Trackdown

I like Trackdown, it's the typical B-movie with bad acting, especially the main character, who has no feelings at all, not even when he saw his sister's corpse in the morgue, some nudity, bullets and blows. Typical of the exploitation of the 70s and 80s, Hollywood Boulevard is used as the epicentre of crime, the characters are looking for luck and who to take advantage of, like that duo in Midnight Cowboy 1969. What I must say, and it's a shame, is that Trackdown lacks a soundtrack to support it firmly, normally this kind of films are supported by songs or musical genres that are in vogue at the time of filming, which gives them a certain air of interest apart from some poor cinematography or script. In short, the 70s are well reflected here cinematically, and it's good for a Sunday afternoon.

Robert Mitchums' eldest son James shows off that trademark Mitchum cool in this mostly routinely written but capably directed little B movie. Whatever it may lack in nuance it makes up for with a pretty solid fun factor. There *is* one sequence that does stand out, and that's a climactic bit of action involving elevators. Otherwise, this is reasonably engaging stuff, written by Paul F. Edwards (based on a story by Ivan Nagy), and directed by Richard T. Heffron ("Futureworld").

Mitchum is good in a low key portrayal of Montana rancher Jim Calhoun, who travels to L.A. in search of his kid sister Betsy (lovely and appealing Karen Lamm ("The Unseen")), who's run away. Soon after she arrived in the city, some lowlifes took advantage of her, and she gets mixed up in a world of prostitution and drugs. At first, Jim is forced to deal with one useless person after another who either can't or won't help. But he does get assistance from Chucho (Erik Estrada), who was one of the young punks that targeted her, but experienced a change of heart. And social worker Lynn (Cathy Lee Crosby) also helps out.

One good thing about "Trackdown" is that it does move forward quite well, maintaining viewer interest consistently. It's got fine cinematography (by Gene Polito) and a nice music score (by Charles Bernstein) going for it. A decent supporting cast also helps matters; young and beautiful Anne Archer is delightful as Barbara, a call girl who shows sympathy towards Betsy, and Vince Cannon is appropriately scummy as nasty mafioso Johnny Dee. The late, great Ray Sharkey plays the small role of Flash and Tony Burton ("Assault on Precinct 13" '76, the "Rocky" series) can be seen as a transvestite.

The character of Jim is worth rooting for, and the story leads towards a final confrontation that packs a good visceral punch. Fans of the action genre will likely see this as an effective diversion.

Seven out of 10.

James Mitchum plays a Montana rancher who goes to the big city to find his runaway sister, who's fallen into the seedy LA underworld. He then takes his down-home style of justice to the big city sleaze peddlers! Mitchum is helped by a local who encountered his sister, Chucho (Erik Estrada), and a local social worker (Cathy Lee Crosby), but it's the evil pimp and sleazy madam, Anne Archer (in what was her breakout role), who Mitchum needs to face down himself. TRACKDOWN's plot is remarkably similar to Paul Schrader's HARDCORE (which came out three years later), where George C. Scott looks for his missing daughter, tracking her down to LA, going down a rabbit hole of the illicit subculture of pornography and snuff films. TRACKDOWN is not as erudite or as disturbing as HARDCORE, but it does deliver the DEATH WISH-like payback you wish Scott was allowed to dish out, and at the same time, does not shy away from the ugliness of prostitution. At the same time, the film might have been stronger if it had a director with more panache, say a J. Lee Thompson or Don Siegel, though TV director Richard T. Heffron does an adequate job. Interestingly, the film is based on a story by Ivan Nagy, who would later become famous as the ex-boyfriend of Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss, whose Anne Archer's character seems eerily similar to. Nagy's firsthand knowledge of the prostitution racket and sex trafficking likely gave the film its uncomfortable realism. Overall, while TRACKDOWN is certainly not high art, it does deliver the exploitation film goods and a gritty realism that I wasn't expecting.

AI CAPSUL REVIEW: Trackdown is a gritty, exploitation-flavored take on Hardcore, with James Mitchum dishing out cowboy justice in the sleazy underbelly of 1970s L. A. While rough around the edges, it delivers raw thrills and unexpected realism, bolstered by early performances from Erik Estrada and Anne Archer.

It might paint itself as a rough and tumble, by-the-numbers 70s revenge thriller and for most part it's typically generic in its story's progression, but there are some strong themes and capable performances by its cast led by Jim Mitchum and Cathy Lee Crosby. There's a brutal and downbeat side to some scenarios, but never does it becomes overly exploitative despite its angle on forced prostitution and underground violence. The bad guys are scum… truly scum. Where the seedy backdrop of Los Angeles breeds crime and those people take advantage of young naïve runaways looking to hit it big in LA. Some sequences do pack a punch and the script, while not entirely rounded does do enough to evoke some emotional pull when it comes to the overall payback.

Sixteen year old Betsy Calhoun flees from her Montana ranch heading to Los Angeles, but her dreams soon become a nightmare when she's kidnapped and sold to a prostitution ring. Her older brother Jim heads to Los Angeles to find her, but finds little help until he meets a social worker and a former gang member who knew of his sister's kidnapping.

Jim Mitchum in the lead role is stolid, but fitting with a more psychical performance told through his facials and in doing so making it more effective. You do feel his pain. He shares good chemistry with a head strong Crosby. Half of the film focuses on his search, while the other follows that of Karen Lamm's wholesome turn as Betsy. Watching how she becomes a prostitute, to how she copes with it and the touching relationship she forms with Anne Archer's prostitute character. Some moments do have a disturbing edge. Not unexpected, but they're powerful because there's enough time invested in these characters. So the story moves between different plot arches before all coming together and offering a surprise or so.

The film looks bare-bones and on the cheap, but it remains authentic with its on shot locations and gritty action exchanges. Nothing about the direction really ignites itself, but there are set-pieces that craft out an exciting barrage of vicious violence. Like the intense gunfire jousting involving moving lifts was a nice touch. Its plain look might have that made for TV feel, but it doesn't hurt it. At times it can be slow and talky, but its steady handling keeps to its strengths and never over delivers on the old-hat set-up.

"You know. You're breaking my chops".

What I will remind of this movie won't be the runaway sister - or daughter - scheme, already been used many times before and since. No, what I will remind is the fantastic, incredible, outstanding elevator shaft gunfight, duel. Maybe the only one in the movie history, with two elevators are in action and cross inside the shaft.... It is a UNIQUE scene. I have seen thousands thousands of films in my life and only this one provided me this sequence. Even in a DIE HARD like action flick, an action film taking place in a building, did not offer us such this element. For the rest, it is an atmosphere productiuon, with typical country music score nearly all long the movie. Nothing special besides this, except a downbeat and unpredictable element near the end, but not IN the end.