While all the biggest action stars of the 1980s had major successes that they are readily associated with, plenty more underrated releases also deserve far more attention. Stars like Sylvester Stallone excelled as the action hero John Rambo, and Arnold Schwarzenegger will forever be remembered as The Terminator, but looking into their back catalog revealed many more hidden gems. For lovers of intense, action-packed shootouts and heart-racing spectacles, plenty of lesser-known movies are just waiting to be discovered.
The biggest action stars of the 1980s represented all that was great about this era of moviemaking as martial arts legends like Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris began to carve out their acclaimed legacies. Although some of these movies may have hit big at the box office, they remained highly underrated by critics who failed to recognize them as wildly entertaining action-packed spectacles. For those who have already seen the biggest action movies of the 1980s, there’s much more to discover about these stars’ impressive filmographies.
10 Black Eagle (1988)
Jean-Claude Van Damme as Andrei
Although the release of the iconic martial arts classic Bloodsport signaled the dawning of a brand new action movie star, Jean-Claude Van Damme has had plenty more highly underrated releases. One prime example of this came in Black Eagle, the 1988 movie that showcased Van Damme’s incredible skill as a villain whose sinister characterization of brutal and enigmatic KGB agent Andrei was the best part of the entire movie. Fresh off the success of Bloodsport, this underappreciated gem indicated the karate and kickboxing star’s bright future in Hollywood.
Black Eagle told the story of America and Russia both searching for a lost super weapon in the Mediterranean. With Shō Kosugi as Ken Tani, an elite agent working for the Americans under the codename Black Eagle, the most exciting part of this forgotten action movie was seeing him face off against Van Damme. As an enjoyable mix between James Bond-style espionage and class Kung Fu cinema, Black Eagle was an underrated showcase of Van Damme’s unique appeal.
9 Red Heat (1988)
Arnold Schwarzenegger as Captain Ivan Danko
While most of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s most famous roles require a suspension of disbelief to make sense of his thick Austrian accent, this was actually a plus for his characterization of Captain Ivan Danko in Red Heat. As a buddy cop movie that paired a no-nonsense Russian (Schwarzenegger) with a laid-back New York cop (Jim Belushi), this well-worn mismatched formula worked incredibly as it showcased Schwarzenegger at the height of his fame. Although Red Heat received mixed reviews and underperformed at the box office at the time of its release, looking back on it now, it’s a lot of fun.
Schwarzenegger was well-suited to his role as a stern, single-minded, and unstoppable Russian, which paired well with Belushi’s crass and comedic character. As much a story about the potential for friendship between those of opposing ideologies as it was a traditional action movie, Red Heat was an enjoyable social commentary considering the Cold War tensions of its time. For those only familiar with Schwarzenegger’s most famous 1980s offers, such as The Terminator, Red Heat will be an enjoyable discovery.
8 Lock Up (1989)
Sylvester Stallone as Frank Leone
Sylvester Stallone was one of the biggest stars in the world during the 1980s, and this decade featured smash hits, including Rocky sequels and Rambo movies like First Blood. However, Stallone also had several underrated movies during this time, including one of his most slept-on films, Lock Up. This prison movie saw Frank Leone, a convict nearing the end of his sentence, being transferred to a high-security facility by a vindictive warden.
While Lock Up had a haphazard production, and Stallone himself voiced his issues with it, stating it was not produced “with enough maturity to really make a significant impact,” (via EW) there was still plenty to enjoy here. One performance that deserved praise was Donald Sutherland as the sinister Warden Drumgoole, whose cruel and manipulative tactics truly made the movie. This was a real hidden gem in Stallone’s career, just waiting to be rediscovered by action lovers.
7 Tango & Cash (1989)
Kurt Russell as Lieutenant Gabriel “Gabe” Cash
Kurt Russell built up his cult movie credentials with roles in John Carpenter classics throughout the 1980s, such as Escape from New York, The Thing, and Big Trouble in Little China. However, one Russell action movie that’s failed to truly get its due was the buddy cop comedy Tango & Cash, which was a hit at the box office but failed to impress critics at the time. With Russell paired with fellow action hero Sylvester Stallone, this tongue-in-cheek adventure of mismatched cops was a lot of fun.
Tango & Cash was just one of many unloved Stallone movies that were actually good, and the great onscreen chemistry between him and Russell made things all the more engaging. With Russell as the cowboy cop, Lieutenant Cash, and Stallone as the straight-laced Lieutenant Tango, after being framed, the two were forced to put their differences aside and take down a sinister crime boss. As an enjoyable homage to buddy cop classics of the past, Tango & Cash deserves a lot more love than it ever got.
6 Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)
Mel Gibson as “Mad Max” Rockatansky
The third movie in George Miller’s Mad Max franchise always seems to get forgotten amid conversations about how trailblazing the first two films were and how visually spectacular Fury Road was. This was a real shame, as Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome stood as one of Mel Gibson’s most underrated movies, and its influence can be felt in everything from The Hunger Games to The Walking Dead. Beyond Thunderdome expanded upon its post-apocalyptic world, whose themes of survivalism and ruthless gladiator-style fighting arena was truly trailblazing.
