What we have here is a scuzzy helping of no-budget exploitation, coincidentally rumoured to be Quentin Tarantino's favourite movie (and let's face it, films he had a hand in – like FROM DUSK TILL DAWN – bear plenty of similarities to this one). It's a simply-plotted 'hostage' film, one of an extreme sub-genre (others include HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK and TERROR TRAIN) detailing the tortures and depravities carried out by a criminal gang when they take an innocent bunch of people hostage. Here, the criminals are a trio of deranged escapees, led by William Sanderson (who actually had a respectable Hollywood career after this) playing possibly the most racist character I've ever seen in a film; the bad news is that they hole up at the home of a god-fearing black family, and sure enough all hell breaks loose.
The story is nothing new and the hostage drama rather slow paced, lacking some of the intrigue or tension seen in other films (such as THE COLD EYES OF FEAR and DAY OF VIOLENCE). It seems to take forever before the tables are turned, and even then the punishments meted out to the oppressors are somewhat languid, ill-fitting the crimes they've committed in the rest of the movie. Staples of the exploitation film are present (a tacked-on sex scene at the beginning; a topless woman being chased through the woods; an unpleasant rape scene) but the violence is surprisingly tame, aside from an often-cut shocking moment involving an innocent kid. It really is all about the racism here, and the script goes overboard as Sanderson taunts the black family with all manner of insults and degradation.
For a sleazy flick like this, the acting is of a pretty good calibre. Sanderson was good enough for Hollywood to come calling, and Robert Judd is very effective as the noble father driven to desperation. I liked Peter Yoshida's almost-mute portrayal of a hulking psychopath and as a whole the actors playing the put-upon family are decent, especially the hard-ass, wheelchair-bound grandmother and the tough-as-nails kid! For a change the other sub-plot, concerning the police investigation, is also interesting with some nice twists and surprises along the way. The criminals do get their just desserts (nice slow-mo at the end there) but it's a long time coming. I'd recommend this film for those who aren't easily offended as a prime example of the kind of stop-at-nothing situations film-makers would resort to in order to get audiences watching back in the '70s).
The story is nothing new and the hostage drama rather slow paced, lacking some of the intrigue or tension seen in other films (such as THE COLD EYES OF FEAR and DAY OF VIOLENCE). It seems to take forever before the tables are turned, and even then the punishments meted out to the oppressors are somewhat languid, ill-fitting the crimes they've committed in the rest of the movie. Staples of the exploitation film are present (a tacked-on sex scene at the beginning; a topless woman being chased through the woods; an unpleasant rape scene) but the violence is surprisingly tame, aside from an often-cut shocking moment involving an innocent kid. It really is all about the racism here, and the script goes overboard as Sanderson taunts the black family with all manner of insults and degradation.
For a sleazy flick like this, the acting is of a pretty good calibre. Sanderson was good enough for Hollywood to come calling, and Robert Judd is very effective as the noble father driven to desperation. I liked Peter Yoshida's almost-mute portrayal of a hulking psychopath and as a whole the actors playing the put-upon family are decent, especially the hard-ass, wheelchair-bound grandmother and the tough-as-nails kid! For a change the other sub-plot, concerning the police investigation, is also interesting with some nice twists and surprises along the way. The criminals do get their just desserts (nice slow-mo at the end there) but it's a long time coming. I'd recommend this film for those who aren't easily offended as a prime example of the kind of stop-at-nothing situations film-makers would resort to in order to get audiences watching back in the '70s).