Cobra (1986), directed by George P. Cosmatos and starring Sylvester Stallone, is a gritty, neon-soaked action thriller that epitomizes 1980s excess, blending police procedural elements with explosive violence. Stallone plays Lieutenant Marion “Cobra” Cobretti, a hard-edged cop in Los Angeles who operates outside the usual rules of law enforcement.
The film opens with a chilling scene: a masked gunman holds shoppers hostage inside a supermarket. When negotiations stall, Cobra is called in. True to his reputation, he swiftly eliminates the threat with ruthless efficiency, establishing himself as the kind of cop who doesn’t waste time on bureaucracy. His philosophy is simple: “Crime is a disease. I’m the cure.”
Cobretti soon becomes entangled in a larger case involving a brutal series of murders. The killers belong to a secretive neo-fascist cult known as the “New World,” whose twisted ideology involves eliminating the weak to create a stronger society. Their method is merciless: armed with axes, knives, and guns, they target innocent civilians in coordinated attacks.
One night, the cult targets a model named Ingrid Knudsen (Brigitte Nielsen), who accidentally witnesses their crimes. Marked for death, Ingrid narrowly survives an attempt on her life but becomes the cult’s primary target. Cobra and his partner Gonzales (Reni Santoni) are assigned to protect her, though Cobra’s unorthodox methods put him at odds with his superiors and fellow officers.
As the cult escalates its violence, Cobra whisks Ingrid out of the city to a remote safehouse. However, the cult, led by the sinister “Night Slasher” (Brian Thompson), tracks them down. What follows is a relentless series of ambushes, car chases, and shootouts, with Cobra proving himself a one-man army against overwhelming odds.
The final act culminates in a brutal showdown at an industrial factory. Cobra faces the Night Slasher in a vicious fight, where fists, knives, and fire intermingle in a savage clash of willpower. Cobra ultimately defeats him in brutal fashion, ensuring Ingrid’s safety and dismantling the cult’s murderous plans.
Cobra is a lean, stylized action film that blends slasher-movie menace with hardboiled cop drama. Stallone’s portrayal of Cobretti embodies the 1980s action archetype: a tough loner with a code of justice, disdain for red tape, and a penchant for sunglasses, matchsticks, and heavy firepower. Though critically divisive upon release, Cobra has since become a cult classic, remembered for its pulpy style, over-the-top violence, and iconic Stallone one-liners.
