Assault on Prescient 13 (1976)
November 24th, 2003 at 9:30 am (1 - Pretty bad)
Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) was recommended to me as one of the top action films in history. I would like to find the person that made that recommendation and ask what the hell they were thinking. Aside for from a couple of surprisingly well-done scenes Assault is a B flick shoot-em-up on a shoestring budget. The plot of the movie is that urban gangs besiege a decommissioned police station. That’s it. Sure there is some conflict, a convicted felon (played by Darwin Joston who reminded me of Rowdy Roddy Piper) shows his nobility as he is handed a gun to help defend the building and Austin Stoker shows off his leadership skills as he protects ‘the girl’ from the bad guys, but the action is all formulaic, predictable and honestly not very interesting.
John said,
November 24, 2003 at 9:50 pm
I feel I have to disagree with you on this review. True, this is a very low budget B-picture, but to rate it the same as Kill Bill is an injustice. John Carpenter’s “Assault” has been talked about, studied, and emmulated in the nearly 30 years since its initial release, while “Kill Bill” will probably be a minor footnote in QT’s career. “Assault” was one of the first movies for me that actually instilled a sense of claustrophobia and dread… the only movie of the same small calliber to do that would be George Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead.” In fact, without “Assault on Precinct 13″ I’m not sure other independent action/suspense films like “The Warriors” or “Repo Man” would ever have been made… not to mention furthering the career of John Carpenter (whom, I admit, has seriously slumped since the late 80’s). Also, let’s not forget the fact that this was made in the mid 70’s, when the city gang problems were not as present as they are today (or at least not as newsmaking). In fact, sadly, in many ways this film is kind of prophetic when you look at what is happening in our schools and streets today.
Scott said,
November 25, 2003 at 12:15 pm
I agree with John. Assault on Precinct 13 is a brilliant riff on Rio Bravo, which itself was Hawks’ attempt to right the alleged wrongs of High Noon. It’s a frightening, visceral thriller that uses its meager budget as well as anything of Carpenter’s films. Unlike QT, Carpenter doesn’t hit you over the head repeatedly with his influences. They exist in the film, but not in the obvious, in-your-face way that they do in Kill Bill. Anyway, sorry you didn’t like it. There are many so-called “classics” that I don’t like, as well.
Leopoldo said,
November 25, 2003 at 12:42 pm
Wow, that is totally interesting. I just recently watched Rio Bravo (after Assault, the review should be written and go up soon) and liked it a lot but did not see the connection. I think I should go back and think through both films to see what I was missing. Thanks for the info!
john said,
November 25, 2003 at 1:18 pm
A little trivia tidbit… John Carpenter was also the editor of “Assault on Precinct 13″, but in the credits is listed as John T. Chance… a further homage to “Rio Bravo” - that was the name of John Wayne’s charachter.