Savage Dawn

This is the typical bad late night movie you would expect to see on cable. The movie is about a man who comes to town to save it from a bunch of bikers who have taken over. Some parts were pretty comical, but as far as biker movies go there are a bunch of them out there that are far better than this garbage. You know it's bad when you actually start rooting for the bikers.

Overall its ok... Its got action and nudity.

I personally find it annoying because like usual: you have people doing alot of talking and threatening and everyone stands around and waits until after the big bad guy does what he says he will...

What they should have done was (knowing the actions these big bad guys have been seen doing) as they started spouting trash and making threats shot them right there. Here you have rapists & murderers in a violent gang terrorizing the local citizenry, making threats on your life and the lives of the town... BOOM. ...BOOM BOOM BOOM (until they run off and stop yapping) and everytime they start yapping again BOMM BOOM BOOM I could point out multiple times they could have stopped this movies plot from happening with just a handful of changes and a handful of ammunition.

George Kennedy is in a wheelchair, and builds rocket grenades in his barn. Lance Henriksen is the bleach blonde hero, but vanishes for long periods of the film. Karen Black mumbles her lines throughout. Richard Lynch plays a priest with impure thoughts and lusts after biker chicks. William Forsythe is the gang leader who steals a tank, to add to the ridiculous mayhem. The movie basically has no plot, just a series of explosions between poorly choreographed fist fights. Despite the intriguing cast, "Savage Dawn" is one to avoid, even for fans of the actors. It is on a trifecta DVD with "Drug Traffikers", and "Caged Fury", which I have not yet viewed, but they will have to go some to be worse than "Savage Dawn". ....... - MERK

A word of advice to those that haven't seen this one: do *not* take it seriously. As written by Bill Milling and directed by Simon Nuchtern, this mid-80s update of '60s and '70s biker flicks is pretty damn stupid. But it's a pretty funny kind of stupid. Milling & Nuchtern throw in everything, *including* the kitchen sink, for the sake of a good show. A rich variety of B movie perennials and a heavy dose of chaotic action make this a hoot to watch. Millings' dialogue is often absurd, and his characters are a bunch of cartoons.

Lance Henriksen stars (although George Kennedy is top-billed) as a bike-riding loner who comes to the small Southern town of Agua Dulce to visit his old friend Kennedy. At the same time, other strangers arrive: a bunch of trouble-making bikers who paint the town blood red. Kennedy, who's good at making homemade weapons, Henriksen, and assorted townspeople bring the fight to the bikers.

Punctuated by atmospheric music from ever-reliable Pino Donaggio, "Savage Dawn" offers up plenty of violence, and doesn't seem to ever concern itself with being logical or probable. Henriksen and Kennedy are effective heroes, while a strutting William Forsythe plays the main heavy (he and Henriksen were on the same side six years later in another biker-themed favourite, "Stone Cold"). Forsythe does look like he's having a great time. Karen Black has a particularly ridiculous role as a town harpy who *hates* the place and throws in with the villains the first chance she gets. Sam Kinison makes his film debut in a priceless role as a Born Again barber who annoys the hell out of a biker named Zero (musician / character actor Mickey Jones). Richard Lynch has a change of pace role as a simpering, impotent preacher / mayor. Other familiar faces include Lewis Van Bergen, Leo Gordon, Michael Sharrett, and Claudia Udy.

One highlight (or low point, depending on your sensibilities): a catfight between Black and Udy that seems to go on for days.

Six out of 10.

A drifter, loner and ex military badass "Stryker" visits an old friend in an odd town and encounters a Biker Gang who are bent out of shape in destroying the town. Plenty of trashiness, senseless villains who just want to cause havoc with that 80's over-the-top flare. Don't watch with any expectations except to kill some late night movie time, but It has plenty of cheese to keep you watching even if you don't try. Despite the mediocre script, and moments you will laugh at some dialog, William Forsythe still shows his acting chops here early in his career playing the bike gang leader and of course Lance Henriksen holds his ground.