Very Cool!!!

Memorable, crazy movie

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

A typically brutal and hard-edged thriller from William Lustig, the man mainly known for his video nasty epic MANIAC. This follows the same path as DEATH WISH and THE EXTERMINATOR in its depiction of a man pushed over the edge by street gangs, who goes out on to the street himself to enact a hideous revenge on those responsible for the death of his loved ones. Although this is a film very rough around the edges (sometimes dialogue is muffled when background noise comes through), the pacing and well-staged chase sequences are spot on and the film has a vibe of realism which makes it more than viewable. It also concentrates less on the violence towards the innocent than other films of the genre which makes it a little bit less tasteless than most, and indeed more enjoyable.Although the plot will be largely familiar to anybody who has ever seen a 'vigilante' movie, the story keeps on moving and is careful to stick with characterisation at the expense of action, turning it into something more than another blood-and-bullets high-octane thriller. Saying that, the action keeps on coming and is well-portrayed, my favourite scene being the chase between Williamson and the drug dealer. Although the ending of the film can never be in doubt, Lustig makes some ponderous comments about justice and the handling of crime along the way.Robert Forster takes the lead role of Eddie Marino, forced to become a killer to get revenge for his family. Although not a brilliant actor, Forster is nonetheless likable AND understandable (that's the key) in his portrayal of the man, and doesn't go over the top - instead his subdued performance adds to the realistic feel of the film as a whole. In comparison, Fred Williamson gets to bag another hard-as-nails tough guy role for his screen career, and plays one of the coolest, iciest and just plain strongest roles of his career. Familiar faces appear lower down in the cast list, such as the British Carol Lynley as a district attorney, old-timer Woody Strodes tough as ever as a prison friend, MANIAC himself, Joe Spinell, as a corrupt lawyer and Steve James as an investigating cop. Ultimately, however, it's the unknowns who do well, particularly the guys playing the street gang members who create some of the most hateful and believable thugs you'll ever see on screen.

Gritty '80s exploitation revenge movie. Fred Williamson plays Nick, a factory worker who was so fed up with criminals getting away with hurting people that he formed his own vigilante group to do what the law couldn't or wouldn't. Robert Forster plays his friend Eddie who wants nothing to do with vigilantism, even after his young son is killed by a street gang led by Puerto Rican tough guy Rico (Willie Colón). Eddie believes the justice system will take care of the men responsible. When it fails to do so, he realizes the only way to get justice is to take the law into his own hands.Movies like this were all over the '70s and '80s, most notably with Charles Bronson's Death Wish series. The point of these movies was to remind us that the cities were overrun by multicultural gangs of rapists and killers. This one isn't quite as visceral and shocking as some of them but it has its moments. Forster's fine but Williamson really steals the show. Nice appearance by Woody Strode as a prison inmate who looks after Forster during his brief prison stay. Carol Lynley plays a well-meaning but ineffectual district attorney. Nice score, particularly in the last half when business picks up. Unlike the Death Wish series, which has some "so bad it's good" qualities beyond the first movie, this one is deadly serious and that works against it in a way. It also meanders in the middle in order to drag out a simple revenge plot. It's worth a look but fans of cheesy guilty pleasure actioners might feel a little disappointed.

Kinda sad to see Forster's roots in a flick like this.The script is terribly heavy handed and the direction may have tried to compensate, but failed. You might demur that it is, after all, a little action flick snack, but the film won't let you get away with that: You can't have it both ways.It obviously attempts to cop some fire from the "hard" reality of urban crime. You can't make a feint toward that end, then trivialize it with lousy scenario work, acting, and direction, and then expect to hide behind a defensive claim that the viewer made the mistake of taking it too seriously.It's a fine example of a flick that fails to manage its "tone" correctly. It feels like a movie made by grown-up teenaged boys.Interesting comparison: Check out Forester in Jackie Brown. Thank the Good Load Aboff, Forster got to work out in a flick that set its sights on a story and stealthily took great strides of scenario, acting, and direction to make that story blossom like a fine and beautiful flower in our minds.Anyway... who is going to watch Vigilante now? I would highly recommend it for a film class, for subsequent group analysis to try to nail down the contours of its failure to deliver something artistically meritorious.

A rough, raw film with The Best opening scene/speech of all films I have seen. You gotta see it. Fred (with a manly beard) Williamson rebuking and motivating the apathetic and down-trodden souls. Man with a vision - a man of action.The things I like about this movie are the raw realism - one can identify with the pain and suffering and initial reluctance on the part of the lead actor to join with the visionary vigilantes - until something happens to them personally.The corruption and unrighteous judgments in the court system are legendary and this facet of life in America is not left out - to this film's credit and a rebuke to so many other movies that leave loose ends hanging around to do more damage.A classic vigilante movie, actually better than Death Wish I think. Add it to your collection.