Los satánicos

This film is a kind of guilty pleasure of mine. It's not that good, but it definitely delivers on the drive-in schlock that made the late 60s and early 70s exploitation films fun. The cast was mostly unknown at the time (most of them still are) with the exception of Russ Tamblyn (still can't get plum roles like in West Side Story). I wouldn't say that it's a true biker film, but it's still pretty wild.

The Sadists stop at a gas station/diner in the middle of nowhere in Death Valley. At this diner there is the old man who runs it, a waitress, a middle age couple on vacation, and an ex-marine who is traveling to California. The gang decides to have a little fun at the diner, but things go sour when the old man tells them to leave. They take it badly and go on to kill everyone except the marine and waitress. The marine kills two of the gang, and then he and the waitress escape into the desert. Of course, the gang chases them down because they don't want any witnesses.

The acting wasn't great, but it sufficed for a low budget biker film. The bikers, of course, were stereotypes of the typical members of biker gangs at the time. There's the sadistic leader (Tamblyn), the acid freak (cleaverly nicknamed acid, those zany bikers), the tough guy, the sex fiend, and leader's strung out girlfriend. Most of these characters were pretty one dimensional, but you really don't need to know much more about them anyway. The plot of the film keeps moving at a decent pace, so I can't find too much of a problem with it. Of course there are some psychedelic scenes (it was the 60s after all) and some interesting deaths. Overall, it wasn't great, but it suffices as an exploitation film and if you get into it it is kind of fun.

MST3K fans look out for the teacher in "Angel's Revenge" as the waitress, and Acid (Greydon Clark, the director of "Angel's Revenge").

In order to get any enjoyment or entertainment, or just dumb-fun in a B-movie (if that) kind of way, like Satan's Sadists (not inappropriately released on DVD in some circles by Troma), is to take into context that it was, of course, the late 60's, and it remains in the sub-genre that is the biker-movie. I almost hesitate to slap the label 'exploitation flick' on it because one would have to take completely into mind what exploitation entails. Maybe there were many (maybe mostly) good-hearted bikers like the ones in Easy Rider that wanted nothing more than to get stoned and ride their wheels without too much trouble. But that is in a particular kind of movie that tries (and succeeds) to rise above the expectations of the enclave of biker movies. For the most part, as with Satan's Sadists and many others, a biker gang with a cool sounding name goes into a town, bothers the habitants to a point of total suspense and shock, and the filmmaker may or may not try to dig a little under the surface, go beyond the expectations up to a point.

One of the things that makes Satan's Sadists work, up to a point, is that producer/director Adamson usually doesn't mistake what it is that he's making. A film like this, when it played (where and if of course being part in question), would just be used as fodder for make-out sections and beer contests for those in the cars at the drive-ins, just good enough to not make anyone start chucking things at the screen. Adamson brings forth all the ideal elements- a gang of six (including the perennial grungy/sexy female) with attitude braced in their eyes and sunglasses, the older straight-laced couple, the good-looking younger couple, and plenty of room for tracking, driving shots of bikes. The gang here of the title run into a cop and his wife, a waitress, another young guy and the owner of a small pit stop in the middle of the California desert.

Basically, describing the plot would be moot; say enough that it is as much of a usual biker film as it is a revenge picture (and usually the two go one in the same with these movies). To Adamson's credit, given a group of non-professional actors (or B/C/D movie actors) that are hit or miss (the bikers are all alright, as are the cop and his wife, but some of the other parts of the younger women are pretty bad), he tends to push some of the boundaries of what can be done within the framework of the structure. We have an idea of what will go on, of course, after a crucial moment in the film, but there are little things, like when the bikes brake-down in the desert, or when other minor female characters are introduced all of a sudden in the desert, or the impromptu dance scene in the restaurant (though that is a staple in many of these flicks, a cool one at that). It's when Adamson sometimes kids himself with what he's doing that it steers away, like a little mini-speech given by the groups leader about 'the man' versus the 'love' generation before a certain murder takes place. And the music, while with a cool opening number, is draining aside from an interesting drum solo here and there.

