FILM REVIEW OF "HELL RIDE" (2008)

"Savage Seven" actor Larry Bishop must have seen "Escape from New York" before he wrote, produced, and directed the R-rated, Dimension Films release "Hell Ride" (*** OUT OF ****) with Quentin Tarantino serving as executive producer. Bishops dresses as if he were channeling Kurt Russell's Snake Plissken from the John Carpenter classic. Bishop plays 'Pistolero,' the president of a notorious motorcycle gang called 'the Victors.' This unsavory synthesis of Spaghetti western and the Biker flick, about outlaw bikers, booze, and booty concerns revenge. A cast of familiar faces, including Michael Madsen, Dennis Hopper, Francesco Quinn, Vinnie Jones, Eric Balfour, and David Carradine, circle each other with gimlet eyed glares when they aren't drooling on delicious dolls, and either shooting or setting folks afire. Most of the action transpires in the desert, at a motel, and at a bar called Dani's Inferno. According to Bishop, "Hell Ride" was shot in twenty days and on a shoe string. Bishop says he based his casting choices on the motorcycle that they straddle and the motorcycle had to look good. Nothing about this low-budget homage to grind-house sagas is anything that most people, other old B-movie fans will, want to suffer through. This amoral

melodrama has its share of moments. Bishop looks like a demented version of Al Pacino. Nudity, violence, and profanity are rampant throughout "Hell Ride."

The opening scene with Bishop flat on his back with an arrow protruding his belly is unforgettable. The suspense of this scene is mitigated somewhat by the appearance of a sexy babe who squats on our hero's face and extracts the arrow. The action shifts then to 32 earlier as some ruffians storm into a motel room, slash a gal's throat while a teenager watches, and then ignites her like a bonfire. Moments later, the scene shifts 32 years later, Billy Wings gives an old grizzled man, St. Louie (Pete Randall), similar treatment. The biker's funeral in the desert with the gang taking a last swig on their beer bottles before they

christen the coffin in an oblong hole carved at of the desert is strikingly stuff. Indeed, everything about "Hell Ride" is over-the-top, with larger-than-life bastards who have no compunction about murder. After our heroes conclude their farewell to their biker friend, then barge into a trailer and mow down four opposing biker gang members. The Gent (Michael Madsen of "Reservoir Dogs") apologizes after the shooting to Pistolero (Larry Bishop) for pulling the trigger one time too many, "My finger got stuck." Pistolero replies, "Next time share a little." Pistolero wields a Smith & Wesson and administers a coup de grace. Not to be outdone, fellow biker Comanche (Eric Balfour of "Skyline') wants trophies. "So I say we cut off their heads, we take'em with us." The Gent disagrees with Comanche while he admires the nude women in an issue of the pornographic magazine "Club," "I say we just take a few pinkies and call it a day." Ultimately, Pistolero rules. "How's about we take their stash, torch the trailer, and get the f%*k out of here?" The next shot depicts Comanche, The Gent, and Pistolero sauntering away from the trailer as it blows up behind them and is engulfed in the flames. If you look closely, you can see that The Gent has the Club magazine in his britches at his crotch as he walks away from the trailer. Mind you, all this mayhem occurs in the first seven minutes of this 84-minute biker flick. What's not to like? At this point, Bishop presents the opening credits. By this time, if you're not grooving on this retro-fitted biker flick, you need to find something that appeals more to your taste.

Chilean actress Leonor Varela shows up for her second scene in a big house with a long porch. Pistolero encounters her after he enters the premises and spots her at a pool table. A scene involving verbal sexual fencing commences with Nada begging Pistolero to have screw her or suffer the damnation of Hell. Pistolero informs her that he is in Hell. What sets her performance apart is Leonor convinced Bishop in this scene as well as the opening gambit that she didn't have to appear naked to look sexy. Leonor proves her point many times over. Pistolero learns from her that the Six-Six-Sixers biker gang, including The Deuce (David Carradine of the "Kill Bill" movies) and Billy Wings (Vinnie Jones of "Swordfish"), are itching for vengeance. Nada elaborates that the whole Deuce business has "something to do with that Cherokee Kisum woman." Eventually, Eddie leads Billy Wings into a shoot-out, and the Gent literally jumps the gun and drills him.  Later, Pistolero finishes him off rather painfully.  Not only does he shoot Eddie, but he also slits his throat and torches him.  The influence of Tarantino is evident when Comanche finds a safe deposit box in the desert, but we never learn what it contains.

