Impacto Mortal

Upon examining "Deadly Impact" closely, one will probably come to the conclusion that the Italian filmmakers were really trying to pass off this movie as an American production. The cast has two Hollywood stars, the setting of the movie's events is the American southwest, the filming was actually done in the American southwest, and many of the Italians who worked on this movie are credited not with their Italian names but with English names. This attempted deception didn't really bother me - I was more concerned whether the end results would be entertaining. The movie is somewhat slicker than many Italian action movies from this time period - there's plenty of location footage, there are a few okay stunts involving cars, and the climax involving a helicopter chase must have taken considerable time and money to plan and film. There are also a few unintended laughs, like a musical score that often sounds like it belongs in a Terence Hill/Bud Spencer comedy. But aside from little things like that, I found the movie to be a big bore. The police investigation travels at a snail's pace, even though at times there seems to be missing scenes that would have explained a few things. There's absolutely no tension, no excitement at any time in the movie. The only impact this movie makes is a dull thud.

Yeah, this is a B-movie and it isn't terribly original. A computer whiz figures out a way to monitor the machines at various Las Vegas casinos and he and his girlfriend make a killing. Some thugs get interested and kidnap them and force them to give them the ill-gotten money. The rest of the film consists of Bo Svenson (a cop) and Fred Williamson (a helicopter pilot for hire) trying to track down the thugs and recover the money.

Fred and Bo make a great team, and even though the buddy-formula is cliched, they make it work. The chase scenes are ridiculously long, but they are completely entertaining. And the score, what can I say about that insane score? It pops up in so many variations throughout the film and I cannot get it out of my head.

Some bad films I watch just to laugh at. Somehow this is a bad film that makes me feel like I'm laughing with it.

I do realize that I may be the only one in the world who loves this film. It also contains the most insane scene involving made-up computer gibberish ever (so it just changed from an 'A' to a 'B'?). You gotta love Bo Svenson.

My review was written in July 1986 after watching the movie on Vestron video cassette.

"Deadly Impact" is a caper film with one of the silliest premises yet. Italian-made production was lensed in Las Vegas and Phoenix in November 1983 with such pointless working titles as "The Believer" and "Giant Killer", finally debuting on video cassette a year ago.

A young computer expert named Harry from Phoenix has come up with a system to break the bank in Vegas: he ties in his computer terminal via secret codes with all the casino computers to monitor when each of their slot machines is ready to pay off. Then he sends his girlfriend Kathy around to play the winning slots, generating a take of about $30,000 per weekend in Vegas.

Two thugs noticing the winnight track down Harry and torture him for his secret but acidentally kill him, later kidnapping Kathy. Phoenix cop Bo Svenson and his helicopter tour pilot pal Fred Williamson get on the case and predictably end up with the system and its spoils for their own corrupt use.

Assuming the viewer buys the unlikely premise that slot machines are computerized and go off like clockwork rather than according to the laws of probability, "Impact" is boring anyway with its series of cornball chases and car stunts. Filmmaker Fabrizio De Angelis (a/k/a Larry Ludman) is interested in just killing time with the type of mindless saga that used to keep 42nd Street grindhouses purring but is now just a random title to take up space on a video store's shelf.

Bo Svenson is tiresome in another of his stereotype cop roles and his sidekick Fred Williamson (previously teamed in the Italian war pic "Inglorious Bastards") merely makes wisecracks and chomps on his trademark stogie.

Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson ought to ignite the screen ablaze, but the spark here is not even big enough to light The Hammer's cigar. Skip over a totally inane plot about a tech-nerd taking Las Vegas for a bundle, us action fans come to see fistfights, guns and chases - admirable traits of exciting cinema this movie carelessly fumbles. The scenes are over-the-top to blatant unfunny parody; an innocent driver violently flipping his car over the distance of a football field is hilarious, but the wacky odd couple pairing shenanigans of the two stars is not. When they crash their helicopter into a cliff face, it explodes into a huge fireball yet the pair emerges unharmed with the chopper in perfect condition! This trick is physically impossible, and I sat dumbfounded at the stupidity that played in front of me. Despite two or three scenes of interest, I was glad when the end credits rolled. Director Fabrizio De Angelis has done much better work as a producer for Umberto Lenzi and E.G. Castellari's films.

Despite wild chases galore, a great B-movie cast (rather wasted) and a very enjoyable score, this is an utterly routine action programmer. It pushes moviemaking back to the primitive "cops chase crooks" level, and does little to stand out in one's memory. It's not the worst way to spend a free hour-and-a-half, but not the best either. Not by a long shot. (*1/2)