Billy Jack

I recall seeing this movie at the theater. At the time I was a teenager ripe for the anti-establishment theme (and thrilled with the "cool " violence in the movie). I thought it was the greatest movie ever made. On re-viewing it recently, I couldn't believe how stupid I was. This movie is so bad it is laughable. You can almost feel the characters straining to get their point across. The plot is simplistic and the acting is. Of course, things have changed in nearly 30 years. My taste in movies is one of them.

Before the smug heroics of Steven Segal's characters there was Billy Jack, the original self proclaimed savior with an attitude. If you like to see self-righteous jerks stylishly beating up even bigger jerks then this is your movie. Each fight scene is setup explicitly for Jack to do an affected restraint merely as a taunt before dispensing his own brand of justice. The spoiled, morally depraved Bernard seems to exist only for the purpose of angering the audience and thus justifying his punishments at the hands and feet of Jack.

Ostensibly about taking a stand against a corrupt authority and abusive bigots 'Billy Jack' is mostly a guilty pleasure for pacifists who feel they've been pushed around long enough. Jack's own claims of trying to be less violent seem hollow as he relishes every punishment he dishes out. He functions as the darker id or alter ego of the peace-love generation.

If not taken nearly as seriously as it wants to be 'Billy Jack' can be enjoyed for it's low budget earnestness, in spite of its somewhat conflicted messages.

This movie takes me back to 1969 (when it was first started) Also: note the high school football schedule for 1969 on the ice cream shop door with the school name marked out to preserve its anonymity). You really had to live through these days to appreciate the fact that some people really did think and act like the actors in this film.While all hippies were certainly NOT non-violent, this film earnestly tries to present an enlightened message to an adult audience that at that time was not the most socially aware in the world. =)And yes, people really did say things like: "Damn hippies! They oughtta get their hair cut! they're ruining the country!!"

The New Left movement which really became influential around 1972 and years following was the hippie fringe in 69.

This movie is simply a lot of fun. To insist it be more than that is unrealistic. It was independently produced by a guy (Laughlin) who believed in his message, wrote it and called all the shots himself. Its really not bad taken in that context. The little blonde girl singing the anti-war song is Tom and Delores' real life daughter Theresa. The comedy troupes used to appear on shows like the Smothers Brothers and were considered "way out". =) (amazing how cynical we've become isn't it??) While most of America in those days was more like the townspeople than the school people, it is still very very entertaining to see those days played out again.

Well, Billy Jack was not at all what I had expected. I had heard of the movie and thought it was some kind of kung fu cult movie, but really didn't know what to expect. The movie blew me away! OK, so the acting can be a little cheesy at times, but how many movies from that era are not cheesy in some way? At any rate, Billy Jack is a true American hero. What I love about the movie is that it is focused on very important subject matter, but portrays it in such an unconventional and unique way. Billy Jack is a character of all characters. His mannerisms are hysterical. He shows such intense frustration when he knows he's going to have to kick someone's butt, and that makes his character what it is. He's an ex-green beret and he can surely kick some serious bad guy butt if he has to, but he is also a man with a big heart and his life's mission is to protect the native Americans and hippies who are either too weak or too peaceful to fight for themselves. And he loves Jean, loves her with all his heart and knows that he is the only one who can protect her and protect what is important to her. His character is portrayed in such a way that you can see the internal struggle in his eyes and hear it in his voice when he is faced with a situation where some biggot butts need kickin'. Billy Jack is a true classic and a movie that will stick with me for the rest of my life.

Seeing this film back in '71 when it first came out did very much to change my attitudes and commentaries. Only in the old days would a movie like this create such a great change in a persons psyche. I'm very glad I discovered this film when I did and even though the production and acting qualities are pretty 'low' this movie definitely is a 'must see' for everyone. Enjoy.