The Film

Red Dawn is a 1984 American war film directed by John Milius, who wrote the screenplay with Kevin Reynolds. It was released on August 10, 1984, and it was the first film released in the United States with a PG-13 rating.

The Story

Soviet and allied forces invade the United States, and paratroopers land beside a high school in Calumet, Colorado. A group of students escapes into the mountains. Led by brothers Jed and Matt Eckert, they name themselves the Wolverines after their school mascot and begin a guerrilla campaign against the occupiers. Over the course of the film they grow from frightened teenagers into a disciplined force, and the cost of that change is the real subject of the story.

Key Facts

Production

• Filming ran from late 1983 into early 1984 in and around Las Vegas, New Mexico.
• The young cast went through weeks of military style training before cameras rolled.
• Alexander Haig, a former secretary of state and then an MGM board member, took an active interest in the project.
• Extreme cold made the shoot punishing. Patrick Swayze later recalled frostbite.
• During the paratrooper sequence, wind carried five of the 36 parachutists far off course.

Why It Lasts

Red Dawn arrived at the height of the Cold War and became a touchstone for audiences who asked a simple question: what would ordinary people do if the unthinkable happened? Four decades later the film remains a fixture of movie nights, quote wars and fan gatherings, and the line about the chair against the wall is still instantly recognized.

Keep Going

• The Wolverines: the cast and characters.
• Filming Locations: visit Calumet.
• Red Dawn 2012: the remake.
• Manufacturers: the studios and craftspeople.

Sources: Red Dawn on Wikipedia, AFI Catalog.