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Low-Budget American-Italian Revenge Plot.

Personalized by an American Computer Programmer Stationed in Italy.

Last Film From the Celebrated Director Dymytryk Known for "Crossfire" (1947), "Murder My Sweet" (1944), "The Caine Mutiny" (1954), and Others.

His Hollywood Career became Exiled by the HUAC Witch-Hunt.

Intense Film, Anchored by a Determined, No-Nonsense George Kennedy.

After His Family is Executed, a Near-Suicidal Kennedy Regroups and Sets-Out on a Vendetta Against the Terrorist Responsible.

His Family, as it Turns was a Random Display of Activity to Extort Money and Prisoner Release.

Killing American Families Until Demands are Met.

The Computer Organization who Employs the Juggernaut who is Kennedy is Linked to the U. S. Govt and Specifically the Military.

Gets Help from Friendly Insiders and the Hunt is On.

Taut, Violent, and Suspenseful Film with a Surprisingly Effective Combination of Brains and Brawn from a Limited Actor.

Gritty, Far-Fetched, Wild and Primitive Display of 1975 Embryonic Computer Technology.

Films Date this Sort of Thing Profoundly and is Always an Awkward Attraction.

A Hidden-Gem Discovery.

Despite the Stone-Age Distraction of the Computers and the Hubris of its Overseer's Imaginary Capabilities,

The Film is Definitely...

Worth a Watch.

A British suspense-thriller; A story about a middle-aged NATO electronics expert who aims to track down the killers of his family, aided by a colleague and access to an early version of the internet. This film, based on a novel by Simon Quinn, has a theme about how blood vengeance consumes to the point of self-destruction. The film has conviction and carries a modicum of suspense. George Kennedy's arresting performance as a middle-aged nerd, an everyman, hulking around Campania and Lazio like an out-of-control ox, lends a touch of realism to his scenes of lex talionis but it means the emotional cards fail to stack fully in his favour. Ennio Morricone's score responds with just the right emotional tone throughout.

"The Human Factor" is a typical revenge movie in the wake of "Dirty Harry", "Death Wish" and "Straw Dogs" with an American special agent and computer specialist in Italy losing his family by a terrorist's assault at his home and taking bloody revenge.

This British-Italian co-production from 1975 contains many typical subplots of the seventies - conspiracy movies, secret agent films, left-winged political terrorism, high-tech-computers and revenge dramas. George Kennedy plays the hero and does a good job as hard-edged, desperate family father turning to a merciless killer, although he is no Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson. Especially in a long hunting scene overweight Kennedy seems to be very out of breath...

The scripts lacks a bit of logic sometimes, as the real motivation of the terrorist group is never really explained, but all in all the film keeps the action, thrills and suspense always going and adds some very scary moments and furious action sequences, especially the big showdown in a supermarket. Ennio Morricone's sound tracks puts even more thrills and atmosphere to this dark political thriller that can be seen as a "sleeper" for fans of seventies' hardcore action cinema. Recommended!

Recently watched this film after not seeing it for many years and it brought back many memories. I was stationed on the AFSOUTH NATO base at the time and the camera crews were there a few days doing exterior shots of the cast in some scenes. It was strange seeing this as I had just arrived there not long before and was even stranger to see the finished film at the base theater after it was released. Every time a scene would pop up showing the base or other recognizable spots (like the Navy Exchange at the climax) the audience would cheer. Not one of the best thrillers I'd seen but they did an adequate job for what it was probably budgeted for. I agree with some of the review that the cast seemed to be miscast (Kennedy never came across to me as the sort of actor that would be the lead in a film) and a bit long in the tooth. Overall everyone I knew enjoyed it but thought it could have been better. Sophia Loren also did scenes on the base in another film though it was filmed when I was not there and I'm sorry to say I can't recall it's title - though I think it was about her helping an orphaned girl.

"The Human Factor" was made in 1975, which means it's turning 40 years old this year. And yet, the themes and several aspects that feature here are still painfully relevant nowadays as well. I'm writing this user-comment in January 2015, not even two weeks after the cowardly terrorist attack in Paris, France, and still during the aftermath of numerous terror alerts all across Europe. The film centers on American families being the unwary and innocent targets of ruthless Italian left-wing terrorists. Whether for political or religious reasons, embassies and authorities in various countries are still protecting their compatriots that work abroad out of fear for kidnapping or murder. It's truly sad to see that the world hasn't changed one bit and that humanity is still as selfish and extreme as it ever was. But hey, I'm just supposed to write a review… The final project of director Edward Dmytryk, who was particularly famous in the forties & fifties thanks to movies like "Crossfire" and "The Caine Mutiny", is a tense and engaging action/thriller with a handful of harshly violent sequences and a remarkable lead role for veteran actor George Kennedy. He stars as NATO computer specialist John Kingsdale, working in Naples and playing computer games with his friendly colleague most of the time. But when he returns home to his beloved wife and three children one night, they have been viciously massacred by unknown assailants for an unknown reason. After the funeral the deeply saddened John hesitates one moment to shoot himself through the head, but he shoots the TV-screen instead and vows to personally track down his family's killers. With the help of his colleague and their computer equipment, John discovers that he deals with a group of terrorists that invade the homes of American families through responding to newspaper ads. He prevents another massacre, but meanwhile John himself is also chased by the local authorities. "The Human Factor" is an overall very solid vigilante/revenge thriller. The script is occasionally tedious and confusing due to all the computer slang, especially during the first half of the film, but this is widely compensated during the explosive final act, with a furious battle in a Naples' backstreet alley and a gritty finale inside a crowded supermarket. Several people pointed out that George Kennedy was an odd choice to play the mad avenger, but he's a terrific all-around actor and brings more realism to the part. If, for example, Charles Bronson would have played John Kingsdale, "The Human Factor" would have been more stereotypical and a lot less persuasive. Recommended!