Vivre pour survivre

Wow.. Yep wow. "White Fire" is one of those films you got to see to believe. That's action fans. Of schlock and exploitation. Well maybe if you got a thing for Robert Ginty… and throw in Fred "Hammer" Williamson. And some gnarly chainsaw carnage. Don't hesitate, check it out. The film is just so outrageous (although not rousing), but more so reckless and incomprehensible. Just figuring out what's going it just as bemusing as trying to understand the unusually repressed relationship between brother (Ginty) and sister (Belinda Mayne). It is strange. Like numerous touchy-feely encounters and awkward dialogues ("A pity you're my sister" while staring at her nude body and she doesn't seem to realise she's fully naked by only covering her breasts), which will have you returning back to scenes to make sure you heard it right. Nonetheless the entire script is clumsy. Acting is stiff (Mirella Banti gets top prize followed by Gordon Mitchell) and terrible dubbing also helps.

After a pointless beginning; I guess to show why this brother and sister were so close suddenly moves into present time 20 years later where siblings Beau Donnelly and Ingrid are adventurous diamond thieves. Ingrid is working in a desert diamond mind smuggling the goods with the help of her brother and the base's security commander. When they come across that of the white diamond they see it as their final heist to get out of the business. But it won't be that easy, as there are other people who are keen on getting their hands on the diamond.

I find Ginty rather agreeable in the lead role, where he has that expression you're never too sure what he is actually thinking. Great poker face. And he does hand out some beatings. While Mayne was somewhat wooden, you can see why she got the tick of approval. Then there's bad-ass Williamson, who really doesn't show up until an hour in with his pals (this gang really does like to show off their chest hair) and his energy really does get things moving. Like his first appearance ("I detest psychical violence"). Too bad about the cheery ending though, as I hoping to see Ginty and Williamson come to blows. It actually takes awhile before we come face-to-face with the legendary white fire diamond which burns whoever touches it. Williamson's smooth-talking trouble- shooter character has nothing to do with this side of the story, but more so with film's midway twist that only seems to make the brother- sister relationship even creepier. Watch how Ginty dramatically fights his desires for his sister (?). It cuts him deep.

There's a lot going on and characters coming and going. Not complex, but messy and patchwork that it's hard to make sense of it. But some might call that intrigue with soapy elements. But the siblings sure knew how to find trouble. I say it was simply written on the spot. It was just too random. Now the action was staged like if an opera singer was preparing for a big solo. Low-grade, but frenetic and plentiful with some touches of tacky gore with it cuing in marital arts sound effects and one very torturous encounter that will have men feeling squeamish. Plus it's probably got one of the slowest vehicle chases ever caught on tape. Flabby direction with some makeshift, mundane camera-work. It's cheap, inept and it shows. The tripped-out soundtrack is a real winner too. You get an amazing title song that finds it way on a loop.

Rough around the edges, but this feverish b-grade drive-in outing has no pretensions, so try keeping a straight face.

"Remember take good care of my sister".

Rare exploitation gem about an ordinary man, Bo (Robert Ginty, star THE EXTERMINATOR and WARRIOR OF THE LOST WORLD!) caught in a crossfire between diamond smugglers and professional mercenaries.

When Bo was a child, a mysterious force sadistically murdered his parents. Only Bo and his sister, Ingrid (Diana Goodman) survived the bloodshed. Now, twenty years later...Bo and his sister are grown up. They are now employees at a diamond mineshaft located in the desert. As mischievous as they are, they stumble upon the discovery of a legendary diamond. However, this rapture for the diamond has provoked the angst of some short-tempered, not-so-nice villains.

Fred Williamson has a cameo as a take-no-prisoners assassin with his own agenda... Does he serve as an ally, or a foe for Bo and Ingrid?

The hitherto quiet existence of the diamond has now been shattered thanks to the naïve duo. The bad guys are willing to possess the diamond in any way...and hell is going to pay...

All of the dastardly scoundrels are united for one reason: to seek out the legendary 2000 carat diamond called the "White Fire," which the brother and sister twosome hope to gain access to this gem itself. What values does this jewel possess? The quest to capture the most sought-out diamond in the world is afoot...

