Crime’s the Problem… Meet the Cure – COBRA. The Stallone Cult Classic Actioner makes its 4K UHD debut from Arrow Video armed to the fangs with special features.
The Film
There are cops. There are super cops. Then there’s Marion Cobretti.
Coors drinking. Cutting pizza with scissors. Mirror shades. Pearl handled Colt 45. Marion Cobretti.
From the opening five minutes of COBRA, you will know this much: There are two types of people in this world: those who love COBRA and those who hate COBRA. Where you fall will probably determine if you continue to read this review. This reviewer happens to love COBRA. The film is a Reagan-Era fevered dream, but done with such an odd, overheated style that one cannot take it as anything but a satire. A goofy satiric nightmare daydream of a cop film. George P. Cosmatos directs this with the visual drive of an MTV Music Video of the era may be one of Stallone’s best and worst films of the 1980s – sometimes both at the same time.
The film boils down to one clean, concise sentence. LAPD Detective Marion Cobretti versus a cult led by Brian Thompson playing Brian Thompson. That’s it. You could even say it is Stallone vs. Cult. The film is a build-up to the ending, a Mano a Mano fight between Stallone and Thompson in the middle of a foundry that was the inspiration for approximately 97.8% of metal band music videos.
COBRA does show Stallone at the height of his powers as a superstar. The film is shot like an over-fetishized porn. Cosmatos and Stallone spend more time perfecting close-ups of the star’s Mirror Shade-covered visage than they do on any sort of characterization for him or any other characters. It’s the type of film that its empty style is the substance of the film. There is no reason why this cult is doing what it’s doing other than to do. There is no reason why Cobretti is a fascist super cop; he is who he is. There is something glorious about the wanton destruction and violence that unfolds at the end of the picture. The final twenty minutes are a non-stop chase that ends in the above-described fight.
COBRA is the kind of film that is pure, unadulterated, empty calorie cinema that Commando, Raw Deal, and Tango and Cash are. It is not to give them any sort of criticism for what they are. Though to say COBRA is perfect is also a complete fallacy. Like most films, COBRA falls somewhere in the middle. The film excels at its stylish action. In the end, the film delivers the kind of kick to the groin that was the delight to action fans thirty years ago.
At this point, an action fan should know where they fall on this particular Stallone masterpiece. Yes, it is a masterpiece. An imperfect masterpiece of ’80s ego-fueled steroid-addled Cop Action.
The Transfer
The all-new 4K restoration of the film from the original 35mm negative by Arrow Films, presented in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible), is an all-around upgrade to the prior Blu-ray (2K) editions in every regard. The work that Arrow Video has recently done with Warner Bros borders on near-perfect. The catalog titles like Demolition Man and The Long Kiss Goodnight have had a remarkable uptick in quality with their 4K restorations. Cobra is no different. The transfer is sharp, clean, without any hints of scratches or blemishes on the negative. The Dolby Vision encoding imbues the image with deeper details within the blacks and color spectrum, producing an image that’s darker but far more luminous and more textured than prior editions. There isn’t a scratch, blemish or issue during the entire runtime of the film. Cobra in its 4K UHD edition has never looked better, even during its initial 35mm theatrical run.
