Killing Machine

Ernest Borgnine shines in this movie, gracefully acts the part of a simple but sincere back country grandfather with values acquired over a life time of experience. This movie should convince anyone that he is underrated as an actor. Michael J. Pollard, also underrated, portrays a degenerate criminal type very convincingly. The two play roles which bring out the character of the other, and neither actor overplays his part. A movie which should appeal to fans of Charles Bronson's Death Wish movies. Wish it would appear on tv once in awhile.

'Vengeance is Mine' - also known as 'Sunday in the Country' - the plot of this Canadian thriller revolves around three deranged criminals who plan to force their way into a rural property to evade police pursuit. The film takes a while to warm up with over 40 minutes before farmer Ernest Borgnine and his granddaughter encounter the criminals at their home, but from the moment they meet, tension simmers. The film impressively avoids going in expected directions; this is not the typical home invasion film that one might anticipate, and without revealing too much, it can be said that the film questions whether we should sympathise with Borgnine, who overreacts to the home invaders. In fact, as the film wears on, he seems less and less mentally stable, with this gradual progression a testament to Borgnine's acting ability (by comparison, Michael J. Pollard is irritating throughout, even as he grows easier to relate to in the film's second half). Shot on location in rural Ontario, the film benefits from its isolated setting, which at first makes Borgnine seem all the more vulnerable until we realise just how hard it is for absolutely anyone to get help there given how far away the nearest neighbours are. 'Vengeance is Mine' might not have big shocks as in films like 'Straw Dogs' and 'Death Wish', to which it is often compared, but it comes with a quiet power and lingers in the mind long after it is over.

***SPOILERS*** Pulling off a number of bank robberies that resulted in the deaths of two bank tellers this trio of ruthless gangsters run into two local youths on the side of the road in the open countryside. Needing a different car, with new license plates, the three bank robbers Dineili Ackerman and LeRoy, Louis Zorich Cec Linder & Michael J. Pollard, cold-bloody gun down the driver Timmy Peterson, Ralph Endersby, and his girlfriend Jennifer Logan, Susan Petrie, and then head for the open highway.

Finding that all the roads out of Field County are blocked by local and highway police the three take off on foot looking for a place to stay until the heat's off and then make their escape. Seeing this farm in, what seems like, the middle of nowhere the three killers descend on it like a pack of wolves first cutting the phone lines and then pompously walking up to the front door to make their grand and murderous entrance; they didn't know it at the time but they'll find out soon enough that they walked right into the teeth of hell.

Disturbing and violent vigilante-like movie that leaves you in a state of shock with Ernest Borgnine as the peaceful and church going farmer Adam Smith. Adam uses his own brand of biblical justice, to avenge the blood of those who these three murderers spilled, that in a way made him far more vicious then his gangster victims.

At home with his grand daughter Lucy, Hollis McLaren, Adam spots through the window the killers moving in on his house and, knowing who they are and what they did from radio reports, sets a trap for them. Blasting the #1 man, Dineili, of the trio almost in half with his shotgun as he was allowed by Adam to entered the house Adam takes the other two, Ackerman and LeRoy, prisoner and puts them through such a hell that in the end they wished that the police got to them before Adam did.

Even though Adam Smith is well within his rights to defend his home and farm from the three criminal desperadoes what he did to them makes you wonder just who's more of the villain and psychopath in the film him or they. Instead of holding the two remanding bank robbers captive until the police come to take them into custody, like his grand daughter Lucy wanted him to do, Adam put them though the ringer by almost hanging them in his basement, with only their tip toes keeping them for getting strangled. Later Adam has Ackerman run for his truck, to drive back to town and get the police to come over, as he turns his two dogs Peter & Paul on Akerman who tear him to pieces.

LeRoy the most vicious of the three who Adam really wanted to do in gets saved by the police, whom Lucy got to come over, but later carjacks the patrol car killing the two officers. It's then when LeRoy comes back to the farm to get even with what Adam did to him that turned out to be the biggest, and last, mistake he was ever to make.

Even though Adam Smith is the avenging angel in the movie it's hard to really like him even though he saves everyone, himself his grand daughter Lucy and farm hand Luke (Vladimir Valerta), from the three killers. I just wondered how many people watching the movie would want him as a next door neighbor!

It's pretty obvious that this is a revenge film and it's one of the best of the genre. Not quite as gory as the box would lead you to believe, it's still got nasty wounds. The two main actors have been in about a thousand movies each, so you will be happy to see a couple of familiar faces. Great morbid country music is well placed in the film. It's not the best story ever written, but I could sympathize with most of the characters.

Sunday in the Country is another one of those downbeat seventies thrillers, although it doesn't seem to take influence from the likes of The Last House on the Left despite its sadistic nature and torture-themed plot. The film takes in ideas of justice and whether or not a normal man can be justified in taking the law into his own hands as we follow three bank robbers who wind up at a country home where a man has plans not to let the police deal with them and instead decides to lock them in his basement and deal out justice himself, much to the dismay of his granddaughter who doesn't take kindly to his sadistic intent. The film builds tension by way of constantly putting the idea of whether or not the man will kill the robbers himself. This might not sound too interesting, but director John Trent does a good job of ensuring that the vigilante themes work well. Ernest Borgnine doesn't exactly show off his full talent in the lead role, but still brings credence and believability to a man who wants justice on his own terms. The rest of the cast aren't too good, but nobody performs below the standard of a B-movie picture like this. The country atmosphere is well shown, and even though the locations aren't stunning, they bode well with the feel of the movie. Overall, I can't say that this is a great film; but it's certainly a good one and comes recommended to fans of seventies cult cinema.