about average and the sound is about the same. The much touted bonus features include interactive menus, subtitles, and theatrical trailer... all things 99.9% of DVDs have on them as standard features. It's translated into French and has English and Spanish subtitles. For some reason, the movie's theme music with those Jamaican steel drums, sounds cooler in the French dub. Go figure.

Overall, a terrible movie that's strangely compelling, on a budget DVD release.

Arnold at his best

This is one best action movies you'll ever see. It is packed with stupid one-liners and Rambo type action sequences. You can't take this movie serious for a second. The story is so stupid, but still so incredibly cool. I absolutely love it. It's hard to imagine that this is the same director that made the shitfest Pteradactyl. But on the other hand, I can understand it, because this is simply just accidental genius.This movie is completely ridiculous from the very beginning. I dare say this is my favorite Arnold movie out of the so-bad-its-good movies he made. I also think this is the movie where he looks the most beef. This is Arnold in his younger years, before he made it really big in Hollywood. He looks really pumped up. This is from the years after he stopped his bodybuilding career. And it really shows in Commando. In the actions scenes he fights without a shirt, makes me really question my sexuality. The acting is absolutely horrible and the bad lines don't make it any better. This is the 80's at its best.This is a great action movie. Grab some beers and snacks and watch this with your friends.

Good action BUT......

Commando is just another lousy Rambo-wannabe. Oooooohh Arnie shoots people to pieces and cut arms off.Surely boring movie. For a start the action is OK. But after ten minutes i feel sick. Not that i'm scared of blood or something. I can watch ''Braindead'' or ''Bad Taste'' without throwing up but this is so over the edge as it ever can be. The end of this movie....MISERY! i just can't stand it! The only thing that happens is that Arnie in a Rambo-looking way shoots people. After five minutes of shooting and kiling it gets soooo boring! It sucks so hard! When i'm almost asleep Arnie cuts an arm off. Now THATS cool. But i'm afraid that's the only cool about this endless carnage. Don't get me wrong i like when people kills, and especially when the hero is a Rambo-looking guy, but this is just too much. Finally to throw up on this movie extra much, its sooooo ridicilous to see Arnie lift up a pay-phone in the air. I mean...... OOOHHH i can't complain this much. It's against my rules.

Yep its good and don't let the title fool you

Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in this action classic as Colonel John Matrix. As the ex-head of a special forces team, he is forced back into action in order to find his kidnapped daughter - and do his enemy's work!

Dumb, but oh so good.

As you'll read in so many other reviews here, this movie is fantastic. Not for the plot (quite thin), not for the realism (Arnie vs Army) but for the sheer fun of it all. If you're in the least bit cynical you may not like this movie unless you can watch it through the eyes of a 14 yr old boy. The action is non-stop and the one-liners hilarious, one of Arnies best stupid films. Leave your brain at the door and enjoy it again and again and again.For action fans, for Arnie fans, for one-liner fans, you won't be disappointed.

The ultimate B-movie.

The story is simple: Former Army unit leader John Matrix (Arnold Schwarzenegger) searches for his daughter, who has been kidnapped, while killing everybody in the process. Here you get what Arnold does best: kicking total arse. This is one of those movies that is so bad and so cheesy that you can't help but watch it. This is a great popcorn flick and it is much better than anything Vin Diesel is doing. Highly recommended for anybody who calls themselves an Action fan or B-Movie fan.

One of my all-time favorite movies

This is by far one of the greatest movies of the century. I can't believe what an awesome movie it is. It has no morals, no lessons to teach, no political statements, no coherence, and no sense whatsoever. When Schwarzeneggar's beloved daughter is kidnapped by a psychotic dictator, he doesn't try to reason with the bad guys or take precautions like most action heroes would. He just goes bonkers and starts killing everyone in sight. The movie is packed with fantastic scenes such as Arnie crashing a car at about 80 mph, without a seatbelt, and being perfectly fine, Arnie tearing a phone booth out of a wall, Arnie punching a guy through a wall, etc. It's gloriously entertaining.Also, despite his reputation for bad acting, he delivers all his lines with perfect comic timing ("Let off some steam, Bennett"). Bennett is also a great character, but no match for Arnold. You'd have to be completely devoid of personality to not find this at least slightly entertaining.10/10 stars. Seriously.