I wouldn't say to start with Satan's Sadists if you're just starting to get into these kinds of films, as it is relatively hard to find and Adamson, while not without his cult fan-base, was unknown to me before seeing the film and really does nothing more than make your standard genre movie. However it's not to say that within the 'standards' there aren't some creative flourishes. I liked how there was always the one character clinging onto getting stoned and tripped whilst the others went on with their tough business, who even provides a couple of laughs. And where the film heads to is exciting on the most primitive, fast-food sort of level. There are certainly 'better' movies out there, probably with better acting and better use of music and locations. But at least in Adamson there is a little experimentation and touches of daring in his style; little insert close-ups and zooms/pans are interesting, and at times a certain zaniness tries to work its way into the steady shots. If a biker picture, in all of its likely exploitive tendencies and cardboard psychology, is more about attitude and using what is there within the limitations, Satan's Sadists is not bad, though not great.

Coming from a huge fan of the trashy, 1970s, low-budget, motorcycle gang, genre, my comment may be slightly biased. Being a fan of the wonderful Al Adamson might be too much as well. However, as far as sleazy 70s biker flics go, "Satan's Sadists" is indeed one of the better ones. Russ Tamblyn outdoes himself as the whacked out, sadistic leader of the group. His performance is truly fun to watch and he plays the villainous role to the max. The soundtrack is also tons of fun with some memorable "acid" tunes that should have you saying "Wow man!" every 20 minutes or so.

It's a pretty violent entry to the biker genre, but few of them are really "sugary-sweet". "Sadists" however, is maybe a bit above the rest with some real nastiness committed by the title group. For something a little less shocking, "Easy Rider" would be a better choice or even "Hell's Angels On Wheels".

Fans of schlock director Al Adamson have to see/own this one. It's a biker "classic" and deserves high ranking in biker film "Top Tens" right alongside "Northville Cemetery Massacre", "The Glory Stompers" and "The Savage Seven". Enjoy!

There are several things this picture cannot overcome with its very low budget: the pacing is very slow at points, photography is almost amateurish in places (blown up from 16mm, I think), there's filler - too many shots of motorcycle riders moving on the freeway, and lousy dialog/acting. But, there's enough entertainment value for 3 stars from me. The credits song, 'I Was Born Mean...' is just super. Then you have star Tamblyn, the biker leader, overacting or subverting his persona, depending on how you look at it. He makes this weird speech a third of the way in (famous to people familiar with the flic) about how peaceful hippies are persecuted by cops; this is how he justifies his murderous actions (yes, I do this for the hippies, since they're too peaceful to do it). Scott Brady is a cop on vacation and the object of Tamblyn's antagonism. It doesn't explain why Tamblyn kills 3 young women later - what do they have to do with it? He giggles like a madman as even his own fellow biker (Cardos) rebels against such pointless murder.

Is Tamblyn just playing a joke on the audience? Here I am, he seems to be implying, once a nice boy in Hollywood movies. Look at me doing all this crazy stuff! I am one crazy dude. The 2nd half of the pic is all in the bleak desert, with the various surviving characters running about. There are no other police or establishment figures intruding; it's mentioned in the beginning how desolate the area is, that you can go 200 miles(!) without seeing another person. Greydon Clark is amusing as another biker who lives to get stoned on acid or LSD; his goal is to go on a one-way trip. And this was Regina Carrol's first big role, as a biker momma. Some of her dialog, as mentioned, is atrociously dated and poorly delivered besides; pining for Tamblyn, she asks another biker, "doesn't he know I dig him?" So what were they all rebelling against, these lowlife bikers? It's anyone's guess. Like in other such pictures, they just looked bored with everything and spewed moronic rationales out of their dirty little mouths - but the filmmakers put them there. Next was "Dracula vs.Frankenstein" - a reworked biker tale.

I watched this dud just because Russ Tamblyn was in it :why on earth did he have to get involved in that business? Tamblyn plays the leader of a pack of Hell's Angel's who spread panic and bring death and destruction to the region.The prologue is particularly obnoxious : a scene of rape and the victim seems to appreciate bestiality.

But the movie is outright reactionary: that long-haired youth is fatally dangerous ,but fortunately the clean cut kid,a former marine,is here to save the damsel in distress in miniskirt.THe hero utters this hilarious line :"in Vietnam,at least,I was paid when I killed someone".

Russ Tamblyn sank really low :he's best remembered for " the last hunt" "west side story" and the extraordinary horror classic "the haunting" (1963)