3:15 p.m.

This title was banned in Queensland, so it must be good! 3:15 (rated R in Australia) is a tense little pot-boiler set at a typical American high-school. The characters and acting help to pull the cliched story line together, which is also true of its cinematic cousin SAVAGE STREETS (cut heavily in this country). There are also some unintentionally funny 1980s dialogue, fashions and attitudes as well. The violence is not as brutal as I expected, but it fits with the tone of the piece. Try to spot Dean Devlin and Gina Gershon. Definitely worth a rental. I wish there was a DVD release.

3:15 (1986) was one of the many 80's "teenage" gangster/ school violence films (the teenagers are usually in there mid to late 20's). Like most of them they're highly entertaining and are filled with the mandatory hardcore violence and the IL' T & A. This one promises an all out mano y mano, hand to hand combat film and guess what? It delivers. No lame cop out story or phony situations that would later destroy this genre. They promise and the filmmakers deliver. Fun stuff, not to be taken serious. Watch out for Adam Baldwin, Mario Van Peebles and Gina Gershon.

Highly recommended (if you can find a copy).

8 ( as a film)

10 (for it's genre)

This is a great school outta control flick from the glorious 80's that's right along the lines of SAVAGE STREETS and CLASS OF 1984. it's got all the necessary goods that those type of flicks require to kick ass: plenty of violence, criminal punks, and even some nudity. i'd much rather see a gang movie with the gangsters rockin studs and chains than todays b-rated fake ass rapper bling bling movies. being a punk rocker myself i was stoked to see one of the kids had the Misfits skull on the back of his jacket. one of the girlies has a Motorhead shirt too! Anyway it's got the typical plot (kinda like CLASS OF 1999 minus the killer cyborgs) where gangs and crime rule the streets and the schools and one of the gang members wants out causing a war with his gang. sure it's way cheesy but that's whats so fun about it. Highly recommended along with CLASS OF 1984, SAVAGE STREETS, CLASS OF 1999, and maybe even SUBURBIA(the one from 1983 of course)

Violence. Drugs. Crumbling turf. Vicious gangs; Charles Bronson ala in Paul Kersey mode would have a field day, but hey this isn't a "Death Wish" film. "3:15" easily ranks up there with the likes of "Class of 1984", "Savage Streets" and "The New Kids" of this 80s wave of violent school gang outings with no-bars hold revenge at its core. Bestowing an outstanding cast; Adam Baldwin (in a perfectly pitched performance) leads the way as Jeff Hanna who use to be in the ruthless street gang "The Cobras", but then he decides to go straight after a confrontation with the leader Cinco (a venomous Danny De La Paz). A year has past, but there's still ill-feeling there. This finally erupts when Cinco blames Hanna for a drug raid at the school which was orchestrated by the principal (a scheming Rene Auberjonois) and led by detective Moran (a neatly sardonic Ed Lauter). Despite the threats Hanna is happy to look the other way, until they threaten to assault his girlfriend (the delightful Deborah Foreman). Then he knows he must take up the offer to finally settle the score.

The plot plays out like a urban western as you have one man finding himself stuck in the middle of something there's no way out of, while without choice taking on the unbelievable odds by standing up, as everyone else just watches on. Standard mechanisms, but on this occasion its very well done, right down to its classic final showdown. Strangely is had me thinking of a very similar film that came out a year later "The Principal", which in the film's climatic showdown between the principal (an excellent James Belushi) and some punks drummed up some striking similarities in how things turn out.

You might call it b-grade, trashy exploitation with a decent looking budget… and you might be right. However its context it isn't trying to simply exploit despite its harsh, brutal details (although it might lie in the shadows to the previously mentioned films' mean-spirited vibe). The pulpy story is a little more thoughtful in its actions and depictions, where the characters have more weight which makes it all the more harrowing and gripping when it unfolds. These are characters trying to prove something (as image becomes an important factor) and just what lengths would they go to do so. Like the frightening expression on Foreman's character's face when she sees Hanna aggressively implode on one of the gang members. That's not saying it doesn't go over-the-top, but these dramatics only enhance the intensity. Director Larry Gross workably keeps the adrenaline levels high, even when it's not trying to be bitingly rough and gusty. It's gritty, edgy but competently staged with a pounding soundtrack to back it up. There are some other interesting faces showing up in the likes of Mario Van Peebles, Wayne Crawford, Scott McGinnis, Gina Gershon and Wings Hauser (who gets even less screen time than the visible boom mike).

My review was written in March 1986 after watching the film at a Times Square screening room.

"3:15" is a weak entry in the trickle of gang rumble films which made some box office noise back when Walter Hill's "The Warriors" was released. Debuting helmer Larry Gross, formerly a screenwriter for Hill, minimizes the action and comes up with a forgettable pic ill-suited to theatrical release. Filmed two years ago, it has been in regional distribution since January.

Adam Baldwin (title roler in "My Bodyguard") is too old to be the high school student here, a former member of the Cobras gang who is now at odds with the Cobras' leader, Danny De La Paz. Crisis comes when a drug bust, organized by cop Ed Lauter, nabs De La Paz and Baldwin refuses to help his former leader. Branded a traitor by most kids at school, Baldwin is also being pressured by principal Rene Auberjonois to fink on his former crony.

On a half-day of school (morning only), Baldwin sets u a final confrontation with De La Paz' gang at, surprise, 3:15 p.m. Showdown is an anticlimax, with only Baldwin's girlfriend Deborah Foreman and a nerd played by Joseph Brutsmancoming to his aid against five armed toughs. Pledges of support to Baldwin from a black gang and an Oriental one amount to nought.

Pic suffers from the absence of action, with fights mainly consisting of kids running down school hallways and stabbing each other. Low budget and weak production values are inferior to a typical telefilm.

Acting is also weak, with Baldwin generating little sympathy in the lead underdog role (he physically towers over the rest of the cast) and Foreman stuck with an inconsistent part, De La Paz is the most impressive performer, upsetting the script's balance since he wins sympathy by virtue of forceful thesping yet is supposed to be the hissable villain. Screenplay skirts over racist conflicts, though the good guys are all white and the bad guys are mainly Chicanos.