William Friedkin follows up To Live and Die in L.A. with yet another forgotten masterpiece. Rampage is inspired by the true story of the Vampire killer murders, which took place in the late 70s in Stockton and Sacramento, California. I've seen both versions of the film and i can't manage to come to terms on which one i prefer. Michael Biehn leads a stellar cast as they battle between the case of insane and legally insane. It's well photographed by the talented Robert Yoeman, who went on to become Wes Anderson's cinematographer. He previously worked with Friedkin as a second unit cinematographer on To Live and Die.
This film is dark, lurid, creepy, disturbing, and shocking. It has an intense sinister tone and mood like many of Friedkin's other classics. The film was made in 1987 when the death penalty debate was a hot button issue. However due to it's legal predicaments, it wasn't released until 1992; by then the topic was gone. I would say this film has Michael Biehn's finest performance. The 2nd version of the film is now available on netflix. I hope a restored DVD or BLURAY version of this film comes out soon. A great undiscovered gem from Bill Friedkin.
This film is dark, lurid, creepy, disturbing, and shocking. It has an intense sinister tone and mood like many of Friedkin's other classics. The film was made in 1987 when the death penalty debate was a hot button issue. However due to it's legal predicaments, it wasn't released until 1992; by then the topic was gone. I would say this film has Michael Biehn's finest performance. The 2nd version of the film is now available on netflix. I hope a restored DVD or BLURAY version of this film comes out soon. A great undiscovered gem from Bill Friedkin.