Everyone associates the massively successful 1984 film Beverly Hills Cop with Eddie Murphy as lead cop Axel Foley, but how many are aware that the titular role was initially intended for Sylvester Stallone? Hard to imagine, Stallone (who had become one of the hottest stars in Hollywood with the sustained iconic role of Rocky and the birth of Rambo in 1982’s First Blood) was indeed originally cast as Axel Corbetti for Beverly Hills Cop. However, after the studio rejected his rewritten script for Beverly Hills Cop, Stallone opted to move on to other projects. Going on to co-star alongside Dolly Parton in the 1984 Comedy Rhinestone, in 1985 he pivoted back to Action, unleashing Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rocky IV within six months. Doubling up on huge box office success in 1985, in the fall of that year, Stallone repurposed his script for Beverly Hills Cop into the film all know as Cobra.
Release in theaters on May 23, 1986, Cobra took Stallone’s story of Marion Cobretti (better known simply as Cobra) with direction of George P. Cosmatos (who had worked with Stallone for Rambo: First Blood Part II, and also went into to direct 1993’s Tombstone) and made it into a high-paced film. Fitting Stallone well, the character of Cobra is a Dirty Harry-inspired character who may have a less-than-by-the-book approach to fighting crime, but one that gets results. Gruff, tough, and hard to keep down, Cobra is a part of the LAPD’s “Zombie Squad” (an elite group of police officers who do the jobs no one else can or wants to).
A bit of a loner with disregard for standard procedure, Cobra’s services are in high demand once a serial killer or killers are running rampant through the city after dark on a killing spree. Soon, assuming the role of protecting a young woman named Ingrid Knudsen (Brigitte Nielsen, who was married to Stallone in real life at the time and starred with him in 1985’s Rocky IV), it is Cobra against ruthless group of murders who will stop at nothing to get him and her out of the picture.
The gist of all, Cobra moves along at a steady pace with plenty of high-powered action sequences in tow. Joined by a sense of terror at the hands of what is called Night Slasher (played by Brian Thompson who went on to a successful career in film and television) you could even argue there is a bit of a Horror element to the movie at times; especially when Night Slasher is on the hunt for Ingrid. With all of this in mind, Cobra was generally panned by audiences and critics at the time of release. Although not reaching the same level as the Rambo or Rocky films, Cobra was still no pushover, earning significant box office numbers that ranked it among the top twenty revenue-generating films of 1986.
Furthermore, the film had life beyond the big screen, including a platform video game released that same year as well as a solid soundtrack with songs from John Cafferty, Robert Tepper (who wrote/sang the unforgettable “No Easy Way Out” from Rocky IV), joined by a leading dueted theme between Bill Medley and Gladys Knight. Unfortunately, none of this was enough to push forward the plans for a Cobra II, which was considered but never realized.
A fascinating bit of history, what some may consider a lesser-known Stallone film, Cobra, still holds a place in the heart of a niche audience nearly forty years later. That is why it comes with tremendous excitement to learn that on July 22, 2025, Arrow Video is releasing Cobra in 4K Ultra HD.
The first global release of Cobra, this new limited-edition pressing presents the film in a newly restored 4K transfer from the original 35mm negative. A significant step up from the 2004 and 2010 DVD releases, as well as the 2K Blu-ray from 2019, there is noticeable improvement in depth and clarity. Beyond this, there are plenty of cool extras, including interviews with Brian Thompson, Marco Rodriguez, Andrew Robinson, and Art LaFleur (all also part of the 2019 Collector’s Edition Blu-ray), as well as new commentaries and a visual essay. Joining these features is a nice reversible sleeve with new and original art, a compelling collector’s booklet, and a double-sided fold-out poster.
Whatever way you slice it, Arrow Video has put together the best edition of Cobra to date. A great addition to any Stallone and ‘80s Action fan collection, Cryptic Rock gives this new 4K Ultra HD Limited Edition release of Cobra 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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