Enemy Territory

This flick is a good representative of the 80's underrated B-movies, that gets you not by the quality, but specially by the lack of it. The best thing is when a movie does not take itself seriously, the essence of a nice low-budget production. The acting is poor and over the top, the surroundings are clearly used from another pictures done before, very goofy lines and involuntary humor. And you gotta love it! All these are present here, helped by the reverse Midas touch of the prolific producer Charles Band, notorious for his Roger Corman wannabe personality, that guarantees the fun for a penny. In the story, a phone company worker (Ray Parker Jr., whose sole glory was the making of the hit song "Ghostbusters", in his acting debut) is caught up in the middle of a crisis with a violent street gang called the Vampires, that control a project building where a rundown insurance salesman played by Gary Frank stepped on the wrong toe by touching a gang member after dark; the Vampires leader, The Count (Tony Todd), wants blood to make amends and the duo must fight for their lives until the sun comes up, with the helping hand of some courageous inhabitants. This suspense is OK, the situations are OK, I am OK and you are OK. Be OK by watching this OK movie. You'll feel just OK after.

I was put on to this film by a friend of mine. It's a great flick with a good pace and interesting characters. Admitted some of the acting is a little shameful, but Jan Michael Vincent supplies us with a solid performance as the gruff ass kicking paraplegic with Knives in his wheel chair (how cool is that?). If you enjoyed the Warriors than this is definitely worth a watch.

But why is this not on DVD? Have searched high and low and can't find it anywhere.

Had to watch in poor VHS quality with German subs which was a little annoying, but did not detract from my enjoyment of the film.

Though made in 1987, 'Enemy Territory' most resembles a drive-in exploitation movie from the seventies. Silly script, over-acting by all concerned, non-stop action and a dated 'urban' soundtrack all mean one thing - FUN!!! I've seen this countless times now, but enjoy it at every viewing. Pretty hard to find (and still no DVD release) but worth it for those seeking a 'drive-in' fix......8/10

A nice assortment of characters, are terrorized by a gang called the "Vampires", while desperately trying to escape from a "project" high rise. The strength of this film is having very sympathetic heroes, Gary Frank, and Ray Parker Jr., interacting with likable tenants, including Jan Michael Vincent playing a whacked Vietnam Vet. The "Vampire"gang are all generic, unmemorable, minority thugs, with the notable exception of "The Count". The movie is both claustrophobic, and a real stretch of realism, but is nevertheless entertaining. Considering the limited budget, "Enemy Territory" is a surprisingly good film..... - MERK

Insurance salesman Barry (Gary Frank) visits an urban ghetto to sell insurance to a client and has a run in with a young member of a vicious street gang called the Vampires. This gang runs the district. Soon their leader, aptly named 'The Count' (Tony Todd) hears about this and wants Barry dead. Barry is trapped in the apartment building with no way out; we soon see the murder of an elderly cop who tries to protect Barry so we know the gang mean business. Barry teams up with Ray Parker Jnr and they also enlist the help of the only man the gang supposedly fears, the wheelchair bound Parker, a Vietnam War veteran, (played by Jan-Michael Vincent). However they are totally outnumbered. The vampires are after blood.

The film is fast paced and entertaining but does has strong violence and racism in as well so be warned. Sadly this film is hard to find and seems to have disappeared since the VHS days. Ray Parker Jnr is first class and you question why he never became a mega star. Tony Todd is a great presence as always and it's sad that Candy man was the height of his career, he deserved better. He does seem to enjoy himself in the role as the count. Jan-Michael Vincent completes a great cast. Also a great music soundtrack from the Boogie boys an American hip hop band group from New York, where this film was shot. The band sadly spilt up a year after this film was made.

Watch out for the clever ending; note the gang are called Vampires when you look for this. This film is worth the effort to hunt down even if it's only an old VHS you can find. Deserves a DVD release.