Nighthawks (film)
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Theatrical-release poster
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| Directed by | Bruce Malmuth |
| Produced by | Martin Poll |
| Screenplay by | David Shaber |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Keith Emerson |
| Cinematography | James A. Contner |
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Production
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| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
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Running time
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99 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $5 million |
| Box office | $19.9 million |
Nighthawks is a 1981 American action-thriller film directed by Bruce Malmuth and starring Sylvester Stallone, Rutger Hauer, Billy Dee Williams, Lindsay Wagner, Persis Khambatta and Nigel Davenport. Its score was composed by Keith Emerson. The film was noted for production problems.
Three armed assailants attack a woman who turns out to be NYPD Detective Sergeant Deke DaSilva in drag. His partner, Detective Sergeant Matthew Fox, immobilizes two of the assailants; Deke chases the third upstairs to a subway-station platform, taunts him and incapacitates him with a scarf. That day in London, terrorist Heymar Reinhardt (alias Wulfgar) bombs a department store. In New York City, DaSilva and Fox serve a high-risk warrant in the Bronx. They raid a drug-distribution spot, where they discover corrupt police officers among the dealers. After the arrests DaSilva meets his estranged wife, Irene, and tells her he loves her; although she initially rebuffs his advances, they eventually reconcile.
Wulfgar meets a member of his network at a party to receive travel documents and money. Suspicious of the delivery man, Wulfgar kills him and three Metropolitan Police Service officers sent to arrest him. He escapes, and the police superintendent berates lead investigator Inspector Hartman. In Paris Wulfgar meets his partner, Shakka, and learns that his handlers are ostracizing him because the bombing killed a number of children. Wulfgar undergoes facial surgery to alter his appearance and decides to move his terrorist campaign to New York City.
Lt. Munafo transfers DaSilva and Fox to the newly-formed ATAC (Anti-terrorist Action Command) squad, where they meet Hartman. Hartman and DaSilva clash, since Hartman believes that American police are not ruthless enough to deal with a terrorist such as Wulfgar. Although he hesitates to condone killing Wulfgar, DaSilva absorbs his new training and begins to understand the terrorist. In New York, Wulfgar moves in with a flight attendant and kills her when she discovers his arsenal. Acting on a tip, Munafo orders DaSilva and Fox to search every nightclub the flight attendant had visited. They find Wulfgar in a nightclub and, after a shootout and foot chase through the subway, Wulfgar first takes a woman hostage and uses her as a human shield, preventing DaSilva from shooting. Wulfgar then escapes by slashing Fox's face with a knife. At the hospital, Fox admonishes DaSilva for not shooting.
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