Beyond Thunderdome featured a fantastic performance not just from Gibson but also from Tina Turner as the ruthless leader of Bartertown Aunty Entity. Max’s character developed into a more complex and nuanced character in this third installment, whose goals and ambitions helped it stand apart from the minimalist style of the previous movies. While Gibson has rightfully received recognition for his role as Max, Beyond Thunderdome often felt like the underappreciated forgotten child of this franchise.
5 Frantic (1988)
Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Walker
While Harrison Ford spent much of the 1980s in a galaxy far away in Return of the Jedi, hunting replicants in Blade Running, or recovering long-lost artifacts while facing Nazis in Raiders of the Lost Arc, he also found time to star in one of Roman Polanski’s most underrated movies. The action-packed neo-noir mystery Frantic was a commercial failure upon release but has since been recognized as an intense cult classic.
With Ford as a doctor caught up in a world of mystery as he searches for his lost wife, Frantic was a powerful showcase of this action movie star’s talents outside of major franchises. Featuring one of Ennio Morricone’s greatest movie scores and a thrilling story of intrigue, espionage, gangsters, drugs, and murder, Frantic was a powerful showcase of both Ford and Polanski’s impeccable skills.
4 Missing In Action (1984)
Chuck Norris as Colonel James Braddock
Although this Vietnam War movie was criticized by experts for accuracy, Missing in Action was a strong showcase of Chuck Norris’ undeniable appeal as an action movie star. While this film received criticism for its inaccurate portrayal of POWs being held captive in Vietnam after the war had ended, Missing in Action worked a lot better when viewed purely as a piece of action movie escapism. Here, Norris continued to prove himself after the success of martial arts movies like A Force of One, and Missing in Action was a commercial success that launched its own franchise.
However, despite its wildly entertaining sequences, Missing in Action received a universally negative response from critics. Wildly underrated in its own time, looking back, it’s easy to see that this misunderstood movie encapsulated Norris’s quickly developing star appeal. His fighting skill and firm commitment to his roles embodied the very best of action heroism during the 1980s. While it’s easy to dismiss Missing in Action as a Rambo ripoff, it had plenty more to offer.
3 Dragons Forever (1988)
Jackie Chan as Jackie Lung
As perhaps the greatest Kung Fu star of all time, Jackie Chan had many incredible martial arts movies during the 1980s, as this was the point where he turned into a truly global superstar. While movies like Police Story and Project A have rightfully become iconic, Dragons Forever was another underrated release that deserves a look. This Hong Kong action comedy paired Chan with his frequent co-stars Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao for a thrilling story of lawyers caught up in a complex conspiracy involving a chemical company.
Full of intense action and slapstick comedy, Dragons Forever was yet another showcase of Chan’s unique talents and enduring cinematic charisma. Dragons Forever was the last movie to feature Chan, Hung, and Biao all together, as Chan soon started to focus on his career as a solo star. Chan’s incredible success in movies like this opened the doors for him to transition into Hollywood movies during the 1990s.
2 Red Scorpion (1989)
Dolph Lundgren as Russian Senior Lieutenant Nikolai Petrovitch Rachenko
Dolph Lundgren gained widespread recognition during the 1980s for his villainous role as Ivan Drago in Rocky IV and soon gained leading parts in movies like The Terminator rip-off I Come in Peace. However, one fantastic Lungren movie that never got the praise it deserved was Red Scorpion. This intense action movie saw Lungren playing a Soviet special forces assassin sent to kill an anti-communist leader in Africa.
Sadly, Red Scorpion failed to impress critics when it was released, but it powerfully highlighted Lundgren’s skill as an action hero to be reckoned with. Although he never got the same level of acclaim as action superstars like Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lundgren’s action offers, such as Red Scorpion, were wildly entertaining movies packed with enjoyable campy energy. While it was underappreciated in its own time, looking back on Red Scorpion today, it had everything an action fan could want out of a hidden 1980s gem.
1 Above The Law (1988)
Steven Seagal as Sergeant Nicolo “Nico” Toscani
While Steven Seagal would truly break out as a major action movie star during the 1990s following the release of Under Seige, Above the Law signaled his feature film debut and was an important and highly underrated moment in action movie history. As the first American film to feature Aikido in fight sequences, Above the Law was a unique showcase of Seagal’s incredible appeal as an action hero. With a 7th-dan black belt in aikido to his name, Seagal brought his past as a trainer to his movie roles and was a genuine martial arts master.
Above the Law failed to get the recognition it deserved when it was first released, and Seagal’s potential as a major movie star had yet to be realized. However, looking back on it today, Above the Law was a solid debut and a wildly entertaining film. With Seagal as a former Special Operations Vietnam operative working as a Chicago cop, this story of CIA corruption and conspiracy hit all the right notes.
Source: EW
