The Annihilators (1985)

Upon his return from Vietnam, an ex-soldier finds his neighborhood has deteriorated badly, and is being terrorized by a vicious street gang. He calls some of his GI buddies, and together they hatch a plan to get rid of the gang.

Director:

Charles E. Sellier Jr.

Writer:

Brian Russell

Stars:

Jim Antonio, Sid Conrad, Gerrit Graham

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jim Antonio	...	Lt. Hawkins
Sid Conrad	...	Louie Nace
Gerrit Graham	...	Ray Track
Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs	...	Garrett Floyd
Paul Koslo	...	Roy Boy Jagger
Dennis Redfield	...	Joe Nace
Christopher Stone	...	Bill
Andy Wood	...	Woody
Bruce Evers	...	Jesse
Millie Fisher	...	Marie
Tom Harper	...	Doc
Becky Harris	...	Woman Shopper
Mimi Honce	...	Gertie
Hugh Jarrett	...	Arthur
John Lawhorn	...	Earl

Storyline

Upon his return from Vietnam, an ex-soldier finds his neighborhood has deteriorated badly, and is being terrorized by a vicious street gang. He calls some of his GI buddies, and together they hatch a plan to get rid of the gang.

---

Plot Keywords:

vietnam | ex soldier | street | funeral | punk | 

---

Taglines:

In 1972 it was the jungles of Vietnam. Now, in 1985, it's the streets of America. Different places, same job.

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

January 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Action Force

Filming Locations:

2nd Street Tunnel between Hill and Figueroa, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Balcor Film Investors

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Complete annihilation...

After a former brother-in-arms from Vietnam is killed by a gang of thugs his former platoon leader is recruited to clean up the streets. He summons the rest of the squad and the game is on.

The story is simple and has been done several times before. There is a relatively short first part that takes place in Vietnam to establish the relationship between the soldiers. I really wish they had spent another ten minutes building on this to give the rest of the film a deeper emotional impact. Sure this is a 80s vigilante film, but that doesn't mean we can't have characters we really care about. Does it? The vigilante force also teaches the neighborhood how they can defend themselves in a montage. And who doesn't enjoy a good montage? This montage is mediocre, but that's okay. The Annihilators could easily have been mistaken for the A-Team. They aren't that professional and they are slightly more violent. Other than that they are just the same. In fact there is at least on A-Team episode exactly like this film. One of the highlights in this film is the gang leader. He looks like a shabby Kurt Russell and when he wears that wonderful pink t-shirt you won't exactly tremble with fear. The guy has balls though. At one point he walks around in the middle of the street with a flamethrower yelling that he wants his drugs back. NOW! It's hilarious stuff! How he became a gang leader is anyone's guess. He isn't a very good leader and his minions are even less capable of anything. They are crappy stereotypes, which I suppose is only what one can expect from a movie like this. On the positive side, this only adds to the overall cheese factor.

Now the thing that really annoyed me about The Annihilators is the title. It's called THE ANNIHILATORS! The definition of annihilate in the Oxford dictionary is; to destroy completely. Our vigilante squad frequently just hurt the gang members. Only towards the end do we see a somewhat steady rise in bodies. However, they are still merely shot. At least director Charles E. Sellier Jr. could have had the decency to give us some Peckinpah or Woo style shootings. And even then I doubt they could have called themselves The Annihilators with pride. Now had they taken out the scumbags with rocket launchers, claymore mines or such, the whole affair would have looked a lot different!

I could go on about all the things The Annihilators isn't, but that would be unfair to it. For all its faults The Annihilators provide some entertainment, mostly in the cheese department. Grab some recreational drugs, a pizza and watch with friends.