Hangfire

My review was written in January 1991 after a Times Square screening.

"Hangfire" is a tight little action thriller about a prison break that attempts to serve as a metaphor for the current Middle East crisis, but strains credibility.

Filmmaker Peter Maris had a rather silly actioner last year, "Ministry of Vengeance", about a clergyman who goes to the Middle East as an avenger. Prior to that, he made two fascinating Bs about Libyan terrorism, "Terror Squad" and "Viper".

This time o9ut, except for a wisecrack about Henry Kissinger-style shuttle diplomacy, the film is ostensibly all-American in content. Character actor Lee de Broux, in a bravura performance, in a bravura performance, plays a serial killer/rapist who leads a prison escape in New Mexico as the cons are being transported to safety to avoid toxic chemical clouds after a truck crash near the pen.

De Broux and his minions take over the town of Sonora and hold its 50 or so inhabitants prisoner. The National Guard is called in, led by gung ho Jan-Michael Vincent, who calls up helicopters and even a tank to do battle.

From the opening ghreat of dangerous chemicals to the emphasis on hostages during a confrontation, scripter Brian Jeffries is obviously shooting for bigger bear in this actioner. However, the film succeeds on a literal level, with effective tension, solid thesping and good stunts.

Local sheriff Brad Davis and his Vietnam vet pal Ken Foree (who excels in Maris assignments such as "Viper") are the secret weapons who manage to defeat de Broux and rescue Davis' wife (Kim Delaney) while the military proves largely ineffectual.

De Broux' no-nonsense portrayal of a heinous villain deserves kudos for not romanticizing the character. Vincent's military man is a stereotype, but the rest of the cast, including Lyle Alzado and Lou Ferrigno for comic relief, is effective.

I was in the mood for a 90s action film and came across this film. On paper the cast alone should make this a winner. Brad Davis, Ken Foree, Yaphet Kotto, and Jan Michael Vincent. One major flaw in this film is the music. It's absolutely terrible. They seemed to try to pair the silliest track possible to whatever was happening on screen at the time. The action was ok, but it felt like a made for television film. I'd swear some of the muzzle flashes were laid in over the weapons fire. I also have to say that Brad Davis could have been replaced by Steve Railsback and no one would have noticed. His actions, manner and cadence of speech are identical to his. Overall this is a simple story with a foregone conclusion that could have been much better if the massive pool of talent had been used better. Jan Michael Vincent seemed to phone in all his roles after a certain point in his career and this feels like one of those moments. It seems like he's thinking, "What would a gruff, asshole, military officer say here?" right before he speaks. Yaphet Kotto was in it so little you could have blinked and missed him. It makes you wonder if he lost a bet. Ken Foree is always reliable no matter what the role.

In the end, this doesn't live up to even some of the B action films the 90s produced in droves. Only watch if you are particularly bored and your phone is dead, because if it isn't you'll find yourself absentmindedly looking at it while this movie plays.

"HANGFIRE" is a truly awful film. Only some nice crashes and a valiant performance by Jan Michael Vincent save this film from Grade Z kitsch. The direction is shoddy, the dialogue is a collection of cliches and much of the acting is amateurish. At times I found myself thinking this was a high school film class production. I also found myself muting the sound and making up more original dialogue to entertain myself. The only reason I watched the video to the end was to see if the quality improves. It doesn't. The only thing I have to recommend this film is the performance of Jan Michael Vincent. His character is a regular army stereotype: brushcut, dark sunglasses, pipe smoking, "will not negotiate" carbon cut out. Vincent actually rises above the formula as a rose in the stinkweed patch.