WHITE FIRE (this film's original title is VIVRE POUR SURVIVRE) was one of those "What was the purpose of making this film?"-type movie. This amazingly low budget adventure picture features Fred Williamson at the nadir of his career and Robert Ginty at the pinnacle of his career. Yes, you do get to see Robert Ginty brandish a chainsaw though! You do get to see Robert Ginty woo with his sister!

WHITE FIRE believe it or not does have some attributes. The on-location filming at Istanbul, Turkey is a visual asset. Also, there are some decent themes about the relationship between brother and sister...and the eventual coping with loss... The electronic musical score is...attention grabbing and the songs are heartwarming (to an extent).

Unfortunately, WHITE FIRE has a lot more defects than strengths. First, the camera angles in this film were awkward and there seemed to be a technical problem with the sound effects. Also, unfocused direction and incoherent editing serve as distractions for this movie. Haphazard action sequences do not help either. Sure, there are lots of shootings, fights with various weapons, and comic quips. There is just NOT much excitement though...

The acting in WHITE FIRE was also pretty terrible. The bad guys had their stereotypical accents and Ginty is a nuisance as the good guy. Ginty was apparently more vitriolic than charismatic as the "hero," especially when he tried to be funny. The cast contributed some effort, but their valiant attempts to extricate this film were not enough to prevent this production from sinking down under...

WHITE FIRE was sleazy trash with no redeeming values. This was an unexceptional, mundane action film. The plot lacked credibility, the action lacked vitality, and the whole production was simply inept. I can understand that this film was extremely low budget, but the film itself looked as though it was shot with a camcorder for some home video production. The quality of the film's image is itself blurred at times, and this makes the movie seem more amateurish. The errors in logic, continuity, and consistency all obliterate an already doomed project. In other words, watch this movie for a good laugh. Luckily, Fred Williamson did not have such a substantial role in this movie.

RATING: NO STARS out of ****.

The plot for White Fire is utterly atrocious, the direction stinks, and the acting is diabolical, and yet there's still quite a bit of fun to be had with this goofy '80s action film starring straight-to-video tough-guy Robert Ginty.

The film opens with a family trying to escape from Russia. The mother is shot and the father incinerated by flamethrower, but the two kids, Bo and Ingrid, are helped by a friendly smuggler called Sam (Jess Hahn), who raises them and teaches them the art of thievery. Twenty years later, and Sam, Bo (Ginty) and Ingrid (Belinda Mayne) are working a racket at a Turkish diamond mine (regulation uniform: red or blue jumpsuit with black and gold accessories), but other parties also want in on the action, especially when the world's biggest diamond, the White Fire, is discovered in one of the old tunnels (although I'm not sure what they intend to do with a highly radioactive diamond that burns anyone who touches it).

So far so mediocre, but the film gets more interesting once a group of Italian criminals led by Sophia (played by the beautiful but not very talented Mirella Banti) enter the picture and try to relieve Bo and Ingrid of their latest haul of gems: a fight breaks out that sees Bo stabbing two men with a knife and picking up a handy chainsaw to slice one guy in the leg and another in the stomach; meanwhile, Ingrid impales a guy with a boat-hook. Our hero and heroine aren't averse to killing when necessary, providing the film with cheapo gore galore, the action accompanied by a really naff theme song: great stuff!

Shortly after, the White Fire is discovered in an abandoned part of the mine, and one-time peplum star Gordon Mitchell (modelling the red jumpsuit) uses a pickaxe to kill the man who found it. Mitchell's acting might even be worse than Banti's.

That evening, Bo is chatting to Sam, who is preparing food while Ingrid takes a naked swim in the pool. When dinner is served, Bo goes to find Ingrid, which is when we get the film's most memorable scene - unforgettable for all the wrong reasons. Ingrid is showering naked when Bo surprises her by shaking the leaves of a bush. And talking of bush, Bo makes sure he gets a good look at his sister's by whipping off her towel. As if that wasn't creepy enough, he makes sleazy remarks such as 'You sure don't look like anybody's kid sister any more, do you?' and 'You know, it's a pity you're my sister'. Yes, our hero has an incestuous yearning for his sibling (admittedly, she's got a rocking body, but even so...).