The Extras
They include the following;
- Brand new audio commentary by film critics Kim Newman and Nick de Semlyen
- Brand new audio commentary by film scholars Josh Nelson and Martyn Pedler
- Archive audio commentary by director George P. Cosmatos (1998)
- TV version of the film featuring deleted and alternate scenes, presented for the first time on home video (standard definition only)
- Slashing the Night Away, a new interview with composer Sylvester Levay
- Dark Glasses, Violence & Robots, a new visual essay by film critic Abbey Bender on Cobra and 80s maximalist cinema
- White Line Nightmare, a new visual essay by film critic Martyn Conterio on Cobra and the “Maverick Cop” genre
- Stalking and Slashing, an archive interview with actor Brian Thompson
- Meet the Disease, an archive interview with actor Marco Rodriguez
- Feel the Heat, an archive interview with actor Andrew Robinson
- Double Crossed, an archive interview with actor Lee Garlington
- A Work of Art, an archive interview with actor Art LaFleur
- The Making of Cobra, 1986 featurette
- Trailers and TV spots
- Image gallery
The first of two new audio commentaries by film critics Kim Newman and Nick de Semlyen opens their commentary with the multiple adaptations of the novel COBRA is based on, Fair Game, which include the Cindy Crawford cult action film and a Japanese TV Series. Some of the details include how this initially how this project was turned into Beverly Hills Cop which Paramount ended up telling him to take elsewhere as it was not the action comedy they wanted; some of the major differences between COBRA and the novel Fair Game; the intent on this being a film franchise – which leads to a discussion of Stallone’s love of film franchise; the idea of what was to be the sequel; a discussion of the work here and career of director George P. Cosmatos; the rumors that Stallone ghost directed this film – which leads to a larger discussion of the multiple Stallone productions that directors were replaced; a discussion of the knife that Brian Thompson uses – how it was designed and a funny anecdote about Stallone and the knife; a discussion throughout of the various actors and crew that worked on the film; and much more. Newman and de Semlyen deliver a highly entertaining track that shows the duo’s knowledge about the film, genre, and the era, but also their affection for this film.
The second of two new audio commentaries by film scholars Josh Nelson and Martyn Pedler opens with their very different personal experiences with the film. Some of the detail include the influence of Magnum Force on this film; a discussion of the various stats from the opening monologue and what they are currently is now; the importance of the Christmastime setting; the toys that sprouted out of the violent films and Stallone’s opinions on them; the film’s taking its inspiration from a real life LA Serial Killer at the time; a discussion of the original director’s cut which was 2 hrs and 10 minutes – the reason why it was cut down to 87 minutes; the rumored of the mysterious director’s cut being in circulation; a great story about the motivations of the cult and Brian Thompsons attempts to get them from Stallone and Cosmatos; the stylistic inspiration that Cosmatos appears to take from both giallo and poliziotteschi; a discussion of where Stallone was in his career and how this moves the needle forward – a larger discussion of the changing times in the late 1980s and into the 1990s; the various music cues that appear in the film; a discussion of the various cast and crew that worked on the film; and much more. Nelson and Pedler deliver an informative commentary track that includes some truly wonderful quotes from critics and excerpts from various articles on the film.
There is a third and final audio commentary by director George P. Cosmatos. This is an archival Commentary track recorded in 1997. The track by Cosmatos is fairly pedestrian. Though there are some great anecdotes but most of the time is spent describing what is unfolding on screen and details of the story.
TV Version (94:32) – As COBRA was always intended to be seen. Shitty SD Version in 1.33 with violence and language edited for TV. All jokes aside, this is a fascinating look at the halfway point of the mythic Full Assembly / Cosmatos’s director’s cut. It does feature some of the deleted and alternate scenes that we’ve heard in the past (more than likely, people who’ve seen this TV version). Adding the additional 7 minutes (more like 10 minutes with alternate takes/scenes) just rounds the film out from being just a music video flavored Stallone fevered dream to an actual film. One really wishes that the alternate ended could have been found and included here.
White Line Nightmare: Cobra and the Maverick Cop Genre (13:32) – is an all-new visual essay by film critic Martyn Conterio on COBRA and the “Maverick Cop” genre as a whole. Opening with a discussion of Don Siegel’s Dirty Harry and its serious depiction of the rouge cop to COBRA and its ultra stylized superficial 80s action film. Conterio goes into not just COBRA’s themes but, where Stallone was at while making this in his career, the reference and influences of the film, the place where America was politically, the place of the “Maverick Cop” and its origins in Westerns and evolution, Stallone’s Cobretti as a proto-Metrosexual figure, the montage style of the film – influenced by Maimi Vice, the rise as a cult classic, and much more. The visual essay is insightfully written by Conterio and sharply edited by Jonathan Zaurin and produced by Neil Snowdon (Also, bravo on your stylish end credits. More should do these kind of thoughtful credits for themselves).
