11:08 pm - Gruesome Twosome Day 18: Assault on Precinct 13
What lovely thriller will I, er we, review today*? Assault on Precinct 13. Oooh, of which Assault do I speak? Why the first one, of course!
John Carpenter has given the world some truly outstanding cinema. Assault on Precinct 13 is one of his earliest and one of his best. The movie loosely remakes Rio Bravo: a standoff in a jail, a sheriff enlisting help from undesirables, and a lot of violence. He marries the best of the westerns to the hard boiled 40s of Howard Hawks' movies. You know exactly where you stand after 20 minutes, you either keep watching or you turn off the movie in disgust and horror.
I kept watching.
The movie has a fantastic script filled with shocks, stunners, and snappy dialog. Napoleon Wilson, the prisoner, and Ethan Bishop, the cop, lead the standoff against the encroaching gang. Darwin Joston as Napoleon Wilson steals the movie. Every line and every look is pitch perfect. He is one of the best reluctant good guys ever to appear on screen. As for Bishop, there's a reason Austin Stoker has played so many cops, he's damn fine at it. Pairing these two actors with these two characters makes for a tense yet captivating thriller.
I go through all that, and his gun isn't even loaded.
The cast is superb. Carpenter favorite Nancy Loomis plays a civilian caught up in the mess. Laurie Zimmer, Martin West, Tony Burton, and Charles Cyphers round out the cast. Little Kim Richards, lost on her way to Witch Mountain, has a brief cameo.
See it.
Read ManWithPez's review. Did he even watch the correct movie?
Gruesome Twosome Day 18: Assault on Precinct 13.
*Today will appear to be today despite a backpost necessitated by my inability to stay awake to finish posting on the proper day.
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