Invasion U.S.A. - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Limited Edition)

Since I reviewed Invasion U.S.A. back in 2016, I haven’t changed my opinion about the film and will let that review stand. But before I get to pasting in my thoughts about Joseph Zito’s action opus, I’m just going to drop in some of my favorite quotes from this amazing fully-loaded, high-octane Cannon Group action extravaganza. 

“If you come back in, I’ll hit you with so many rights you’re going to beg for a left.”

“Now we can destroy the Americans, crush their struggling leadership, and finish Hunter as well. Go! Bring them all in. I want everyone there. GO!”

“One night you'll close your eyes, and when they open I'll be there. It'll be time to die.”

“Didn’t work huh? Now it will”

“18 hours from now, America will be a different place.”

“See you in hell.”
“Send me a postcard.”

“You’re beginning to irritate me.”

Alrighty that’s enough of that - here’s my 2016 review that still stands as my opinion today: 

Some movies are just an embodiment of a certain type of filmmaking or a particular studio for that matter. These are the films that latched onto the cultural zeitgeist of their particular era and now are branded to the conditions of their creation. When I look back at the 1980s as the decade of my upbringing and the movies I grew up watching, I think of great comedies, gruesome slasher flicks, and the macho-man action movies. While the macho-man action movie had plenty of entries - some of them quite good - one studio churned them out like butter, The Cannon Group headed by infamous Israeli producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus.

Of the seemingly infinite number of action movies that The Cannon Group produced during that decade, it is the Joseph Zito-directed Chuck Norris-starring 'Invasion U.S.A.' that immediately comes to my mind. The film smartly tapped into the brewing fears of the arms race and of a communist invasion of the United States and exploited those worries to perfection. This allowed Chuck Norris, his beard, two uzis, and a lethal high kick to show the world what American might actually looks like, and why an invasion would be futile to attempt. 

All Matt Hunter (Chuck Norris) wants to do is lead a quiet life helping his friend catch gators in Florida, zip around the swamps on his airboat and feed his pet armadillo. This is the peaceful existence he's longed for after years of working as a covert C.I.A. hitman taking out the scum of the Earth, scum like Mikhail Rostov (Richard Lynch). As much as he would have liked to put a bullet between Rostov's eyes, Hunter was under orders to bring the international terrorist in alive. After escaping incarceration, Rostov is on the loose and working with men like Nikko (Alexander Zale) to covertly invade the United States and attack Americans where it hurts the most, in our homes, at our shopping malls, and at our carnivals in order to terrorize us into submission.

While Rostov and Nikko's plan is working, leaving a befuddled Detective Cassidy (Eddie Jones) and his band of inept police officers trying to put the pieces together, McGuire (Melissa Prophet), a hotshot reporter starts to uncover the mystery putting her own life at risk. The only person capable of stopping Rostov and saving the American way of life is Hunter. When Rostov kills his friend and blows up his house leaving him for dead, Hunter now knows there is no one else to stop the madman and his army of insurgents from taking over the country. After combing his luscious head of hair, trimming his beard, slipping into his best pair of dungarees, denim shirt, and strapping on a pair of fully-loaded uzis, Hunter is now ready to match Rostov bullet for bullet, grenade for grenade, blood for blood - and he won't stop until Rostov and his army are dead.

Before I get started breaking down why I love this movie so much, I first feel the need to explain the five-star rating I gave this film. Just in case you're unaware, the Cannon Group produced a vast amount of schlock cinema in an incredibly short period of time. The quality of these films ranged from terrible to genuinely pretty bad to halfway decent - but most if not all of these movies are incredibly entertaining. One man was responsible for making some of the best Cannon films even more enjoyable - Chuck Norris. From the 'Missing in Action' movies to the 'Delta Force' flicks to one of my all-time favorites 'Hellbound,' Chuck Norris was a force to be reckoned with. 1985's 'Invasion U.S.A.' in my opinion is hands down the best of Chuck's work. So to that end, I am rating this movie against all other Chuck Norris movies, and in particular, all other films released by the Cannon Group during the reign of Golan/Globus thus its five-star rating. 

With tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union at their peak during the 1980s, 'Invasion U.S.A.' along with movies like 'Red Dawn' capitalized on the fears some people had that between the rising communist nations in Central America, Cuba, and ultimately Russia, an invasion of America was imminent. Obviously, this never came to pass and as a result movies like 'Invasion U.S.A.' have become amusing little time capsules filled with our fears and our beliefs that our military might is unmatched.

Chuck Norris' Matt Hunter is the embodiment of that might. While we had Schwarzenegger waging a one-man war in 'Commando' and Stallone's Balboa kicking Russian butt in 'Rocky IV,' Chuck Norris was the man who stayed behind to defend the homeland, so to speak, and it sets him apart from his contemporaries in a fun cheese-filled way for this particular adventure.

The one-man army myth isn't new - it has existed in films since WWII - but 'Invasion U.S.A.' broke the mold. All you need to do is look at the film's infamous cover art to see what I mean. Standing in front of an invasion force that somehow has simultaneously landed in Washington D.C. and New York City is a steely-eyed Chuck Norris with guns akimbo firing away. He's not even looking where he's shooting, and yet it is a beautifully macho representation of 1980s action cinema - and I love everything about it.

The movie itself really isn't all that good, to be honest, it's canned cheese at its finest, but it is so incredibly entertaining that it has grown into becoming one of my favorite 1980s action movies. From Richard Lynch's menacing Rostov to Melissa Prophet's smart-yet-sexy reporter to Eddie Jones' inept Detective Cassidy, this movie is filled with story archetypes and blatant stereotypes to the point that you're either cheering the movie on or laughing directly at the carnage on screen. If you're not hooting and hollering at Billy Drago's Mickey and his character's sudden and incredibly painful violent end, I fear there is no helping you as the rest of the movie just compounds on that one scene. 

Prior to the theatrical release, the film was apparently heavily re-edited by Menahem Golan himself and as a result, virtually all character moments and story nuance were thrown out the window favoring a barrage of violence, explosions, and hammy macho line deliveries. If that's all you're after in your entertainment, this flick delivers the goods. I can't really say for sure if that deleted material would have helped or hurt the film - most of it is long lost and will likely never be found - but in its final form, 'Invasion U.S.A.' proves to be a hell of a lot of fun and has aged about as well as a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20. It's a little stiff and can taste pretty bad but it's still good stuff and great for a crowd of people. As I said before, 'Invasion U.S.A.' is not a great movie in the strictest of terms, but it is a great Cannon film and stands as my favorite of their entire library. Now if we could just get 'The Apple' and the 'American Ninja' movies on Blu-ray, life would be about as good as it can get. 

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray 

The Cannon Group classic Invasion U.S.A. crashes onto the shores of 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray with a new two-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray release from Vinegar Syndrome. The 4K is pressed on a BD-66 disc with a Region A BD-50 gassed up for 1080p and the bonus features. Both discs are housed in a standard two-disc case with alternate artwork revealing the classic original poster art. If you’re a subscriber or order from Vinegar Syndrome, you can score an exclusive slipcover with new original artwork. This new art is very slick and stylish but might be a little overly dramatic considering the film. Also included is a 25-page booklet with photos from the film and a new essay from Austin Trunick. 

[NOTE] Vinegar Syndrome is in the middle of their Partner Label Sale through the month of June. When that sale is over, this Limited Edition will be available again. Until then, the standard edition is currently up for pre-order on Amazon.

A new scan of the original negative, a little restoration spit and polish, with a fresh coat of HDR10, and Invasion U.S.A. is ready to shine for your 4K UHD collection! The transfer maintains the film’s gritty, grimy, south Florida aesthetic while letting crystal clear details come through. Facial features, grisly Tom Savini makeup, 1980s clothing, and Chuck’s beard all look immaculate. Film grain is retained with a healthy cinematic appearance without any signs of smoothing or excessive sharpening. There are still some occasional soft shots and whenever there are any optical effects or subtitles the overall clarity can soften and grain can thicken, but that’s par for the course for a film of this vintage. 

