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IMDbPro

Siège

Original title: Self Defense
  • 1983
  • 16
  • 1h 24m
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
Siège (1983)
A gay bar is hit by a group of sociopaths, and all the patrons are killed except for one man who escapes and takes refuge in an apartment occupied by a group of friends, who will do anything they can to protect him and survive the siege.
Play trailer1:10
1 Video
99+ Photos
CrimeDramaThriller

A gay bar is hit by a group of sociopaths, and all the patrons are killed except for one man who escapes and takes refuge in an apartment occupied by a group of friends, who will do anything... Read allA gay bar is hit by a group of sociopaths, and all the patrons are killed except for one man who escapes and takes refuge in an apartment occupied by a group of friends, who will do anything they can to protect him and survive the siege.A gay bar is hit by a group of sociopaths, and all the patrons are killed except for one man who escapes and takes refuge in an apartment occupied by a group of friends, who will do anything they can to protect him and survive the siege.

  • Directors
    • Paul Donovan
    • Maura O'Connell
  • Writers
    • Paul Donovan
    • Marc Vautour
  • Stars
    • Tom Nardini
    • Brenda Bazinet
    • Daryl Haney
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.6/10
    1.5K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Paul Donovan
      • Maura O'Connell
    • Writers
      • Paul Donovan
      • Marc Vautour
    • Stars
      • Tom Nardini
      • Brenda Bazinet
      • Daryl Haney
    • 27User reviews
    • 20Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:10
    Trailer

    Photos133

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    + 127
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    Top cast29

    Edit
    Tom Nardini
    Tom Nardini
    • Horatio
    Brenda Bazinet
    Brenda Bazinet
    • Barbara
    Daryl Haney
    • Chester
    • (as Darel Haeny)
    Terry-David Després
    • Daniel
    • (as Terry-David Despres)
    Jack Blum
    Jack Blum
    • Patrick
    Keith Knight
    Keith Knight
    • Steve
    Doug Lennox
    Doug Lennox
    • Cabe
    Jeff Pustil
    • Goose
    Fred Wadden
    • Ian
    Gary Dempster
    • Lloyd
    Dennis O'Connor
    Dennis O'Connor
    • Clark
    Richard Collins
    • Rosie
    • (as Rick Collins)
    Allison Outhit
    • Punk
    • (as Alison Outhit)
    Tricia Fish
    • Punk
    Vicky Price
    • Punk
    Mike McKinnon
    • Punk
    Beth Lachance
    • Goose's Wife
    Joseph Rutten
    Joseph Rutten
    • Car Owner
    • Directors
      • Paul Donovan
      • Maura O'Connell
    • Writers
      • Paul Donovan
      • Marc Vautour
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews27

    6.61.4K
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    Featured reviews

    8parkerbcn

    Hidden jewel

    One of the best Canuxploitations out there, from the very interesting Paul Donovan. After a beginning that looks more like a street gang movie, it quickly transforms into a claustrophobic siege film, clearly inspired by "Assault on Precinct 13". Made with very little money, but with a lot of talent; it's a hidden jewel that deserves to be better known.
    7Aylmer

    Assault on Precinct 13 with talking villains

    It's hard not to see the parallels between this film and the likes of RIO BRAVO or the the above mentioned John Carpenter film. This film isn't perfect by any means but functions well as a down and dirty urban crime / action thriller with a few cute surprises sprinkled in that any fan of 60's-80's "grindhouse" would appreciate. It's pretty clear that the makers of VFW pulled a little bit of inspiration from this, especially in terms of musical score.

    One thing ASSAULT didn't even attempt to do was make its villains sympathetic in any way, but this film gives them about 30-35% of the dialog and attention, making each one of their deaths a little more meaningful. I loved the varying degrees to which the villains stayed committed to the crime and greater adherence to realism in general. People in this film act about like how you or I would react to a situation here and there isn't a lot of James Bond style heroics at play.

    That said, it isn't quite a classic by any stretch. My main beef with the film is that it's just too convenient in many places. For one, of all the places the person fleeing from an angry mob in all of Canada, it just happens to be the place next door to a doomsday prepper with the means of building rockets and grenades at his disposal. Also, the fun idea of the shared medicine cabinet feels a bit ludicrous when compared to the fairly grounded reality of the rest of the movie. The main protagonists do not get introduced until late in the film, giving them very little room to build character development or strong audience sympathy. The viewer may never fully connect to the characters, but the short length and constant sense of immediacy keep things from ever getting dull.