Dark Glasses, Violence & Robots COBRA and the Maximalist 80s (10:12) – is another all-new visual essay this one by film critic Abbey Bender diving into COBRA and its maximalist style and the maximalist cinema of the 1980s. Beginning with the style that is present in the opening moments Bender dives into all aspects of this action thriller – its development by its star, the flashy style – akin to the era, the films pseudo-politics, it’s initial recutting because of an X-rating, the behind the scenes romance between Nielson and Stallone, a discussion of the maximalist style of the film, and its rise as a cult classic of the genre. The visual essay is wonderfully written by Bender and sharply edited by Jonathan Zaurin and produced by Neil Snowdon (Again the credits for the for this visual essay matches the style and tone of the film like the previous Essay).
Slashing the Night Away Sylvester Levay and COBRA (17:23) – is an all-new interview with composer Sylvester Levay opens with a discussion of how he found his obsession with music through his family’s interest. The composer goes onto to discuss his career in music before getting into film composing thanks to Gorgio Moroder; his work on the TV series Air Wolf; how he got the job on COBRA – including how difficult the composing of the film was; and much more.
Stalking and Slashing with Brian Thompson (26:01) – is an archival interview with the cult character actor on the work that he did in the film and his career writ large. He has a great Terminator story and how it lead to more work and specifically how he got COBRA. Worked as the villain in the Conan stunt spectacular and the emotional moment. The reverence for Stallone and his career. The honesty that he comes to with the work he’s done here is shocking. It’s great though because of the craziness. He does take Cosmatos to task on multiple issues which you’ll want to see.
Meet the Disease with Marco Rodriguez (24:06) – is an archival interview with the character actor who plays the grocery store shooter that opens the film. Rodriguez discusses how he came to be in COBRA. How they (he and Stallone) came up with the name, The Disease, as even in the script he had no name. Rodriguez confirms how Stallone worked as the acting director and Cosmatos’ temper. Rodriguez goes beyond COBRA and how it helped his career. Watch for Rodriguez pull out his original script at a certain point.
Feel the Heat with Andrew Robinson (14:16) – is an archival interview with the actor who played the DA. The actor does not waste any time as he begins with recounting the original (better AND crazier) ending of the movie and his character, which would have made a great bookend to another famous character he played. Robinson suffers no fools in this interview as takes the film to task about the lack of story and characterizations. He too is honest about his dislike of the entire production and the way that Stallone had ghost-directed the film.
Double Crossed with Lee Garlington (9:06) – is an archival interview with the actress who plays the cult’s double agent within the police force. Her honesty about why she took the role, is very refreshing. Garlington does discuss the strife on set but not to the extent that both Thompson, Rodriguez, and Robinson do.
A Work of Art with Art Le Fleur (8:24) – is an archival interview with the actor on how he got the part. He’s a bit nicer but confirms everything the actor’s before had.
The Making of COBRA (7:51) – this vintage featurette is 8-minutes of glorious ‘80s EPK lunacy. Some of the things that Stallone says are amazing ego fueled hilarity. Brigette’s work (she was only 22 at the time). Best of all the featurette has multiple clips of Terry Leonard aka LEGENDARY STUNT GOD talking very pragmatically about the stunt work and comparing Stallone to John Wayne. This one is NOT TO BE MISSED. A special thanks to the Content Producers. It’s these types of special features that they’ve dug deep deep into the archives that make these (and this disc) worth the price tag and so special.
Trailers – accessible via a submenu.
- Teaser (1:21)
- Theatrical (1:56)
Image Gallery – consists of 159 production stills, behind-the-scenes photos, and poster art.
The Final Thought
Arrow created the definitive edition of the 80s action classic with a new 4K Restoration and loaded it with new and archival special features alike. HIGHEST RECOMMENDATIONS!!