Taking a break from their brand name film franchises, Sylvester Stallone and Billy Dee Williams (known more for something called Rocky and Star Wars respectively), made a good team in the underrated action thriller Nighthawks. Throw in a really good actor who knows how to play a bad guy, making his american film debut, and its all the better.

When Europe's most feared terrorist Reinhardt Wulfgar (Rutger Hauer) makes his way to the U.S. He decides to wreak havoc in Manhattan. Two elite undercover cops, Det. Sgt. Deke DaSilva (Stallone) and Det. Matthew Fox (Williams) are tapped to try and stop him before he strikes. It becomes a game of cat and mouse, as Wulfgar plans to make sure the detectives are one step behind him.

While I will admit that certain aspects of the film are hoplessly dated--disco anyone?--and David Shaber's script has its share of cliches, director Bruce Malmuth gives us plenty that will never go out of style. A big reason Nighthawks works has to do with the teaming of "Sly" and Williams. They're great together. The back and forth seems realistic enough to work. Hauer is one smooth baddie and I love how he chews on the scenery. The action is well staged and nailbiting enough. TV's The Bionic Woman, Lindsey Wagner, makes a credible witness in peril. Look for the late exotic beauty Persis Khambatta, (Star Trek The Motion Picture) playing Wulgar's fellow terrorist and girlfriend, as well.

The DVD has no extras. I know there are a handful of deleted scenes out there and if nothing else it would have been nice to see them. And exactly how busy are Sly and Williams these days? Commentary? Featurette?

Nighthawks is a solid actioner worth a look.

Acting - good
Story - good
Over all- good

If you like action/crime/thriller movies you really should see this movie. Its one of may favorite.

This movie has great representation of life in the late seventies and early eighties. From the dark and "dirty feeling" of the streets to the flashy lights and heavy beats of the nightclubs.

Sylvester Stallone and Rutger Hauer clash in this game of cat and mouse. Sly being the good guy and Hauer is the terrorist. The chase scenes are great with just enough action. Billie Dee Williams provides excellent supporting cast. While Lindsey Wagner's character was somewhat disappointing.

The soundtrack did get a little annoying at times, but it was pretty cliche for the time that this movie came out. Although in the best scene of the move (the stare-down between Sly and Hauer in the nightclub) the background music was quite powerful and seemed to fit nicely.

I highly recommend this film. Although not necessarily an action flick, it is a gripping thriller. The ending will really get you, very unexpected, but yet I suppose it could have been expected.

IN NIGHT HAWKS THE STAGE IS SET FOR A GAME OF CAT AND MOUSE BETWEEN DEKE DaSILVA(STALLONE)& WULFGAR(HAUER).THIS ACTION/THRILLER GRABS ON TO YOU FROM THE OPENING SEQUENCE AND HOLDS ON UNTIL THE FINAL CONFRONTATION BETWEEN DEKE AND WULFGAR.RUTGER HAUER IS PERFECT IN THE ROLE OF THE VILLAIN WULFGAR AND WELL STALLONE IS TYPICAL SLY.IN MY OPINION THIS 1981 THRILLER IS HIGHLY UNDERRATED AND HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO STALLONE FANS.THE COPY I AM REVIEWING IS A GOODTIMES 2001 DVD VERSION WITH A CLEAR PICTURE AND CRISP SOUNDTRACK.TOO BAD THE SOUNTRACK ISN'T IN 5.1 DIGITAL THEN THIS MOVIE WOULD REALLY ROCK.OVERALL THIS IS GOOD ENTERTAINMENT FOR A CHEAP PRICE,HOW CAN YOU GO WRONG.

This happens to be one of my favorite films/guilty pleasures (the flick on its own easily rates 5 stars), but just wanted to make sure that fans knew that this new Universal DVD release has a *severely* altered soundtrack from the theatrical and earlier home video/DVD releases. This is so unfortunate, as I was excited about finally (for the first time ever) being able to see 'Nighthawks' in widescreen. While the picture hasn't been remastered for this edition, it is a noticeable improvement over the 2001 GoodTimes DVD full-screen release. However, in one of the truly key scenes of the film - where DaSilva (Stallone) discovers Wulfgar (Hauer) in the club - the songs 'Brown Sugar' by the Rolling Stones and Keith Emerson's amazing cover of the Spencer Davis Group's 'I'm a Man' are completely removed and replaced with the lamest possible generic, 70's-era stock music. Words cannot describe how this soundtrack change alters the entire mood of the scene ... it's simply not pretty to watch and is a painful bastardization of the original release. Just wanted everyone to be aware of this change on the new DVD release - I had no idea until it was too late. For those looking for the intact original, theatrical release on DVD, I would sadly still have to recommend seeking out a copy of the (now out-of-print) GoodTimes release. The picture may not be quite as clear as the new Universal DVD, but at least you're getting the Director's complete version of the film. Apparently, the world STILL awaits a definititve DVD version of this minor masterpiece ...