Savage Dawn (1985)

A vicious biker gang is intent on destroying a small town in Arizona. A war veteran visiting an old friend and a few locals with nothing to lose go to war with the gang's ruthless leader.

Director:

Simon Nuchtern

Writers:

Bill Milling (as William P. Milling), Max Bloom (additional material by)

Stars:

George Kennedy, Richard Lynch, Karen Black

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Kennedy	...	Tick Rand
Richard Lynch	...	Rev. Romano
Karen Black	...	Rachel
Claudia Udy	...	Katie Rand
Lance Henriksen	...	Stryker
Lewis Van Bergen	...	Deputy Joe Bob
Leo Gordon	...	Sheriff
Michael Sharrett	...	Danny Rand
Kevin Thompson	...	Virgil
Hal Sweesy	...	Willard (as Hal Sweezy)
Kari Gibson Fraser	...	Fran (as Kari Gibson)
William Forsythe	...	Pigiron (as Bill Forsythe)
John Lisbon Wood	...	Savage Spyder
Charles Hyman	...	Savage Meatrack
Scott Edmund Lane	...	Savage Joyboy

Storyline

Stryker, a former soldier arrives in the small Texas town of Aqua Dulce to visit his friend Tick Rand. Things good well till a biker gang who call themselves the "Savages" cause problems and later on take over the town. Stryker, who has had enough of fighting after being a soldier refuses to fight back till a tragedy happens.

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Plot Keywords:

murder of a priest | priest | woman in jeopardy | vietnam war veteran | punched in the face | 

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Taglines:

The reign of terror is about to end

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Genres:

Drama | Action

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Quotes

Rachel: [Rachel decides to leave with the Savages] Take me with you.
Pigiron: You think you're good enough to hang with me.
Rachel: I can suck start a Harley. Please.
Pigiron: [Pigiron decides to take Rachel with him] Ge on.
[Rachel gets on the back of Pigiron's motorcycle]

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Soundtracks

Wild Dawn Knights
Music by Pino Donaggio
Lyrics by Paolo Steffan

User Reviews

I remember falling in love with that silver-gray Suzuki.

I saw SAVAGE DAWN -- for the first, and, sadly, last time -- when I was 14 years old (I'm 32 now); my cousin and I rented it on tape from Southern Star (a cool, now-defunct video store that featured movie rentals and, in the back, a couple of pool tables, a pinball machine, a couple of arcade games, a jukebox, and some tough-looking, pool-playing locals (who were not unlike the bikers in the film) -- and it was a place that turned a blind eye when a horny, gore-obsessed teenager wanted to rent an R-rated picture). SAVAGE DAWN was cheaply made (which was one of the things I liked about), featured lots of guys on motorcycles (another thing I was crazy about) and one bike in particular -- a cool-looking, silver-gray Suzuki GSP1000. I remember a fantastically gory scene -- maybe it wasn't visually gross, but in my mind it was -- where a guy is (taken off his motorcycle, I believe, and) impaled on the teeth of a huge hay-rake. I recall a couple of seedy scenes that really warmed my pubescent loins: (1) where two slutty-looking gals approach a guardhouse (to a trashed-out, post-apocalyptic fenced-in compound) and commence to entertain the guards with very vulgar, yet sexy, forms of distraction; and (2) where the wayward (maybe alcoholic) priest (was this Henriksen?) succumbs to the beautiful, naked upturned breasts of a young temptress. Sadly, I loved it all!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 May 1986 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Savage Dawn

Filming Locations:

Rosamond, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mag Enterprises

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color