Backfire

Some of the best thrillers I've seen got incognito releases in the eighties (Michael Winner's "classic" Scream for Help springs to mind!) and Backfire is another decent little thrill ride from the best decade for trash movies. This film does well in that the plot is simple and easy to follow, yet it still manages to keep you guessing all the way through. Don't get me wrong, I love a good complicated thriller; but sometimes keeping things simple can work just as well, and Backfire goes some way to proving that. The film, like many American movies, has a backbone that centres on the Vietnam War and how it invades the lives of those that fought in it. Donny is a Vietnam Veteran who supposedly lives a perfect with his lovely wife Mara in their nice big house. However, he is plagued by nightmares of the war he fought in, and when these nightmares start to become reality; it would seem that there is foul play involved. But, all is not what it seems and the plot thickens when Mara meets a stranger in a bar.

It has to be said that the character drawings are not particularly impressive and could have used some work to make the film work better than it does, but the script is generally good enough to hold the plot up and keep things flowing well. The cast isn't overly impressive either and doesn't feature any massive names, though the actors involved fill their roles fairly well. The female lead is Karen Allen, who you may remember as the leading lady in Raiders of the Lost Ark, while there are also roles for Keith Carradine and Jeff Fahey. The film doesn't have much in the way of atmosphere, though the war themes are well utilised. Many eighties thrillers were of the 'steamy' variety, and it has to be said that there isn't a lot of that here. There isn't much in the way of violence either, so the film mostly relies on drama to portray the story, and that seems to work pretty well. I have to say that the ending came as something of a surprise as I thought it was all building into something much impressive! Still, if you get a chance to see this you might as well; there are certainly worse films out there!

I was an extra on this film, which was made in Victoria, BC, Canada in 1986, and wanted to share the "behind the scenes" stuff: most of the actors were friendly, especially Karen Allen who would play touch football while waiting for shooting; I worked in scenes with Jeff Fahey who prepared intensely, and it was interesting to see the acting process; and the Director's son hung around and was an extra as well, when he wasn't cruising the town in a rented Chrysler convertible. The director himself was extremely reserved and almost seemed to be immobile, leaving preparation to Tak Fujimoto, who has done some great work aside from this little $6 Million movie. The make-up and costume people were also great, and the set had an almost carnival atmosphere. When I finally did see the movie, I thought it wasn't too bad. It is certainly an interesting moment in the careers of the fairly well-known group of actors that were in it.

A shell shocked Vietnam Vet (played by Jeff Fahey) is driven over the brink by his greedy wife (Karen Allen) and her boyfriend.

Although the idea of this film is pretty interesting, and the cast is pretty good, unfortunately the script is not good enough to really make the story work. This makes the movie kind of predictable. Karen Allen chews up the scenery, and steams up the screen in a few nude scenes, as the greedy young wife born on the wrong side of the tracks in a small town.

Overall this movie is worth a watch, especially if you are a Karen Allen fan, but not nearly as great as it could be.

This movie absolutely deserves a digital remaster and Blu-Ray release. It seems to have vanished into obscurity since the 1980's, and it's such a shame.

Being a huge Karen Allen fan, I'd been meaning to watch this movie since 1987, but the bizarre and vague poster of a pair of woman's legs never really inspired me to try. Having now, finally watched Backfire in 2024, I can honestly say womever designed that poster made a huge mistake - this movie is truly outstanding for its time, and the cheap poster nowhere near does it justice.

The plot is great, with lots of twists that kept me guessing right up until the end. The performances, especially from Karen Allen, are top notch. She really is superb in this movie. It was quite violent and gory in places, which i wasn't expecting - again, thanks to that awful poster! It has a very dark and creepy feel to it, and whomever the D. O. P. Was did a terriffic job.

I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it, but do try and dig this one up, it's very much worth a watch. It's just such a shame it's so hard to track down, they really should remaster and re-release this one - it's top notch stuff.

"Backfire" is a reasonably well-made little thriller. Consistently interesting and well-paced, it keeps you guessing all the way. But when "everything" is gradually revealed, the whole thing doesn't add up to anything really extraordinary. And the ending is somewhat muddled; maybe some further explanations would have helped us to set everything straight in our minds. An agreeably absorbing film, but don't expect TOO much....