Philadelphia security

I love these 1970s and early 80s gritty movies, and in this regard, the film delivers. The large old American cars, the street scenery, the police, etc. all has that feel that you don't get in today's movie. But overall, the film fails to deliver. By the middle of the movie I was starting to get bored waiting for something more interesting to happen. Much of the movie is also unrealistic. The police seem virtually non-existent, which is not genuine (even if the point is that a neighborhood watch is needed). The rivalry with the pimp also made no sense, there were a series of meetings which just did not flow with the plot. Overall, you are unlikely to be very satisfied with this film, although it is reasonably watchable. This is why the rating is in the 5-6 range and the film remains obscure. The few reviewers who gave it an 8 to 10 rating are waaaaaaay over-rating the movie and do not know what a true 9 or 10 movie is (in my view, only 4-6 movies a year can really be called a 9 or 10).

Here's an almost criminally forgotten post Death Wish gem from director Lewis Teague.

Whilst perhaps not as violent, nor as rewarding purely entertainment wise as the aforementioned pinnacle of the vigilante/revenge genre, this film approaches the issue of taking the law into one's own hands in a very different (and perhaps more realistic) manner and succeeds in delivering a solid ninety or so minutes of highly gripping viewing.

The always superb Tom Skerrit headlines as Michael D'Angelo, a humble greengrocer who is pushed too far by a series of brutal events and who subsequently decides to fight back by setting up a citizens patrol force in order to clean up the area in which he lives. Not giving too much away, but fuelled by his anger at the both the suffering of those around him and additionally the blatant inefficiency of the police force to tidy up the neighbourhood, Michael's methods are very hands on, leading to a number of violent altercations with the criminal denizens in the district.

Despite the nature of the subject material (perfect exploitation fodder), the director and cast performances manage to instill a far deeper sentiment into this than that usually found in a typical vigilante/revenge flick of the era. In fact, far from a simple tale of one mans war on crime, this serves in effect as a fascinating study of the social degeneration and general feeling of hopelessness, powerlessness and despair so prevalent in today's society at the escalating crime statistics and inefficacy of the law system to punish those responsible. The simple message is that together, as communities we can unite and turn the tide against this abject unhappiness for both ourselves and indeed future generations.

Rousing stuff indeed and highly recommended.

I have this film on VHS, and a dubbed DVD, when I received a like on Facebook from Tom Skerritt on a comment from a birthday message a year earlier, it made me think about this film and seeing if there's been an official release since the last time I looked.

I was surprised that Arrow Video released it on Blu-Ray. I always loved this film, and thought it was a good print. The only thing keeping me from a perfect 10 rating, was the ending, I recall it having a message on their saying what happened to DeAngelo, and how crime continues to decline in his district. I don't know why this was omitted from the print. Any answers welcomed.

Also the racism element is blown out of proportion, has several of the criminals they went after were non-black. Like the bar they introduced themselves in, the school drug dealer, and the arsonists. The Yaphet Kotto character blew it out of proportion.

The movie seems to relate to current events.

Fighting Back was unknown to me until recently. I just grabbed the Blu Ray from Arrow Films. This differs greatly from the Death Wish movies(especially past the second movie). This looks at vigilantism in a realistic and intelligent way. This is also more blue collar/working class. An Italian American deli owner (Tom Skeritt) gets fed up with the rampant crime wave that is ruining his neighborhood. He gets a neighborhood group together and they start cracking heads. Their critics accuse them of racism as the majority of the people they go after are black. This is not a shoot em up action piece, most of the violence are brawls and are very gritty and realistic in their depiction. He ends up getting media attention and is drawn into politics. Skerit's neighborhood action group often goes beyond the law and this film looks at how a man changes from the beginning of the movie, to the end. The film has a lot to say about politics and American society at this time. I thought Fighting Back was a very good movie and it was well scripted, acted and directed.

Why this has never been released on DVD I'll never know, especially when so much grade-z rubbish has been given the lavish 'Special Edition' treatment. This is, quite simply, one of the finest 'revenge' genre films made and far more intelligent than most of it's type. I mean, just take a look at the cast: Tom Skerrit, Michael Sarrazin. These a class actors.

What makes Death Vengeance so strong are the well developed characters. You identify with them more than anything. Paul Kersey was someone who appealed to the lowest common denominator, those who liked to cheer violent characters responding in a totally over the top fashion. John D'Angelo seemed to be grounded more in reality, reacting in a way we can understand. While not always sympathetic, Skerrit's performance made him believable.

The film was marketed in a fairly deceptive way. This is more than just another shoot-em-up no-brainer and deserves to be recognised as such. Director Lewis Teague could have taken the easy option, thrown in lots of action set-pieces and had a sky-high bodycount. Instead, he decided to engage our brains instead of our base instincts. He, and the film need to be recognised for this. Shame this doesn't happen more often. See it and you will find an underrated and surprisingly thought provoking film.