Instead of dropping the dodgy incest angle, the film pursues it further after Ingrid is murdered by bad guys (no, Bo doesn't turn to necrophilia, but what follows is still quite perverted). While drowning his sorrows at a bar, Bo meets a woman named Olga (Diana Goodman) who bears a passing resemblance to his dead sister. When Sam meets the woman, he hatches a plot to steal the White Fire that involves Olga getting plastic surgery to make her look even more like Ingrid. Olga agrees to the operation - she is being hunted by a ruthless criminal called Noah (Fred Williamson), so this is the perfect answer to her problem - and emerges as Ingrid's doppelganger (played by Mayne again), after which she and Bo develop a romantic relationship. Looks like Bo will get to boff his 'sister' after all!

The film's finalé sees everyone converging at the diamond mine for a chaotic gun battle featuring plenty of bloody squibs, explosions, and some injurious stunts (one guy catching fire during an explosion didn't look planned to me). To ensure that his audience is left totally non-plussed, director Jean-Marie Pallardy has the White Fire spontaneously explode, meaning that no-one gets the prize. Well, no-one except for Bo, who walks into the sunset with Olga/Ingrid, no doubt planning to satisfy his incestuous urges.

While White Fire is unlikely to appeal to the average movie fan, those who enjoy trash cinema should find the film's clumsy storytelling and more exploitative elements quite entertaining. Oh, and anyone with a moustache fetish will be in heaven: both Ginty and Williamson sport impressive 'taches, as do most of the male extras. 5.5/10, rounded up to 6 for Ginty's lilac scarf - quite a bold choice for an '80s action hero.

Low budget action/exploitation flick with lots of plot, mostly incoherent. If you like so-bad-it's-good" movies--and you know who you are--this is for you. Inane dialogue, forced set pieces, extraneous nudity, mindless violence. Must watch with friends so you can share all those "what the F was that?" moments.

Superbly trashy and wondrously unpretentious 80's exploitation, hooray! The pre-credits opening sequences somewhat give the false impression that we're dealing with a serious and harrowing drama, but you need not fear because barely ten minutes later we're up until our necks in nonsensical chainsaw battles, rough fist-fights, lurid dialogs and gratuitous nudity! Bo and Ingrid are two orphaned siblings with an unusually close and even slightly perverted relationship. Can you imagine playfully ripping off the towel that covers your sister's naked body and then stare at her unshaven genitals for several whole minutes? Well, Bo does that to his sister and, judging by her dubbed laughter, she doesn't mind at all. Sick, dude! Anyway, as kids they fled from Russia with their parents, but nasty soldiers brutally slaughtered mommy and daddy. A friendly smuggler took custody over them, however, and even raised and trained Bo and Ingrid into expert smugglers. When the actual plot lifts off, 20 years later, they're facing their ultimate quest as the mythical and incredibly valuable White Fire diamond is coincidentally found in a mine. Very few things in life ever made as little sense as the plot and narrative structure of "White Fire", but it sure is a lot of fun to watch. Most of the time you have no clue who's beating up who or for what cause (and I bet the actors understood even less) but whatever! The violence is magnificently grotesque and every single plot twist is pleasingly retarded. The script goes totally bonkers beyond repair when suddenly – and I won't reveal for what reason – Bo needs a replacement for Ingrid and Fred Williamson enters the scene with a big cigar in his mouth and his sleazy black fingers all over the local prostitutes. Bo's principal opponent is an Italian chick with big breasts but a hideous accent, the preposterous but catchy theme song plays at least a dozen times throughout the film, there's the obligatory "we're-falling-in-love" montage and loads of other attractions! My God, what a brilliant experience. The original French title translates itself as "Life to Survive", which is uniquely appropriate because it makes just as much sense as the rest of the movie: None!