James Glickenhaus directs Robert Ginty, Samantha Eggar and Christopher George in the NYC Vietnam vet vigilante flick.

The one-sheet promised a flame thrower wielding, motorbike helmet flexing, spin on Death Wish and Taxi Driver. The Death Wish comparisons hold up. Half the budget is blown on a Vietnam death camp prologue. Hueys buzz around between plumes of gasoline explosions, Stan Winston pulls off an early decapitation effect. Then the credits! The only way is up once we hit the streets of the Big (rotten) Apple, right? Not really. The first act is confusing. Ginty is such a charisma suck non-presence that it comes as a surprise once he emerges as our psychotic anti-hero. The evil fodder is ghastly and sleazy but short lived. There’s a bike chase but very little flame thrower. Eggar and George are the best things in it. Enjoying their own little completely superfluous side movie. Trash that is inches away from being very entertaining but that dead chubby faced vanilla lead fumbles it.

4

Perfect Double Bill: Exterminator 2 (1984)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/ and my own Substack https://substack.com/@edinburghlaughterbulletin