    Overall I considered myself surprised by how well this extremely low budget film comes together despite its relative obscurity. It's a shame that Donovan's next film DEF-CON IV would be such a letdown (after an excellent first half) and that afterward he'd generally stick to making more profitable (but even more forgettable) kids' films.
    8thesar-2

    Pink Room

    And this is why the world needs RoboCop.

    I'm pretty shocked I gave this one a chance by the poster, but then I was wildly curious after reading the first half of the synopsis. And when I watched it, it was much more than I even though possible.

    In this film modeled after 1976's Assault on Precinct 13 and a precursor to 2015's Green Room, the police are on strike so crime spikes in this downtown area. Our story revolves around a bunch of indisputably vile characters who call themselves the "New Order," or NO for short, and they do not wish for their forthcoming "perfect" world to include homosexuals. So, they raid a gay bar, do surprisingly cruel actions and one patron manages to escape and into the arms of a group of unselfish, open minded people. And now, everyone is in danger from the NO.

    Sounds like I'm spoiling the whole movie. Nope. This is just the barely first act as the grand majority of the film is the outside force trying to get inside for their witness.

    This movie was intense and while a ton of scenes were well over-the-top, including the reactions and acting, it's a film of the times. Or at least parts of the scenes were. I'm actually shocked and very pleased on how progressive this movie was in 1983 when gay bashing, or worse, was definitely more widespread than today. And this movie stood out 100% against that. This movie was graphic and incredibly shocking/sad at times and it really stood its ground on doing the right thing and that everyone's equal.

    I'm glad I gave this movie a chance. It was completely suspenseful and you really never know who's safe from the NO.

    ***

    Final Thoughts: Now, of the three: Assault on Precinct 13, Siege and Green Room, my favorite is...well, that's hard. The first two were deliciously a product of their times. I would, however, select Green Room. While it wasn't 100% original, it sure felt that way when I saw it, before I saw the other two. Still, the most polished and best acted movie is definitely Green Room.

    This would make a radical trilogy marathon some Saturday evening.
    6BA_Harrison

    Gay-bashing goons vs guerilla good-guys.

    A gritty little early-80s exploitation film from Canada, Siege captures the look and feel of similar movies of the day (Assault on Precinct 13, The Warriors, Death Wish 3), but ultimately fails to capitalise on its interesting premise.

    The movie opens with news reports of a police strike in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A gang of right-wing extremists take advantage of the lack of law enforcement by launching an attack on the members of a down-town gay bar, which results in the massacre of all but one of the bar's clientèle. The sole survivor, Daniel, escapes but is pursued by the gang, until he manages to find refuge with some friendly people in a tenement block. What follows is a night of terror, as the killers attempt to break into the building and finish their job.

    This low budget action thriller starts off promisingly with the brutal slayings in the bar, but, due to a handful of ridiculous plot turns and some pretty poor acting, it quickly loses any credibility it might have had. And when it is revealed that one of the good guys is a survivalist who not only has his apartment linked to his neighbours' by a handy secret passage, but also has access to a range of weaponry, the film takes a step too far into the realms of unbelievability and is unable to claw its way back.

    Despite a couple of nifty scenes in which the ingenious heroes set traps for the bad guys, and one or two gruesome deaths (an arrow through the neck is the gory highlight; the silly home-made rocket launcher the most ludicrous), Siege only manages to be an average entry in the urban survivalist sub-genre.
    8Analog_Devotee

    FUN!

    One helluva good time. Gritty and chock full of spine-tingling suspense. Borrows a lot from Assault on Precinct 13 but manages to conjure plenty of creativity. A stellar choice to throw into a late-night movie bingeing session.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      It contains the only existing news footage of the actual 1981 Halifax Police strike.
    • Goofs
      At 1:16, boom mic visible to left of screen.
    • Alternate versions
      In German version named "New York 1991 - Nacht ohne Gesetz" events happening in New York instead Halifax. It about 10-12 minutes between opening titles and bar scene, except news broadcast, was cut.
    • Connections
      Featured in Hagan Reviews: Siege (2014)

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    FAQ

    • How long is Siege?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 8, 1984 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • Canada
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Self Defense
    • Filming locations
      • Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
    • Production company
      • Salter Street Films International
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • CA$300,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 24 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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