IMDb RATING
5.3/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
An upstanding pastor uncovers a dark and twisted underworld as he searches for answers surrounding his daughter's brutal murder.An upstanding pastor uncovers a dark and twisted underworld as he searches for answers surrounding his daughter's brutal murder.An upstanding pastor uncovers a dark and twisted underworld as he searches for answers surrounding his daughter's brutal murder.
- Directors
- Writers
- Stars
- Awards
- 6 wins & 10 nominations total
Kristopher Kling
- Arlo
- (as Kris Kling)
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- All cast & crew
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Featured reviews
This is an enjoyable movie, just don't expect it to be the next Saw. This is more of a soundtrack movie than a horror movie. That's probably why a lot of the lower level characters are played by members of the band by the same name who also wrote the theme song. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot that are big misses in the movie, but if you're bored and just want a good revenge movie to watch this will fill that pretty easily. It's not on the level of I Spit on your Grave, American Merry, or any of the other great revenge horror, but its watchable.
The acting is sub par, but that's on point for the genre.
The acting is sub par, but that's on point for the genre.
The Retaliators is dumb but fun entertainment - something that has strangely become a rarity in horror.
Nowadays where every movie is a slow burn "elevated" metaphor for trauma and abuse - so it's refreshing to see a film that just wants to entertain in a blood soaked way.
Nowadays where every movie is a slow burn "elevated" metaphor for trauma and abuse - so it's refreshing to see a film that just wants to entertain in a blood soaked way.
Michael Lombardi is the aptly named "Bishop" - he's a rural pastor - who traditionally shuns confrontation and generally encourages others to do the same. Until, that is, his daughter has a run in with a gangland hoodlum who has a car stashed with cocaine, loot - and a man who is not in great shape. She attempts to flee but while being chased chooses to ring her dad, rather than 911 (or maybe drive off in the general direction of the police station!?). Anyway, the remainder of this terribly lacklustre revenge thriller follows dad's attempts to avenge his daughter. For a previously gentle man, he adapts to the brutality of his new environment with an ease that made me think that if Sigourney Weaver had had him in the "Alien" films, those acid bleeding critters wouldn't have lasted twenty minutes. That's really the problem here. The scenario is just daft. Right from the get go when we have an altercation over a Christmas tree through to the very end, it's all just predictable and implausible tosh. The acting is college project standard, as is the writing and the direction. Indeed, quite how this got a cinema release at all is a far more worthy and ponderous question than anything raised by the script. Nope, I really wouldn't bother.
The movie starts off with Bishop and his two daughters trying to buy a Christmas tree when all of a sudden some guy claims their tree as his. He acts like a douche and pushes Bishop away and after they get home the older daughter Sarah asks him why he didn't act. Bishop uses this scenario to talk about in his preaching the next day and says that revenge is not the answer.
Later that evening his daughter Sarah gets murdered by a guy for finding out that there is someone in his trunk. During his mourning he encounters a detective whose wife was also killed years before. He tells Bishop that he found the guy who killed his daughter and he wants to give him the chance to take vengeance. At that point a brutal and twisted story begins and Bishop has to go through a lot of character development to be able to survive.
The movie definitely has its shock value in the brutality and does not shy away to show it. And even though there is some weird pacing and editing at times the movie is able to entertain for its run time. The movies strengths are in the sheer brutality and action that come in the third act and also in the character development from Bishop. It's no masterpiece but I think that it did a decent job with how the story turned out. [5,8/10]
Later that evening his daughter Sarah gets murdered by a guy for finding out that there is someone in his trunk. During his mourning he encounters a detective whose wife was also killed years before. He tells Bishop that he found the guy who killed his daughter and he wants to give him the chance to take vengeance. At that point a brutal and twisted story begins and Bishop has to go through a lot of character development to be able to survive.
The movie definitely has its shock value in the brutality and does not shy away to show it. And even though there is some weird pacing and editing at times the movie is able to entertain for its run time. The movies strengths are in the sheer brutality and action that come in the third act and also in the character development from Bishop. It's no masterpiece but I think that it did a decent job with how the story turned out. [5,8/10]
I felt like there was also an innovative movie here. The antihero was very interesting and should have been the focus of the movie. Instead it just became a run of the mill revenge flick and focused on the wrong character.
It's well acted and has good production value but, in the end, the redeeming qualities surrounded the cameos and the soundtrack. The rotating one-night only releases is also a marketing gimmick. I fell for both of them...
I feel like the names (i.e. Jacoby Shaddix, Five Finger Death Punch, Tommy Lee) was more of a marketing gimmick than of any real value.
Best leave this for when it becomes available on a streaming service.
It's well acted and has good production value but, in the end, the redeeming qualities surrounded the cameos and the soundtrack. The rotating one-night only releases is also a marketing gimmick. I fell for both of them...
I feel like the names (i.e. Jacoby Shaddix, Five Finger Death Punch, Tommy Lee) was more of a marketing gimmick than of any real value.
Best leave this for when it becomes available on a streaming service.
Did you know
- TriviaThe members of Five Finger Death Punch demanded to eat Filet Mignon for lunch every day or they would not work.
- GoofsIn New Jersey, it is illegal for drivers to pump their own gas, therefore Sarah would have never gotten out of the car to begin with.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Projector: The Retaliators (2022)
- SoundtracksThe Ending
Performed by Papa Roach
- How long is The Retaliators?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $7,200,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $9,980
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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