Black Thunder

Of course I had never heard about the 1998 movie "Black Thunder", as I happened to stumble upon it by random chance here in 2024. And seeing that it was starring Michael Dudikoff, of course I opted to check out what the original "American Ninja" had to offer.

Truth be told, though, I wasn't exactly harboring the biggest of expectations to the movie. But still, it might be possible that I had missed out on a stellar movie experience from writer William C. Martell and director Rick Jacobson.

The storyline in the movie was fair, and it was certainly a watchable movie. Writer William C. Martell put together a script that was okay. It was, sort of, an archetypical late 1990s action movie, with a single man against insurmountable odds and still coming out victorious.

The acting performances in the movie were fair. Nothing outstanding or thrilling, but then again I wasn't really expecting this to be a Shakespearian experience. Aside from Michael Dudikoff, I was only familiar with Richard Norton, Michael Cavanaugh and Nancy Valen.

Visually, then the movie was actually adequate.

Watchable for what it was, but I doubt that I will ever return to watch "Black Thunder" a second time.

My rating of director Rick Jacobson's 1998 movie "Black Thunder" lands on a five out of ten stars.

Most air-action movies are riddled with errors. Very often the aircraft required (ultra-modern, soviet) are unavailable. Of course using other aircraft makes sense (Using a F-100 as stand-in for a Mig-21 in `Skyjacked' for instance). Alternatives are to use models (as was very well done in `Firefox') or use computer graphics. So, F-16s are shown as US fighter jets. Nothing unusual. To depict the `Nova Stealth' a IAI Kfir is used although the intro shows a Mirage 2000. The angular lines of the Kfir do not make a realistic modern fighter. Ok, the choice is limited. Using the F-16 again as the `B-3' bomber (without any external stores) is confusing. It gets even more confusing as the villain pursues our hero using again a F-16 (supposed to be Libyan). The airfield from which the villain started has a line-up of Kfirs. Why the Libyans have several of this modern stealth `Nova' aircraft is not explained. There is supposed to be a single prototype of this aircraft! Maybe the viewer will not recognize the similarity? Ok, using a SR-71 to pursuit a fighter aircraft is ridiculous, but landing this aircraft in the Libyan dessert (not shown) is probably more science fiction than the supposed stealth technology. The `Nova' is completely invisible, except the infrared for some minute.

The acting is really deplorable. The action (non aircraft) is worse than done in the `A-Team' television series.

The aircraft action probably consists entirely of existing footage, making this a very cheap movie to make. Some footage (as the low-pass of the Kfir/Nova) is shown at least three times!

This move is definitely a must-see for aircraft buffs. If only, to have a good laugh.

This movie is a B-action. It´s just made for showing how bad Dudikoff can play sometimes. But still I like action so I gave it a 4/10. It´s almost the same in quality as Aces Iron Eagle 3.

Typical B grade action movie, probably made with a desperately tight budget & in a record time! The series of flight action scenes are tailored for the adrenaline junkey, but they were clearly extracted from other film footage. Don't expect too much on the acting side of things...it is well below par. For me, the worst portion of the movie came via the ridiculous and suicidally dumb Libyan soldiers, charging the opposition openly and without proper cover. How stupid can you get, Mr Director ? And how is it possible for two guys with hand-pistols and limited ammunition to fight off several soldiers with machine-guns and other automatic weapons...doesn't make sense. Even more so, the director finds enough time between gunfire exchanges to allow the "hero" to say farewell to one of his wounded buddies...ridiculous.

On the positive side, I must say, I've heard alot about Landon Hall, and the scene (or scenes)where she struts her stuff, makes this film worth the while. She's simply gorgeous. Rent this if (a) you're a fighter plane enthusiast or (b) a Landon Hall fan. As simple as that.

Not too bad for a typical Dudikoff film. Nancy Valen is always a treat but has a terrible "Libyan" accent. Artistic license is taken frequently with basic geography and flight times but if you can ignore that it's a harmless way to waste an hour and a half. Watch for the same guy dodging the same Jeep twice and two soldiers getting blown up twice (actually just recycled footage).