The Rage - Im Rausch der Gewalt

As I happened to stumble upon this 1997 action thriller here in 2024, I opted to sit down and watch it, since it was a movie that I hadn't already seen, nor actually ever heard about.

I didn't know what I was in for here, so writers Sidney J. Furie and Greg Mellott had every opportunity to impress and entertain me with their movie. It was an okay enough script, but definitely had its flaws and shortcomings. I love how police officers and FBI just randomly shoot their weapons at vehicles without regards for bystanders and such.

A large portion of the movie was spent showing police officers and FBI agents on foot standing and shooting at driving vehicles or running and shooting at driving vehicles.

The dialogue in the movie was pretty terrible. It was poorly written, the actors and actresses didn't really have much to work with.

There are some familiar faces on the cast list in this movie, with the likes of Gary Busey, Lorenzo Lamas, Roy Scheider, David Carradine and Jeff Doucette. The acting performances were fair enough, though you're not in for an evening of Shakespearian theater here. I wasn't familiar with female leading actress Kristen Cloke, but talk about delivering a wooden performance of a staggering slaughter of dialogue.

Not a great movie, nor a movie that I will ever return to watch a second time. There are far better action thrillers readily available.

My rating of director Sidney J. Furie's 1997 movie "The Rage" lands on a five out of ten stars.

Dower Mindhunter agent Travis (Lamas) teams up with sexy/sparky FBI pistol Kelly McCord (Kristen Cloke) to track down degenerate serial killer Art Dacy (Gary Busey) in this distractingly lively Canadian action thriller. While The Rage proves no less formulaic than squeezey cheese, it remains equally moorish. Like many similarly routine DTV shoot 'em ups, the entertainment quotient is hugely boosted by the live wire presence of magnetic mentalist Gary Busey. The able cast's performances are solid, text provides moments of unintentionally amusing bathos, and no balanced, copiously corn-enriched B-Movie diet is complete without at least one fully loaded Busey/Lamas bullet burger! Furie mounts some explosive action, constructing an especially dynamic vehicular tussle betwixt chewed-up car and truck that is genuinely thrilling to behold! Arguably, the film's strongest appeal will be to trigger-happy recidivist DTV addicts and Gary Busey freaks. Personal highlights include, Lamas's earnest delivery of his 'Live Long and Prosper' line, beautifully batso Busey's toothsome terror tactics, and whoever did the gnarly fire stunt on the lake clearly had some monster cojones!!!!!

What a show! Lorenzo Lamas once again proves his talent as a cop who committed the worst crime a good cop can commit, by being a good cop. Then, again, he shows how sensitive a cop can be, displaying a range of emotions like no other actor can except, maybe, himself in Terminal justice.

HUGE ENJOYMENT!

I saw this 1997 movie because I am a fan of Lorenzo Lamas (and of his father, the late Fernando Lamas). In my opinion, Lorenzo looked his best in this film, mostly due to his hairstyle and the preppy wardrobe that were flattering to him.

As the plot progressed, I realized the movie was more than just entertainment or a reason to see a favorite actor. The story was about a ring of serial killers and the attempts of law enforcement to investigate the ring and bring the members to justice. There was adequate suspense, and I believe the violence was necessary to relate the story to the viewer.

At the end of the film I was shocked to learn the film is the true account of horrendous murders that occurred in Utah. Furthermore, Lorenzo and his leading lady were portraying actual FBI agents who solved the disappearances of many young women and contributed to the apprehension of the ring. I believe the film is worthwhile as it informs the public about the dangers and capabilities of the criminal element.

Too bad, I really like Kristen Cloke and Gary Busey. But the director failed to put this together. There's a lot of action, a lot of promise, but it all comes off hokey. The director didn't do his job. Promising action comes off lame. So much seems contrived in a desperate attempt to save the film. This version of "The Rage" (DirecTV credits it as 1996) simply isn't worth the time to watch it. Another director would have done a better job.