Vinegar Syndrome’s color timing for this release edges back the heavier yellows of the old Shout Factory disc ever so slightly pushing blues and reds a little more. Skin tones are now a little more healthy pink and natural and a little less orange and jaundiced. Chuck’s Canadian Tuxedo is a slightly lighter shade of blue but it’s still a majestic slab of stretchy denim. Black levels are nicely enhanced, there’s better shadow nuances for those darker seedier locations, and the final war sequence looks terrific. Image depth is also much more appreciable now. I was always very happy with that 2016 Blu-ray but this 4K disc is a great reason to upgrade.

Once again Invasion U.S.A. comes armed with a DTS-HD MA 5.1 and 2.0 audio tracks to choose from. Flipping discs; my feel was these are very likely the same tracks from 2016, which isn’t a bad thing at all. The 5.2 mix is still a beast of a track giving those big action sequences plenty of range. From exploding houses to rocket launchers to an entire army assault, there are some really big fun setpieces that absolutely rock your sound system. Plenty of Front/Center and surround channel activity for a fully immersive experience with lots of rumble in the subs make you feel every explosion. I flipped on my receiver’s DTS Neural:X function and was very happy with the results giving a little more space and impact to the big action setpieces while allowing more LFE impact. The 2.0 track is still a solid way to experience the film, but the 5.1 has a little more heft where it counts most.

Adding more ammo to this two-fisted uzi of a physical media release, Vinegar Syndrome stacks in an amazing assortment of new and archival extra features. At the top of the pack are two new audio commentaries with the excellent archival commentary featuring Joseph Zito and Red Shirt Pictures Michael Felsher. On the new commentaries, we see Zito fly solo for an informative and Cannon Film Guide author Austin Trunick getting his own track. Both of these new tracks are interesting and informative, but they both suffer from being solo ventures. The energy of the Zito Felsher commentary is unmatched. Adding a rippling denin roundhouse kick to the package is a very cool series of new cans and crew interviews with Zito, Melissa Prophet, composer Jay Chattaya, and writer James Bruner among others. Cap off the assault are the two archival extra featurettes from the 2016 Blu-ray for a genuine complete package of extras. 

4K UHD Disc

• NEW Audio Commentary featuring Joseph Zito
• NEW Audio Commentary featuring Austin Trunick
• Audio Commentary featuring Joseph Zito and Michael Felsher

Blu-ray Disc

• NEW Audio Commentary featuring Joseph Zito
• NEW Audio Commentary featuring Austin Trunick
• Audio Commentary featuring Joseph Zito and Michael Felsher
• NEW Operation Invasion USA - Interview with Joseph Zito (HD 31:21)
• NEW Writing the Real Thing - Interview with James Bruner (HD 23:30)
• NEW The Stories We’re Telling - Interview with Dan Loewenthal (HD 22:04)
• NEW Heroic Moments - Interview with Jay Chattayway (HD 16:18)
• NEW It’s in the Eyes - Interview with Melissa Prophet (HD 14:11)
• NEW Do You Like Talking - Interview with James Pax (HD 7:24)
• Cannon Carnage Featurette (HD 17:47)
• Loose Cannons (HD 29:04)
• Original Trailer 
• TV Spot
• Booklet Essay

Invasion U.S.A., one of the best-selling home video releases of all time finally sees its first 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release thanks to Vinegar Syndrome. Just shy of its 40th Anniversary, Chuck Norris’ best film remains a big-action, wildly entertaining adventure all these years later. Now on 4K HDR, the film looks terrific, sharper, and cleaner than before with two great audio options. Add in a few extra hours of bonus features and you have a set well worth the upgrade. Highly Recommended

Order Your Copy of Invasion U.S.A. on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray