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I saw The Farmer (Aka "Blazing Revenge") at a theater in Tokyo, Japan with my Japanese girlfriend back then. I was stationed at NAF Atsugi. The movie was great. I remember the beginning of the movie with the returning WWII hero (Kiel Martin) on a train. There was a black soldier who was being given a hard time over a drink because of his race. Kiel Marin stepped in, big fight, etc....from that point you knew he was an honorable, courageous and no nonsense kind of guy. After they take his land, burn his house, attack his girlfriend, killed his friend...it is time to go kick some ass. And he does big time. I have searched high and low for this movie the better part of 30 years. Still searching. I imagine if I got to see it today...it would possibly appear corny by today's standards for revenge flicks. Not sure, but maybe I am better off with the memories. Lastly, the star, Mr. Gary Conway is still going strong at 80 plus and owns a winery in CA. Why this movie is locked away is beyond me.

I was fortunate enough to see this film, and it is one of the best 70's style revenge film, but also wisely uses screen time to build up the plight of the lead character, and also has some great "revenge" sequences.You can see why Columbia pictured decided to release this. The film starts with the lead, Kiel Martin (Gary Conway) in a train, and how he gets beat up and kicked off a train for helping a black soldier buy a drink (it was no-no back then) as this shows what a decent character he is, but how he can't seem to escape violence since earning a silver star in the War.

Through a chain of events (some of them rather rushed, so I assume it was either explained in the original script or that scene was cut out for time) he is hired by a gangster (Michael Dante) to go after the gangsters who blinded him, and in return, give him the cash needed to save the farm! And thru a pulsating music score by Hugo Montenegro, he dispatches them one by one! It is more similar to ROLLING THUNDER in the nihilistic feel revenge genre, and only weak point of the film is Gary Conway, who is rather bland, and too "city" to be really convincing as the title character. Still it is a classic for it's era,and not to be missed by any fans of this genre. Just dont expect it to be in vain with todays action films ,as the unavailability of this title for 26 years has caused this film to be in so many peoples must see list,that their expectation level must be really high, so I am afraid they might be rather disappointed with what to expect of it.

Just enjoy the more "character driven, and that character reaches to the point of revenge" films of yesteryears, then you will agree, THE FARMER is right near the best of them, like ROLLING THUNDER, FIGHTING MAD and BREAKING POINT. In fact, I think Fred Williamson might have been influenced by this film, as his film MEAN JOHNNY BARROWS is very very similar in the storyline department with THE FARMER. He also hired Dante in THE BIG SCORE so he must have really liked THE FARMER.

A passion project for producer / star Gary Conway ("I Was a Teenage Frankenstein", 'Burkes' Law'), "The Farmer" casts him as the title character, otherwise known as Kyle Martin. Kyle is a WWII hero, just returned home, who intends to run the family farm, which is not seen as profitable by the local bank. They would rather foreclose. Then one night, a gambler named Johnny O'Neal (Michael Dante, "Winterhawk") has a car accident on the road, and Kyle saves his life. Johnny sends his gal pal Betty (gorgeous Angel Tompkins, "The Teacher") to gift Kyle with $1,500 for the good deed, but of course it's not enough for the bank. Johnny subsequently gets blinded by vindictive mobsters, and he gives Kyle a proposal: rub out the mobsters, and he can walk away with a cool $50 thousand. Kyle initially refuses, but inevitably changes his mind.

A "lost" film for many years, this only debuted on home video this year. So, was the wait to see this flick worth it? Well, this viewer wouldn't really consider it a *classic* of its genre, but it serves as good, straightforward entertainment - albeit with a nasty edge to it. One thing is for sure: the bad guys / intended victims in this saga do have it coming to them. Although the main mobster is a guy named Passini (George Memmoli ("Phantom of the Paradise"), looking relatively svelte), the worst of the bunch is a dude appropriately named Weasel. Played by the late, great Timothy Scott ("The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez"), Weasel is as despicable as they come.

Conway is just okay as a rather stoic, unemotional character, although the opening sequence sets him up well as a man of honor, who doesn't want to see a black fellow serviceman get disrespected. Still, he makes for a memorable image here, with his hat, shades, and stogie almost constantly clamped between his teeth. Tompkins and Dante are good in support; Memmoli makes the most of his one big scene. Sonny Shroyer ('The Dukes of Hazzard'), Johnny Popwell ('Deliverance'), and Eric Weston (the future director of the horror film "Evilspeak") co-star.

Granted, some of the dialogue is pretty lame, even if four credited people worked on this script, including story author George Fargo. And the music score was inconsistent - sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. At least the songs are pretty nice. And the script *does* work in an amusing surprise near the end, so it wasn't *entirely* predictable.

If you love exploitation cinema of the 70s, or a decent, no-nonsense revenge feature, you'll likely have a good time with this one.

Seven out of 10.

Shortly before returning overseas as a Marine, I saw this film at the base theater.I can count on my fingers the films which stand out as being the most memorable over the years to me.The Farmer was not only action packed but also embodied all of the noble traits and causes an honorable warrior could possess and champion.This was a great vicarious fantasy and it is a shame that there seems to be no way to get this film re-released.The film was also strong in that it addressed a number of social and moral issues.Without a doubt, The Farmer still evokes a visceral reaction when remembered. This was a very well thought out plot and at the same time very easy to follow. Of course when revenge is a prime motivating force...we can all identify with this silver star winner and his resolve.Semper-Fi and lets try to get this great film re-released.

i also saw "the farmer" when it came out at my marine corp base theatre and was in the process of shipping out on a Med float, needless to say all us "jar heads" went nuts from the first frame to the last. one great scene where the bad guy's looking out the 4th story window and say's, "i love parades" and the farmer's response is, "well then join it..." it's just cool. gary conway really is convincing as the reluctant former war hero as is the rest of the cast. this film came out at the time other lower budgeted revenge flicks where made, ie: the great, "rolling thunder", "walking tall II" etc. i hope they can bring this little gem out on DVD like anchor bay or blue underground DVD companies with cool extras and remember, the farmer doesn't get mad, he gets even...uhhhhhh rahhhhhhh and semper fi...