This is one of the most interesting movies to come out of the 80's. It is an important time capsule that all Americans should see.

It is a MOVIE. Forget politics and that nonsense. Cast is great in character, the cinematography is great (remember, made in the 80's). Story and screenplay is well, a story. But enjoyable, lots of action and some great twists.

Growing up in the 80’s in the United States our fear of war with Russia was real. While it wasn’t likely to occur as an invasion of the US like Red Dawn portrayed, it does capture alot of the sentiment of the time

You have to think of the times and the cold war when watching. Great movie but the people that don't have a clue likes rainbows and cotton candy.

Anyone saying how "implausible" the movie is is trying to set the events in modern times. This was considered a real possibility during the cold war. If you can't take into account the era in which a movie was made, you probably shouldn't review them.

Whaaaaat are y'al smoking?! This is at best a satirical comedy and at worst a serious project that failed miserably. From the outset the implausibility is simply too much (yes, I know!), and the giant plot gaps and insane assumptions are just moronic. Abysmally written, poorly acted, and directed by someone abusing HRT and cannabis (one assumes), it manages two stars instead of one because it is laughably bad, has a young good(!) cast, and would make a superb drinking game

Really enjoyed it, taking into account how old it is, it has held up very well. I didn’t even look at my phone which says a lot.

I've watched this movie too many times to count. Is it a masterpiece of acting? No. Its just a fun 80s action movie that alot of us daydreamed about. Look I know its weird, but a ton of people growing up had fantasies about defending the US from foreign invaders. Sure its not realistic, but its just a fun cheesy movie.

Ok a great romp somewhat silly,as if the USA could be caught asleep like this,,, oblivious to a threat of such magnitude and get it's ass kicked is hardly believable, sorry what's that somebody in the background Tora Tora Tora.

Ya know, I grew up with this movie and it always held it's status as a classic. Watching it with fresh eyes, it's a bit silly and drags in places, but it's still a great concept with an awesome cast.

Classic 80’s movie with all star cast, and lots of great action and war time drama.

I think this is a really good movie even though it's messed up. Just too much crying. Background view of mountains and snow is pretty. A couple of GD so that's disappointing. Would recommend if you like war movies and revenge.

Friendship. Tragedy. Survival. Good movie.

Brat pack with M16's , absolutely a great film, solid messaging, great acting and made you very proud to see the kids stand up for their country

Great 80's movie with lots of young and upcoming actors.

Not the worst movie in the world but its pretty bad. When I watched this movie as a kid I used to love it, but that was before I learned about history and politics and propaganda. This movie is Cold War Propaganda garbage. Its only saved by the fact it has some good actors in it (Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey, Young Charlie Sheen etc) who have been in various other great movies. The concept is kinda of ridiculous. The Americans are so useless that they fail to defend anything, but then the Russians are also so useless that these kids can drive past them in a car really slowly and the Russians can't hit them with guns or rocket launchers. The Cubans talk soooooooo slooooowwwly one would think they might not be native Spanish speakers. Either that, or they were told to talk slowly on purpose so that dim witted Americans wouldn't have to read too many subtitles? They make the Russians & Cubans out to be the most evil people ever, at least in 80's movie terms, but Americans have done far worse atrocities in wars like Vietnam, (murdering entire villages of civilians just to kill one Vietcong for example). If you actually know the history of many wars, this movie actually shows the Russians & Cubans to not be that bad at all, if you compare it to things that have been done in Iraq and Afghanistan, or Libya, or Syria, or Gaza. All the Russian troops in this movie are utterly useless against a bunch of teenagers with no military training. Its weird, how such a useless Russian army has done so well against Ukraine and $100 billion US? If anything, this movie is more like a parody that should be on a So Bad its Good video by Jason Brant.

I can see why someone who seen this in their youth would be nostalgic for it. It's got a certain degree of charm to it and lots of action. However, I don't have it and from what I see it's just ok. The cinematography is half decent with some well framed shots, good practical effects, and a memorable setting. However there is lots of farfecthed elements and over the top moments that weigh it down constantly. I don't get how they live up in the mountains for months and they aren't dirty or clothes not ripped ever. Yet they've been wearing the same clothes the entire time. How did they know they would'nt just shoot the girl at the gas station instead of leading them into a perfect trap. The fact they turn into commandos on their own BEFORE they meet the U.S. Paratrooper and the fact 2 of them end up taking on a entire HQ of Soviet soldiers in the end to buy them time to escape which doesn't make sense. Why could'nt they all just sneak out together at night since their all hardened warriors at this point. It's riddled with farfecthed moments like that but its still entertaining because of how over the top and action packed it is. The music is half decent but sometimes its generic and forgettable. Everything else is just ok. This squanders any attempt at underlying political commentary or deep characters for nonstop action and bland characters. Besides Sheen & Swayze, (Who aren't given that much ti work with either really) they all blend in and are super forgettable. The girls are given next to no character either. This also has some forced patriotism elements to it also but it isn't as bad as you would think. It also feels like there isn't really a point to this besides just fighting and putting up a resistance with no clear endgame in sight. This needed more complex and varied characters along the lines of something like Anne Frank's varied characters. Maybe a Russian family who is torn between their homeland and America, younger kids, a family, on top of high school kids. On top of a more refined story. This jumps into the action almost immediate in the first 5 minutes and never goes any deeper than action. It has a overall feel of like a 80's 007 movie almost as well. Unless your super nostalgic for this or are a big fan of Patrick Swayze, I can't really recommend this to anyone. It's a shame because there is potential here for a smarter version of this in a remake.

The best part of the movie is the story and the style. The performance are good and the action is even better. It's a reslly good distopian movie and it can be even considered realistic. The characters are not so memorable and it's hard to explain why the U.S barely did something but it's ok.

a nice past time, with a lot of 80's action and teen stars. Good popcorn fun

Outstanding film. Imagine what you would do if you were in their high school shoes? Also, if anyone thinks this film is political 40 years later - it's not. You're injecting your current political biases onto a good, simple and patriotic action movie. But that spawns the question, which groups or types of people would resist a foreign invasion of the USA? I can tell you with the utmost certainty the overwhelming majority of civilian resistance fighters wouldn't be vegan, pampered, latte sipping idiots - it would be guys/girls just like Jed and company.