Best Underrated Eighties Action Movies – Part 1

The eighties were full of incredible action movies, but while a lot of them are considered classics now, some of the best movies (you never saw) routinely get underrated, so here on JoBlo we’re celebrating Veteran’s Day with three of the best – Black Rain (1989), Streets of Fire (1984) and Blue Thunder (1983).

Black Rain (1989) – In director Ridley Scott’s neo noir masterpiece, Michael Douglas plays a rebellious cop extraditing a killer to Japan who gets wrapped up in the Yakuza underworld. Co-starring Andy Garcia, Kate Capshaw and Ken Takakura, with music by Hans Zimmer. This film was a financial success but is often left out when discussing the careers of its stars and director.

Streets of Fire (1984) – Michael Pare, Diane Lane and Willem Dafoe star in Walter Hill’s rock-n-roll fable. The movie was a notorious box office flop but has slowly but surely grown into a cult hit over the decades.

Blue Thunder (1983) Roy Scheider, Warren Oates, and Malcolm McDowell star in this prescient techno-thriller directed by John Badham. This was a pretty big hit in 1983, even spawning a short-lived TV series, but it was quickly overshadowed by Badham’s even more successful follow-up later that year, WarGames.

What are your favorite underrated eighties action movies? Let us know in the comments!