Saturday, November 22, 2014

Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) is a thriller/crime/action film directed by John Carpenter. By turns too slow and too violent, I didn't care for this at all. In the end I didn't finish it. It has a cult following, though, and is well-respected in some circles. The Imdb has this plot synopsis: "The lone inhabitants of an abandoned police station are under attack by the overwhelming numbers of a seemingly unstoppable street gang."

via youtube:


Moria gives it 4 out of 5 stars and calls it "A strong and disturbing film." Slant Magazine calls it "among one of the most remarkably composed films of all time". DVD Talk says, "A violent retelling of Rio Bravo, but with street gangs that behave like zombies from Night of the Living Dead, this is A+ exploitation material circa 1976." The BBC gives it 5 out of 5 stars and concludes, "in essence the core reason this film works so well is that it is so unpredictable, ruthless and without reason." Time Out calls it "sheer delight from beginning to end." DVD Verdict says it's "a simple, but effective, siege film only John Carpenter could nail on $100k. Check it out." Rotten Tomatoes has a critics score of 97%.

2 comments:

  1. I don't believe it. A show I've actually seen. I saw it on TV a LONG time ago, and it was definitely disturbing. It really was ruthless and without reason. I know it left me numb. Thanks for reviewing it, regardless, because at least I finally have a film you reviewed I can say I've seen.

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    1. It's rare I don't finish watching something, but I just decided to cut my losses and move on. It didn't seem to be going anywhere.

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