Tag der Angst

Well I would like to comment on Chris's comment about this movie was dismal and the plot was shallow. How can something that happened in REAL life be shallow and dismal. How do I know this actually happened? I used to live in a small town next to the town in which this event took place and friends of my family and some of my family had run-ins with the guy in which Brian Dennehy portrayed. As for the movie I thought it was very good. Brian Dennehy played the part perfectly and I also thought the plot told a pretty accurate story of how this family tormented the people in that small community . And to this day those people have not said a word about what happened that day. Now that is justice

The town bully, a dangerous thug, runs roughshod over the entire town including the ineffective town marshal. Fear of this oaf and his cruel family allowed him to intimidate and injure several folks. Ultimately, these animals are dealt with by the only means they will ever understand...brute force. When dealing with trash like this man and his family, the decision to quell his activities should not be long in making.

The names were changed but it's based on a true story of the events in Skidmore, Missouri and the real villain was Ken McElroy who was very much like John Gotti without the class, style, and grace of his demeanor. He had fathered children with two women who lived together. No, not because he's a polygamist. In this movie, the McElroy character is played chillingly by Brian Dennehy who is one of America's finest actors on stage, film or television.

Oscar Winner Marcia Gay Harden plays one of his wives with a depth that is easily overlooked. Oscar Winner Cloris Leachman plays one of the man's many victims. No matter what this character did, the law and justice system failed to protect this small Missouri town so they took justice into their own hands. As Leachman's character states at the end "If you live by the sword, you die the sword." The book entitled In Broad Daylight is equally riveting but adds another level of understanding of how a man like this can exist in the first place.

Brian Dennehy paints a portrait of a truly sociopathic personality in this film. Plot twists are minimal simply because this is a true story. His characterization is all he has to work with, and Brian makes the most of it. He is by turns charming, threatening, homicidal and, all in all, just plain evil, a spoiled redneck who just can't imagine ever being called down for his activities.

Worse, he has intelligence to go with his warped mind.

We live in this character's part of the country and, believe me, people like this exist.

Not a great film, but the characterization will not only engross you, it'll probably scare the hell out of you.

Chris thought the plot was weak, I'm a Law Enforcement Officer in Northwest Missouri, the story is all too real! Here is a short review from the book of the same title. This movie/book was based on a REAL crime that occurred in Skidmore, MO in 1981.

From Publishers Weekly - Ken Rex McElroy terrorized the residents of several counties in northwestern Missouri for a score of years. He raped young girls and brutalized them after they went to live with him or even married him; he shot at least two men; he stole cattle and hogs, and burned down the houses of some who interfered with his criminal activities. Thanks to the expert efforts of his lawyer and the pro-defendant bias of state laws, he served no more than a few days in jail, the author shows. In 1981, sentenced for the shooting of a popular grocer and free on bail, he was killed by the men of Skidmore, the center of his felonies; they closed ranks against all attempts to identify those who had pulled the triggers. Written by a first-time author, this is an engrossing, credible examination of the way vigilante action can take over when the law appears to be powerless.

BOMC and QPBC alternates. Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.