The scene when Comanche urinates on Eddie's boots is hilarious. Comanche and his buddies later follow Eddie who straddles a bike with a sidecar. The second encounter between Nada and Pistolero uses fire as a metaphor for their love talk. Later, our hero takes a trip on peyote. This scene leads up to the opening scene when Nada shoves the arrow into Pistolero. For the record, Carradine does show up until almost 44 minutes have elapsed. "Hell Ride" is an atmospheric steel horse opera with quotable dialogue, rugged desert scenery, gritty action, and interesting performances.

FILM REVIEW OF ''THE WILD ONE" (1953)

“Death of a Salesman” director László Benedek’s crime melodrama “The Wild One” (**1/2 out of ****) qualifies as the first outlaw motorcycle movie. Columbia Pictures released this seminal Hollywood epic, and Benedek and two-time Oscar winning cinematographer Hal Mohr lensed it primarily on the studio’s backlot, using a setting that was featured in many of its Randolph Scott westerns. Brooklyn-born producer Stanley Kramer, who sought to raise social consciousness throughout his career by tackling controversial subject matter, is remembered for several acclaimed films, such as “The Defiant Ones” (1958), “On the Beach” (1959), “Inherit the Wind” (1960), “Judgment at Nuremberg” (1961), “Ship of Fools’ (1965) and “Guess Who's Coming to Dinner” (1967). “Murder, My Sweet” scenarist John Paxton based his screenplay on a true-life, Fourth of July weekend incident in Hollister, California, in 1947. Ostensibly, “Harper’s Magazine” published author Frank Rooney’s short story about the event, “The Cyclists' Raid,” in its January 1951 issue. Like most true-life stories, Kramer, Benedek, and Paxton dramatically enlivened events because little of what they depicted occurred during the actual event. This tale of rebellion was so intense when it first came out that the British Board of Film Censors banned it from being shown in England until the late 1960s! Indeed, the filmmakers open the film with a forward that states: “This is a shocking story. It could never take place in most American towns - but it did in this one. It is a public challenge not to let it happen again.”

Marlon Brando plays Johnny Strabler and sports sideburns. He wears a black leather bomber jacket with epaulets and his name stenciled across the left side. All of Johnny’s riders have the symbol of a skull with two pistons criss-crossed beneath it on the backs of their leather jackets. Johnny leads the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. After they disrupt a motorcycle rally race in the nearby town, Johnny and his gang roll into the sleepy little town of Wrightsville where most of the action transpires. While they are in town, the BRMC riders guzzle lots of beer at Bleeker’s Café, cause a wreck on main street, and brawl in the street. An elderly man, Art Kleiner (Will Wright of “All the King's Men”), tools into town in his Ford when a group of cyclists plan to drag for beers. As they roar into the street, Kleiner swerves to avoid them and smashes his front fender on a telephone pole. One of Johnny’s riders, Crazy (Gene Peterson of “Hiawatha”) slams into Art’s Ford and injures his ankle. Initially, the locals embrace them, but the BRMC wear out their welcome quickly when they enrage a high-profile citizen, Charlie Thomas (Hugh Sanders of “The Pride of St. Louis”), when they tip his car over. Somebody mentions that Charlie has always been a bully since the third grade and he uses his standing in the town to respond to the threat that he feels the bikers pose. By the time that this has happened, a rival motorcycle gang, the Beetles, lead by Chino (Lee Marvin of “The Big Heat”) cruise into town. Chino steals a second place trophy that one of Johnny’s riders stole for him from the race. They are beating each other up when Charlie decides to move his car through the crowded streets. The local lawman, Sheriff Harry Bleeker (Robert Keith of “Duel of Champions”) does his best to look the other way, but he is forced by the townspeople to throw Chino in jail. Johnny complains about Charlie Thomas, but Charlie is such a big-wig that Harry refuses to jail him.

