Vigilante (1983)

Eddie Marino is a factory worker in New York City. He has a wife named Vickie and a son named Scott. Eddie's friend and co-worker Nick and some of the factory's other workers have formed a ... See full summary »

Director:

William Lustig

Writer:

Richard Vetere

Stars:

Robert Forster, Fred Williamson, Richard Bright

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Forster	...	Eddie Marino
Fred Williamson	...	Nick
Richard Bright	...	Burke
Rutanya Alda	...	Vickie Marino
Don Blakely	...	Prago
Joseph Carberry	...	Ramon
Willie Colón	...	Rico (as Willie Colon)
Joe Spinell	...	Eisenberg
Carol Lynley	...	Assistant D.A. Mary Fletcher
Woody Strode	...	Rake
Vincent Beck	...	Judge Sinclair
Bo Rucker	...	Horace
Frank Pesce	...	Blueboy
Steve James	...	Ptl. Gibbons (as Steve W. James)
Randy Jurgensen	...	Det. Russo

Storyline

Eddie Marino is a factory worker in New York City. He has a wife named Vickie and a son named Scott. Eddie's friend and co-worker Nick and some of the factory's other workers have formed a vigilante group because Nick and the group are fed up with the pimps, gangs, and drug dealers who keep taking over the neighborhoods. Nick and his group are also sick and tired of the police, because the police always fail to protect people who become victims. Eddie goes home from work one night, only to discover that Vickie has been stabbed, and Scott has been shot dead. Frederico "Rico" Melendez, the leader of a Puerto Rican street gang, is arrested for Vickie's stabbing and Scott's murder. Assistant District Attorney Mary Fletcher plans to put Rico away for as long as possible, since New York doesn't have the death penalty. Nick tries to convince Eddie to join the vigilante group, but Eddie turns Nick down, preferring to let the courts handle Rico. Nick makes it clear that he has no faith ...

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Plot Keywords:

gang | judge | factory | vigilante | jail | 

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Taglines:

If the law won't get them... we will!

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 September 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Street Gang

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Magnum Motion Pictures Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The apartment where the Vigilante squad finds Willie Colon and his girlfriend, was actually shot in an office building in Long Island City. The graffiti and everything else was added for authenticity.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Nick: Hey, I don't know about you guys, but me... I've had it up to here. There are some 40-odd homicides a day on our streets. There are over two million illegal guns in this city. Man, that's enough guns to invade a whole damn country with. They shoot a cop in our city without thinking twice about it. Aw, come on. You guys ride the subway. How much more of this grief are we gonna stand for? How many more locks we gotta put on our goddamn doors? Now, we ain't got the police, the ...

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Connections

Referenced in American History X (1998)

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Soundtracks

"Smokin"
(Larry Rollins / Warren Thomas)
Performed by N.B.T. (Nuthin But The Truth)
Engineered by Bob Yesbeck
Omega Studios, Washington D.C.

User Reviews

Lustig's Homage to the Italian Revenge Flicks

Vigilante (1983) is a revenge flick in the style of 70's Italian Crime films (He even shot it in Scope). Robert Forester plays Marino, an average working joe who's family is attacked by an inner city street gang. When the justice system fails him, Marino can't take it anymore and with the help of his co-workers takes revenge on the street scum. Sophisticated trash from William Lustig (It looks and feels sleazy). The film has an all star cult film line up. Featuring Fred "The Hammer" Williamson, Joe Spinell, Woody Strode, Carol Lynley, Frank Pesce and Rutyana Alda.

Highly Recommended.

Old school ultra violence, Lustig style.