Fight for Your Life (1977)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Robert A. Endelson

Writer:

Straw Weisman (writer)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

There is no greater violence than a father's revenge for the rape of his daughter

Plot:

This video is mostly taken up by talking about vengeance rather than getting on with the job. A mean...

Plot Keywords:

Hung Upside Down | Grandmother Grandson Relationship | Preacher | Infamy | Fight

Cast

Robert Judd	...	Ted Turner
Catherine Peppers	...	Mrs. Turner
Lela Small	...	Grandma Turner
Yvonne Ross	...	Corrie Turner
Reggie Rock Bythewood	...	Floyd Turner (as Reginald Bythewood)
Ramon Saunders	...	Val Turner
Queenie Endelson	...	Dog
William Sanderson	...	Jessie Lee Kane
Daniel Faraldo	...	Chino
Peter Yoshida	...	Ling
Bonnie Martin	...	Karen
David Cargill	...	Lt. Reilly
Richard A. Rubin	...	Captain Hamilton
David Dewlow	...	Joey
Nick Hardin	...	Tony (as Nick Mariano)

Also Known As:

Blood Bath at 1313 Fury Road
Getting Even
Held Hostage
Hostage (USA) (alternative title)
I Hate Your Guts
Staying Alive (USA) (alternative title)
The Hostage's Bloody Revenge

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

New Zealand:R18 | Sweden:(Banned) | UK:(Banned) | USA:R | Canada:(Banned) (Ontario) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Singapore:(Banned) | Norway:18 (video premiere) (1982) | Norway:(Banned) (video) (1986) | Norway:(Banned) (1977-2003) (cinema release) | Australia:R | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Chatham, Ghent, New York, USA

Trivia:

The film was rejected for a UK cinema certificate in 1981 by the BBFC and later ended up on the DPP 74 list of official video nasties.

Quotes:

Grandma Turner: Why, you poor white trash! If it wasn't for that gun, you'd be a yellow-streaked bum!

Fight for Your Life (1977) **

A group of thugs (one white, one Asian, one Hispanic) takes over the humble home of a kindly black preacher and his family and terrorizes them. Kind of like a cross between THE DESPERATE HOURS and LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT.

This is a very politically incorrect time capsule from the '70s, with a lot of racial insults and stereotypes, some of which are humorous in spite of themselves (the forced gun-dancing scene was a favorite). But what's interesting to me is that the "holy" victimized family, once they turn the table on their attackers, proves to be quite capable with the racial slurs themselves... not that they're unjustified by that point, of course!

There is also a gruesome murder of a young boy, and the taunting of a little toddler with a gun pointed at its head. Quite unusual stuff, even for an exploitation film.