La rage au coeur

I've been looking forward tremendously to "Rage" and pretty much knew for certain that I would like it, even though the film is rather obscure, unsung and quite difficult to come across. It certainly isn't a hidden gem or undiscovered classic, but I have a personal weakness for "rural" and politically themed drama/thrillers from the early seventies period; especially when a few interesting names are involved. In this case, it's one of the rare movies that George C. Scott directed himself, next to also starring in the lead role. Scott stars as Dan Logan, a widower and sheep herder living on an enormous ranch in the secluded countryside of Wyoming together with his teenage son Chris. During a crystal clear summer night, father and son decide to camp on their estate, but the next morning Dan finds his son in a critical unconscious condition. At the local hospital, Major Holliford already knows that they were both accidentally contaminated by a new type of military chemical/nerve gas due to a leak in the tank of a plane. The whole situation is covered up and handled with deep secrecy; so much even that Dan Logan isn't informed about his own son's death. Although suffering from the symptoms himself, Dan escapes from the hospital and sets out on a violent journey to unravel the ugly truth. The subject matter of "Rage" is truly compelling and also quite unsettling, since the events don't seem too far-fetched or unimaginable at all, but it doesn't result in the most spectacular action movie. The entire first hour is mainly talkative and slow, with protagonist George C. Scott lying sedated in a hospital bed and military doctor Martin Sheen professionally misleading Logan's regular physician and the rest of the medical staff. The final half hour is more lively and exciting, but it nevertheless remains somewhat unsatisfying. Dan Logan goes out on a furious John Rambo type of quest for vengeance, complete with stealing dirt bikes and setting off explosives, but eventually never achieves his mission. He kills a bunch of people, but they are all innocent marionettes (like policemen, security guards and even a playful ginger kitten!) while the real military harm-doers remain untouchable. As the director, Scott most certainly demonstrates that he's able to insert stylish little details and visionary touches, particularly through unexpectedly odd camera angles and enchanting slow-motion shots. "Rage" certainly isn't fundamental viewing, but still comes warmly recommended in case you enjoy conspiracy thrillers and/or the works of George C. Scott.

George C. Scott plays a rancher who, along with his son, is exposed to a chemical weapon due to a mistake the Army made. However, instead of being up front about it, the military places doctors on the case (Barnard Hughes and Martin Sheen) who lie continually to the man...not letting him know that his son had died and that his prognosis is grim. When he does discover they've been lying to him, he decides to go out in a blaze of glory...with a series of violent attacks in order to try to get the faceless military to pay for their crimes.

While the plot is good, the execution isn't. It's simply a guy going Rambo and killing a few people in a somewhat pointless rampage. The overall feeling is grim and awful and it's a movie no one can enjoy. Now I am NOT saying a film about chemical weapons need to be fun....but it should have more depth than this. Violent and depressing.

***THIS COMMENT MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*** Maybe its me but there was something about this film that worked on my nerves like a tongue on a rotten tooth. It's based on a true incident in Utah in which an Army truck dropped a cannister filled with nerve gas and a butt-load of sheep bought the proverbial farm. But if the wind had happened to be blowing in the direction of Salt Lake City that day...

George C. Scott (wearing what looks distractingly like fake eyebrows) directed and stars in this fictionalized account of a farmer and his young son who are accidentally poisoned with nerve gas by the Army.

Perhaps its my own experiences at the hands of prison doctors that makes the many scenes of bloodless technocrats abstractly speaking about the opportunity to study nerve gas symptoms and blithely LYING with their every breath so quietly, eerily effective.

After being lied to in the worst possible way by all responsible, George C. Scott's doomed farmer wreaks some almost Rambo-like revenge! I had heard about this movie for years and always wondered just what sort of havoc Mr Scott would wreak went he went into his RAGE... It was quite something to see him shooting security guards in the face and generally going postal. One can certainly understand where he is coming from. A film like this would never be made today, especially with a major movie star both directing and starring. George C Scott knows how to handle actors--this is probably one of Richard Baseheart's best performances--full of great conflicted emotions and heavy themes to wrestle with--and what a voice that man had! I think that one of the strengths of the story is the semi-documentary feel to the events. There is no giant conspiracy, just an average army-style Cover-Your-Ass situation, with those responsible already well insulated by their positions of power. The revenge enacted by Scott's character is as understandable as it is ultimately ineffective, a message nicely telegraphed by the final image, which I won't divulge here. Suffice it to say, this is one of those strange cinematic oddities from the 70's that has become, unfortunately, once again relevant. After all... if the wind had happened to be blowing towards Salt Lake City that day...

George C Scott stars and makes his directorial debut in this tense but ultimately pointless drama about a peaceful rancher who goes on a rampage of revenge after a botched military nerve-gas experiment conducted over his land leads to the death of his young son. You can feel Scott's character's frustration as he's lied to and stone-walled from every angle by the military bureaucrats who want to cover up the incident. Scott knows how to keep things moving and shows some stylish touches in the director's chair, but he can't keep the ending from being disappointing and unsatisfying. Still, all said, it's a fairly absorbing ride while it lasts. It's a movie that will likely stay with you long after the end credits roll.

Almost everything in this film is predictable. The failure of the military to take responsibility, the complicity of local physicians and authorities, and a complete cover-up by the military brass; all of it rather predictable.

Despite these types of nerve gas weapons being outlawed by the Geneva Convention, they still, of course, still exist, within various nefarious military installations dedicated to this type of warfare. The military does not particularly care what the Geneva Convention has to say about these weapons; all is fair under the guise of National Defense.

What transpired in the film, of course, was a tragedy, but the result was inevitable. Scott does a good job acting, and an adequate job of directing. However, the screenplay is so absolutely depressing from beginning to end, that even a raging George C Scott cannot save it. It is this predictability that ruins any chance of the film having elements like suspense or tension. Interesting to watch for Scott's performance.