When it comes to sheer go-for-broke hysterical lunacy, this film really takes the crazy cake, goggles it up with lip-smacking brio, and cheerfully throws it up all over the audience while laughing maniacally the entire time. The plot itself is deceptively simple: Rugged decorated Vietnam veteran Richard Brown (Christopher Mitchum in fine macho form) exacts a harsh revenge on the nefarious scumbags who not only murdered his son, but also crassly raped his wife prior to rubbing her out as well.Boy, does Indonesian action specialist Arizal pull out all the stops for this beautifully bent, batty, and berserk baby: The snappy pace doesn't let up for a minute, the wild'n'plentiful action scenes are staged with rip-snorting gusto, plenty of stuff blows up real good, the gritty take-no-prisoners tone gives this honey a startling hard edge, and the kick-your-teeth-out ferocious violence gets poured on with unapologetic abandon (one guy takes a gun shot to the groin, another dude is sent flying into a fish tank, the baddies brand Brown, a fellow winds up being turned into bloody hash by a huge tree branch, and so on). The fetching Ida Iasha makes a favorable impression as the helpful Julia while Mike Abbott hams it up like a hungry pig at a slop trough as the wicked head villain Hawk. Billy J. Bodiarjo's pumping synthesizer score hits the stirring spot. The cinematography by Bambang Trimakno and H. Asmawi makes cool occasional use of strenuous slow motion. An absolute insane blast.
... View MoreRichard Brown (Mitchum) is a Vietnam vet who learned well how to blow up guard towers and huts during his military service. Once in civilian life, he settles with his wife and young son Bobby (Mathias) in Indonesia, ironically believing it superior to America, at least in terms of it being safe and welcoming. His dreams of a happy home life are shattered when thugs under the command of wildly evil baddie Mr. Hawk (Abbott) rape and kill his wife, then cruelly and unnecessarily murder Bobby as well. Brown immediately snaps into action, tracking down the perpetrators one by one, and he even has an awesome "to kill" list, where he crosses off bad guy names as they die. You do NOT want to upset Richard Brown. Because even if all of Indonesia has to be annihilated in the process, he's going to get the FINAL SCORE.Well, we found it. Final Score is undoubtedly one of the most badass movies on the planet. It's a crime that it never got a U.S. VHS release in the golden age of the video store, or, to date, even a stateside DVD release. Had that happened, the course of movie history would have changed. We're quite confident this would be widely regarded as an all-time action classic. As it stands now, it's an action cult classic, not unlike No Dead Heroes (1986) or Phantom Soldiers (1987).Take a solid Death Wish (1974) scenario, set it in Indonesia, have it star Chris Mitchum instead of Charles Bronson, and ramp it all up to the nth degree, and you have something of an idea of the charm of Final Score. Everything works like a well-oiled machine, even the opening credits perfectly do their job. They're an ominous (and cool) shade of red on black, and with not just music behind them, but violence sounds such as guns firing and bombs exploding. This gives the viewer a heart-pounding sense of anticipation for what they're about to see, and expertly and subtly puts the viewer's mind in a tough, gritty mode that comes with a world of conflict and fighting. Even the young Bobby dresses like a little soldier and plays with toy guns. His dad even buys him a toy gun set for his ill-fated birthday.Finally, FINALLY, we have been blessed with a movie that truly delivers the goods on every level. Brown is a hero that has no mercy, no remorse, and nothing to lose. Just as they have to be, and are at their best. He has a variety of ways of offing his assailants (so nothing ever gets boring), including a rocket launcher, which was refreshing to see because it's rare a hero gets one, most times it's a baddie thing. But not in the take-no-prisoners world of Final Score. Brown even has the world's most rockin' motorbike. Just when you think "this can't get any better", the awesomeness level just keeps rising and rising until it breaks through the roof.Of course, some classic clichés are here, such as the aforementioned exploding huts and guard towers, the Prerequisite Torture of the hero, the fruit cart car chase, the "discs" with evidence, and the silly one-liners. And Indonesia must be the most flammable country on earth, as things ignite at the drop of a hat, thankfully, and it's blow-ups, blow-ups, blow-ups. The movie is indeed a blast, with actual non-stop action. Revenge movies are among our most favorite genres, and this is as satisfying as they come, with many goons for the hero to kill and a Christoph-like villain in the form of Mr. Hawk. The brilliant Arizal definitely has a formula for his baddies, as Hawk could be brothers with Craig Rainmaker. With this film, not to mention his others, Arizal has ascended into godlike status in the cinematic firmament.This is one of those rare movies you don't want to end. Whatever you do, just see Final Score. This movie rules.
... View MoreIndonesian trash maestro Arizal directs this completely OTT action outing starring Robert Mitchum's son Chris. To be quite honest, it starts off fairly forgettably as a simple revenge flick after Mitchum's wife is brutally raped (in a nasty protracted scene) and killed along with his young son.However, don't turn off yet because matters do indeed pick up ..and UP ..AND UP!!! In fact, this just gets better and better as it goes on.In the space of the films ninety or so minutes we are treated to such joyous sights as a man shot in the gonads, a red hot poker thrust up another guys rear end(!), numerous BIG and BEAUTIFUL explosions (a staple in Arizal flicks), some awesome stunt work throughout, a particularly cool car chase scene and some absolutely hilarious voice over work including some truly priceless expletive filled argumentative dialogue between various pursuing villains.Best scenes? So many to choose from but two especially stand out for me. In one, a group of crooks in a car chasing our hero get hit by a train their final frantic words are 'You son of a bitch!' shouted in unison before the car explodes! Absolutely awesome!And secondly, the amazing finale itself which completely defies belief! Mitchum's character on a motorbike drives off of a balcony, flies through the open side door of a helicopter, drops a grenade on the floor and flies out the other side before the helicopter explodes!!!!!! Damn! It just doesn't get any better than this!!!!!!An absolute bad movie classic!!! Trust me on this, your life simply won't be complete until you've seen this film!!!
... View MoreChristopher Mitchum's finest hour! Yes, Robert Mitchum's son stars in this ultra-trashy Indonesian action action film from the maker of THE STABILIZER!For those of you that enjoyed LETHAL HUNTER, here comes another unbelievably VIOLENT and OVER-THE-TOP Indonesian gem starring Chris Mitchum. In DEATH WISH fashion, he turns into vigilante after a bunch of punks rape and kill the members of his family. His ways of taking revenge are incredibly brutal- he even shoves a hot piece of iron in some guy's asshole! Not mention has rocket launchers attached to his motorbike. This one has to be seen to be believed! Also features unbelievable car chases, tons of huge explosions and everything a trashy action fan could possibly ask for! Don't miss FINAL SCORE!
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