Fun Fun Fun Fun Fun!

Simple: Schwarzenegger (wrote it right?) goes on a violent rage to rescue his daughter. Blood, violence, and lots of fun!. The Governator is nice here. It doesn't take much to say while you're shooting at people like he does. Rae Dawn Chong ("UNiversal Soldier II") gets sort of kidnapped by him, and ends up helping him. Alyssa Milano ("Charmed") plays Arnie's 9-y-old daughter. Of course, she didn't look as now (unfortunately). My favourite character here is Bennett, played by Vernon Wells, who is ruthless and a very nice psycho. Fame (if any) didn't help him:years later, this actor ended up playing a baddie in one of the many Power Rangers series. Recommended if you like action films. Don't expect insightful dialogues or whatever, after all, it's Schwarzenneger!7/10

The ultimate, awesomely bad movie!

Commando is with out a doubt in my mind the most awesomely bad movie ever made. a movie that is so bad its extremely enjoyable! this movie is great to watch for laughs, and thrills. the great one liners, the obvious plot holes, things that make no sense. its more fun IMO to pick this movie apart then to try and watch it seriously. this is the perfect movie to just let your mind escape.great 80s action movieyou will only be disappointed if you try to take this movie to seriouslyjust let your mind escape and enjoy

2nd best action movie ever

After The Warriors (1979), this is the best action movie I've ever seen (David Patrick Kelly from The Warriors has in fact a role in it). I don't know what to say, it just has it all. It starts off with a close-up of Arnold's biceps as he is carrying a log, and what else can you expect after a start like that, than non-stop fun and action? 10 out of 10!

One of the Best

Quite possibly one of the best movies ever made. Awesome action, great dialogue, and an excellent cast make this one for the ages. This IS Arnold. This movie is great even when shown on network television and they have to edit certain parts. Even if you're one of those people that likes to point out how incredibly fake and impossible the plot is, you will marvel at how good this guy really is. Arnold is the ultimate killing machine. He knows no boundaries when it comes to fighting evil men. I'm not sure of the exact death toll in the movie but it is quite high. Arnold makes this movie very funny as well with his witty humor and quick one-liners. Plus he's huge so that's always cool. This movie represents everything that is good about Arnold action films.

Big, dumb fun

This movie was made in 1985, right after Terminator. I guess studios only had one way to sell Arnie in those days, as a bad-joke making killing machine. Although in this he gets to play a father to sweet, innocent Alyssa Milano (?). The movie is about John Matrix (you heard me), a retired (at 37) Commando leader who's team are all killed despite having new identities. Two soldiers (as if they are any real protection) are sent to keep an eye on Matrix and his daughter. But in this film you know they are only there to be killed right away. And I mean right away. If trained Commandos are killed easily what kind of safety are two junior Privates gonna make?The real bad guys (don't read this sentence if you don't want to know the 'twist') are the hammy and stereotyped Latin Dictator Arius and the outrageously campy Bennett, who was thrown out of Matrix's unit and is out for revenge.Arius and Bennett want Matrix to kill the President of the fictional Latin American country of Valverde. Arnie kills 88 people in this film, some of them with bad but hilarious kiss-off lines. This film is supposed to be dumb. Some of the macho dialogue is quite appalling, but it's funny. Check out the fight scene between Matrix and Cooke. A number of revealing mistakes are noticeable in this movie. For example we can see a cable on Sully's leg when he is being hanged over the cliff. And when Matrix and Cindy crash into a telephone pole (at 200 mph) the heads of the dummy's come off. Needless to say that this film requires a constant suspension of disbelief. Like the scene where Matrix jumps from a 747, when it's in the air, and survives unharmed. Or the scene where he hides in a rickety old shed and 1000 soldiers fire 1, 000, 000 bullets into it. Arnie walks out unharmed.Commando is pure entertainment. And entertain it surely does. But one last thing, when you consider the way Bennett dresses and ESPECIALLY the way he behaves…it makes you wonder exactly WHY he was thrown out of Matrix's unit.

