I've called the police just once in my life. Last New Year's Eve, somebody drove through my neighbor's fence, and I figured I'd call it in. Turns out, the lady on the phone didn't really give a shit. Do you know who did it? Um, no. Well, then. There's nothing we can do. Imagine if this were their attitude on a larger scale, saaaaay the murder of your family. Then what? Well, if yesterday's flick taught me anything, there's only one thing you can do. Let the system take care of it. Wait, what?
Vigilante is awesome. Sure, I have an inordinate amount of man-love for Robert Forster, but regardless, this revenge-flick is a good time. Released in 1983, this one doesn't imply anything. The bad guys look, sound and act like bad guys (actually, really bad motherf--kers, honestly). The good guys are fed up with this, and decide to do something about. Pretty simple, right? Well, yeah. Kind of.
New York City, according to this flick, is a steaming pile of human waste. They are recording forty homicides a day, and the police have lost control. Our main man Nick (played by the ever-badass, Fred Williamson), has had enough of this shit, and he and his two friends are taking matters into their own hands. Enter family man Eddie (Forster, younger but still a force), who's simply interested in making a little more scratch at work so he can take the wife and kid to Florida.
Though friends, these two guys don't see eye-to-eye on the whole vigilante justice matter. Eddie believes in the system, while Nick believes in cutting bitches and knees to the face. Well, after an incident with Nick's family, let's just say all Hell breaks loose. I'm sure you've seen a revenge flick before, but after you get a peek at what happens to Nick, you might find yourself bloodthirsty, too. Then, everything that was pretty straightforward, pretty black-and-white, well...they start to get gray. Blood gray.
Okay, that didn't make sense. But watching Forster and Williamson kick ass does. I was surprised at how quickly I was buying what director William Lustig was selling. Trust me, it won't take you long. The flick opens with a pretty lengthy speech by Williamson detailing the sad state of affairs the city has found itself in. If you roll your eyes at all, just get out now. But me? I ran to the shed to get a tire iron and some old bike chains.
 | |
| Can you hear the ominous synthesizer? I can. | . |
New York City, according to this flick, is a steaming pile of human waste. They are recording forty homicides a day, and the police have lost control. Our main man Nick (played by the ever-badass, Fred Williamson), has had enough of this shit, and he and his two friends are taking matters into their own hands. Enter family man Eddie (Forster, younger but still a force), who's simply interested in making a little more scratch at work so he can take the wife and kid to Florida.
Though friends, these two guys don't see eye-to-eye on the whole vigilante justice matter. Eddie believes in the system, while Nick believes in cutting bitches and knees to the face. Well, after an incident with Nick's family, let's just say all Hell breaks loose. I'm sure you've seen a revenge flick before, but after you get a peek at what happens to Nick, you might find yourself bloodthirsty, too. Then, everything that was pretty straightforward, pretty black-and-white, well...they start to get gray. Blood gray.
Okay, that didn't make sense. But watching Forster and Williamson kick ass does. I was surprised at how quickly I was buying what director William Lustig was selling. Trust me, it won't take you long. The flick opens with a pretty lengthy speech by Williamson detailing the sad state of affairs the city has found itself in. If you roll your eyes at all, just get out now. But me? I ran to the shed to get a tire iron and some old bike chains.
