Black Oak Conspiracy

I caught only the last part of this on television once. I'm going to have to wing it. Jesse Vint is the star playing the hero, Jingo. Jesse Vint has had a lot of roles, including a starring one in Macon County Line. Well, it seems old Jingo left his hometown of Black Oak and became a stuntman, a good occupation for a good old boy. Then it seems that for some reason old Jingo comes back to his hometown of Black Oak. Then it seems that naturally his old friends and family treat him as a hometown boy who went out into the world and done good. Jingo drives a black El Camino with sidepipes (This was the '70s!). But it seems that things are not quite right in Black Oak. It seems that people are dying suspiciously, etc., etc. Well, naturally the locals are helpless to do anything about whatever is going on. Well, naturally it takes a world-wise outsider like Jingo to investigate and see that there is a conspiracy in Black Oak. And just what is the Black Oak conspiracy? Why, it's a money-making racket designed to get money from the Black Oak residents from the cradle to the grave! It's worse than just death and taxes! As I recall, Jingo had an old friend who was a cop, and Jingo put a potato in his exhaust pipe so Jingo could go somewhere and the cop couldn't. And then there was this strip mine with big Terex trucks in it, and naturally Jingo has to have a showdown there like Arnold Schwartzenegger in Raw Deal. Well, I wouldn't be surprised if Jingo plumb wipes out this Black Oak conspiracy. I wouldn't be surprised if his friend the cop had a couple potatoes to stick in a certain place for fun, either.

"Blac Oak Conspiracy" is quite a unique film, or at least in my perception. Judging by the title, the setting, the era of release and the type of characters in the cast list, I was expecting a typically enjoyable slice of Rednecksploitation. And, in fact, it is just that, only more ... sophisticated! Usually in this kind of film, the Southern hicks chase innocent city folks through the woods, they moonshine, or they smuggle booze. The bad rednecks in the film, however, have flawless dental hygiene and occupy themselves with fraudulent real-estate transactions and misleading poor elderly landowners. Even the supportive characters are not your average type of good old-boy yokels, but school teachers and strong independent women instead. The mandatory trademarks of Rednecksploitation are well-represented, though, like the utterly corrupt Sheriff (fantastic role for Albert Salmi), the town's rebel returning home, car chases & crashes, bar fights, bare-knuckle boxing, buxom farmer daughters getting topless, couples rolling around in haystacks, and a catchy country song playing during the opening credits. "Black Oak Conspiracy" is somewhat slow-paced, but never boring and the story builds up towards a terrific climax. During the last twenty minutes, when one of the bad guys goes totally berserk, there is even a bit of nasty gore to enjoy. The great cast includes Jesse Vint (who also co-wrote the script), Robert F. Lyons, Seymour Cassel, and the aforementioned Albert Salmi.

then you should check this out. This is an entertaining good ol' boy action flick. Hollywood stuntman Jingo (Jesse Vint) returns to his hometown in Oklahoma when his mother takes ill. He immediately suspects something isn't right with his mother's situation (she is nearly catatonic and in a nursing home) so he begins to investigate. He uncovers the scheme involving the sheriff, a local doctor, cheap property and the local land mine. And, naturally, he wins back the girl he left in town. It is strange how this type of film (small town conspiracy) was so predominant in the 70s but rarely gets made today. BOC is a bit slow in the beginning but picks up toward the end with a fun car chase and a couple of really shocking shootings. Sadly, the poster, featuring a bloodied and beaten Vint with a shotgun and overturned cars, depicts stuff that never happens in the movie.

Jesse Vint stars as a guy who moves back to his small home town because his mother has taken ill. He learns that she sold the family farm at some point to a local mining concern, and when he starts asking questions, the sheriff (Albert Salmi) takes a keen interest in discouraging him. Vint co-wrote and produced this flick which is a rather obvious attempt at cashing in on the success of "Walking Tall". This one's an immensely slow burner that doesn't really build up to much of anything. The poster promises a lot more action than the film delivers. Seymour Cassel co-stars as Vint's closest friend. As expected, he's good, but he's hardly convincing as a small town southerner.

Hollywood stuntman Jesse Vint heads back to the Oklahoma home where he was born. His mother is in a coma in the hospital, her farm has been sold, and the town is divided against him. Half are glad to see him back, and the sheriff and developers want him gone.

This movie screams it was made in the 1970s, from the haircuts to the soundtrack to the loose-jointed way it's plotted Vimt's old girlfriend, Karen Carlson, has moved on, looking for someone who can get her out into the wider world, and Bimt's modest life won't do it; not that he's been writing.

Despite the title, there appears to be no deep-rooted conspiracy, just people looking to make a buck and willing to get nasty about it. Cint's script is not particularly deep, but it gets its undemanding job done. Some longtime movie people show up in sizable roles, including Albert Salmi, Seymour Castellani, and Douglas Fowley in his antepenultimate big-screen role.