Cook: "F**k you a**hole" - Matrix: "F**k you a**hole"

For some reason this is one of my favorite movie, and it never seems to get old with time. It's probably because it's camp, and everyone involved in making it was smirking while they put their own brand of camp into this movie. I had the chance to see the 2007 director's cut version and I was surprised how quickly the movie engaged me from the first few minutes of watching. Some movie just has that kind of speed, and power to pull you into its story. If things were bit campy, one thing this movie is not is a bore. It takes you on a ride from one good scene to another with outrageous, and more outrageous action. Joel Silver always has good picks for main actor and the supporting casts. Rae Dawn Chong looked great, and was perfect side kick as Cindy. Alyssa Milano was also a perfect match as bright eyed, take charge type daughter of Arnold. Arnold of course was more Terminator in this movie than in Terminator, terminating 81 bad guys and taking no prisoners (you should see how some of the guys gets killed by Arnold in this movie). This is one movie I think that will be enjoyed by its fans for a long time coming.

Great film when you're ten. Sh*t film when you're twenty three

If you liked this film as a kid, whatever you do, don't watch it now... Unless you are gay. My friend Adam is, and he counts it alongside Top Gun as being one of the finest pieces of homoerotic cinema ever. Seriously.

The most memorable Action Comedy Ever made!

WOW! no words can describe this action-packed Humor feast full of everything. it includes Comedy, a plot, fine acting, explosions, flying, chases, brainless violence, Blood and even one-liners that you won't never forget, it's a must see for fans of Action, plus " Let off some Steam". Recommendations: Con Air, The Running Man, Total Recall, Army of Darkness, Rush Hour, and Big Trouble in little China.

The Ultimate Guy Movie

Arnie is buffed and ready to retrieve his kidnapped daughter (a young Alyssa Milano) from the perils of unnamed South American kidnappers. With his classic deadpan one-liners and the raw carnage of the desert island at the end, this is one to bring the boys around for and laugh your heads off. I especially liked the rocket launcher.

Fun-filled Schwarzenegger fest!

Arnold Schwarzenegger made entertaining movies! Period! I always thought so. So what if wasn't the greatest thespian! Actually, there are a lot of films with so-called great actors that suck eggs! There are very few truly great films, and probably the fewest were made in the 80s. But the 80s was the Entertainment Decade, as I like to call it. There were a lot of quickly made, plot less movies that just plain entertained. And COMMANDO is one of them! COMMANDO is classic Arnold Schwarzenegger, with all the non-stop action, fast pace, and typical Arnold puns and of course the obligatory "I'll be back!" line. For a mid-80s movie, it still holds up well as a great action film. When you get action, and that's what you mostly get, it is truly well-staged and entertaining. The early action scene at the mall where Arnie takes out all those security bozos still makes me laugh, smile, and root to this day! The additional joy of this movie is that it's a laugh riot! And that's a good thing. It doesn't take itself seriously: it just moves, moves, moves without ever taking a breath! Even when it appears to stall to try to have meaningful dialogue, it really doesn't. Every line of dialogue actually moves the plot along: nothing wasted. An adrenaline rush of a movie!COMMANDO tells the story of John Matrix (Arnie himself), a retired special operative for some secret gov't unit whose daughter is kidnapped by a deposed South American dictator Arius (the reliable acting stalwart Dan Hedaya sporting an, errr, Hispanic accent?). Arius' number one goon is Bennett (British actor Vernon Wells), a former marine buddy of Matrix who has turned to the other side. Frankly, the fact that Bennett is supposed to be Matrix military and physical equal is downright laughable, but thankfully, the climactic mano-a-mano fight doesn't take too long. Matrix defies orders and instead opts to save his daughter instead of taking the chance that they will not kill her if he kills the dictator. He has 11 hours to save his daughter before they will kill her. Tick tock...Tick tock.Along the way, Matrix gets help from airline stewardess (just go with it!) Cindy (well played by Rae Dawn Chong in the typical female co-star role, but she makes the most of it). Chong is really fresh and funny and seems to understand that it's just a movie! It's a lot of fun watching Arnie take down all these goons, thugs, and 'soldiers' in order to save his daughter. Of course, being an 80s fluff movie, it ends with some driving, forgettable rock tune that has nothing to do with the score you've heard during the entire film (which is actually pretty memorable)! But that's what makes it the 80s! COMMANDO is classic Schwarzenegger: fun for all junkies of lean, mean, fun-filled action!