Marlon Brando plays Johnny Strabler and sports sideburns. He wears a black leather bomber jacket with epaulets and his name stenciled across the left side. All of Johnny’s riders have the symbol of a skull with two pistons criss-crossed beneath it on the backs of their leather jackets. Johnny leads the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. After they disrupt a motorcycle rally race in the nearby town, Johnny and his gang roll into the sleepy little town of Wrightsville where most of the action transpires. While they are in town, the BRMC riders guzzle lots of beer at Bleeker’s Café, cause a wreck on main street, and brawl in the street. An elderly man, Art Kleiner (Will Wright of “All the King's Men”), tools into town in his Ford when a group of cyclists plan to drag for beers. As they roar into the street, Kleiner swerves to avoid them and smashes his front fender on a telephone pole. One of Johnny’s riders, Crazy (Gene Peterson of “Hiawatha”) slams into Art’s Ford and injures his ankle. Initially, the locals embrace them, but the BRMC wear out their welcome quickly when they enrage a high-profile citizen, Charlie Thomas (Hugh Sanders of “The Pride of St. Louis”), when they tip his car over. Somebody mentions that Charlie has always been a bully since the third grade and he uses his standing in the town to respond to the threat that he feels the bikers pose. By the time that this has happened, a rival motorcycle gang, the Beetles, lead by Chino (Lee Marvin of “The Big Heat”) cruise into town. Chino steals a second place trophy that one of Johnny’s riders stole for him from the race. They are beating each other up when Charlie decides to move his car through the crowded streets. The local lawman, Sheriff Harry Bleeker (Robert Keith of “Duel of Champions”) does his best to look the other way, but he is forced by the townspeople to throw Chino in jail. Johnny complains about Charlie Thomas, but Charlie is such a big-wig that Harry refuses to jail him.

Later, Charlie mobilizes a vigilante committee, and they track down Johnny and beat him up. Things turn ugly when the motorcycle gangsters run Dorothy, the telephone operator, out of her office and nobody can get through to the state police. By this time, Frank Bleeker (Ray Teal of "Ace in the Hole") regrets having had anything to do with Johnny and his ruffians. Frank owns the local café and his niece Kathie Bleeker (Mary Murphy of "Live Fast, Die Young") has attracted Johnny's attention. During a scene in the café, a hair stylist dancing with one of Johnny's riders asks him what he is rebelling against with his outlaw gang. Johnny has no clue, "What do you got?" At one point, a gang of motorcyclists corner Kathie in a back ally, but Johnny roars in to her rescue and they later have brief romantic entanglement where they kiss. After Johnny has dropped her off, the vigilantes attack him. Eventually, Johnny escapes, but he is pursued by dozens of townspeople. Johnny races onto main street and somebody slings a tire iron at him. The tire iron strikes Johnny and knocks him off his cycle. The unmanned cyclist careens into a crowd of spectators and an old man, Jimmy (William Vedder of "The Senator Was Indiscreet"), dies when the bike hits him. Johnny barely misses going to jail when Sheriff Stew Singer (Jay C. Flippen of "Jet Pilot") arrives with two carloads of deputies. Based on some last minute testimony, Singer releases Johnny, but warns him, "I don't know if there's any good in you. I don't know if there's anything in you. But, I'm gonna take a big fat chance... and let you go." Johnny and the two motorcycle gangs leave town. Later, Johnny slips back into town alone and gives Kathie the stolen trophy. They smile and "The Wild One" concludes.

“The Wild One” went on to inspire a number of outlaw motorcycle gang movies, including “The Wild Angels” (1966), with Peter Fonda, Bruce Dern, and Nancy Sinatra; “Hells Angels on Wheels” (1967) and “Rebel Rousers” with Jack Nicholson; “The Born Losers,” and the most prestigious biker movie “Easy Rider” (1969), with Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Jack Nicholson. Eventually, all-female biker gang movie appeared, including “The Hellcats,” (1967), “She-Devils on Wheels” (1968), “The Miniskirt Mob” (1968), “Sisters in Leather” (1969), “Angels' Wild Women” (1972), and “Cycle Vixens” (1978). Mind you, although it was pretty disturbing for 1950s' audiences, "The Wild One" is so tame now that it will be difficult for 21st century viewers to wonder how such an insignificant film could have sparked the genre.