It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead role, alongside Rae Dawn Chong, Alyssa Milano, Vernon Wells, Bill Duke and Dan Hedaya.
The film became a commercial success at the box office and was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Special Effects, but lost to Back to the Future.
Arius blackmails Matrix into carrying out a political assassination in his home country of Val Verde, where he wishes to lead a military coup.
With evidence discovered in Cooke's car, Matrix and Cindy break into a nearby warehouse owned by Arius that supplies weapons for his army.
Writer Jeph Loeb said his original script was about an Israeli soldier who had renounced violence, but this was deemed too unbelievable.
The house that Matrix storms at the film's climax was actually the former main residence of the Harold Lloyd Estate in the Benedict Canyon district of Beverly Hills.
The car chase scene between Sully and Matrix starts on Ventura Blvd and moves into the hills on Benedict Canyon.
[7] A soundtrack album was released by Varèse Sarabande on December 2, 2003, as part of the label's CD Club and was limited to 3,000 copies.
The release features approximately 62 minutes of music across 24 tracks and includes "We Fight for Love" by The Power Station.
Common with early DVD releases, the disc featured a non-anamorphic video transfer, a basic 2.0 surround track, and only the US theatrical trailer as an extra.
This has proven to be the case as the BBFC's website indicates that both versions of the film (the U.S. theatrical cut and the unrated edition) for the DVD were passed on June 11, 2007.
On June 5, 2007, 20th Century Fox officially announced that a completely unedited and unrated director's cut of the film would be released on region 1 DVD on September 18, 2007.
In April 2008, the 90-minute theatrical version of the film was released to consumers on the high definition Blu-ray Disc format.
On May 5, 2015, as part of the film's 30th anniversary, the director's cut of Commando was released on Blu-ray Disc in a limited edition, collectible metalpak as a Best Buy exclusive.
[11] The website's critical consensus reads, "The ultimate '80s Schwarzenegger movie, replete with a threadbare plot, outsized action, and endless one-liners.
[12] D. J. R. Bruckner of The New York Times wrote that "two-thirds of this 90-minute film is mayhem unrelieved by humor and untouched by humanity," and suggested that if sequels were to be made, "more clever writers and subtler directors will have to be found.
"[14] Patrick Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Full of spectacular stunts and shootouts, it's a gory crowd-pleaser, directed with jolting efficiency by low-budget veteran Mark L. Lester.
If his scenarists had only given Lester a finale with as much explosive punch as his opening scenes, the film could have been a real treat instead of a glorified fireworks display.
"[16] Paul Attanasio of The Washington Post wrote that the film "starts out fun and ends up dreary—how long can you watch this stony Austrian take target practice?
Matrix now leads an elite special forces unit (which replaced his old deceased unit from the original film) called C-Team, made up of Spex, Blaster, and Chopper, against the forces of F.E.A.R., led by Psycho (who is based on the character of Bennett) and consisting of Lead-Head, Stalker, and Sawbones.