George C. Scott plays a rancher who, along with his son, is exposed to a chemical weapon due to a mistake the Army made. However, instead of being up front about it, the military places doctors on the case (Barnard Hughes and Martin Sheen) who lie continually to the man...not letting him know that his son had died and that his prognosis is grim. When he does discover they've been lying to him, he decides to go out in a blaze of glory...with a series of violent attacks in order to try to get the faceless military to pay for their crimes.While the plot is good, the execution isn't. It's simply a guy going Rambo and killing a few people in a somewhat pointless rampage. The overall feeling is grim and awful and it's a movie no one can enjoy. Now I am NOT saying a film about chemical weapons need to be fun....but it should have more depth than this. Violent and depressing.

George C. Scott both stars in and directs this melodrama, as he plays a rancher who, while out camping with his son, discovers that they were accidentally sprayed with an experimental gas, that has killed his son and livestock, and sends him to the hospital, where he learns that the military was behind it, and after being frustrated by their stonewalling, decides to take matters in his own hands, even though he has not escaped the effects of the poisoning...Though Scott gives a first-rate performance, and is ably supported by costars Richard Basehart, Martin Sheen & Barnard Hughes, this film ultimately fails because the father goes so far off the deep end with his revenge, killing the innocent, that he loses any sympathy, and the film ends inconclusively, and unsatisfactorily. A failure at the time, though can be seen on DVD from Warner Archive, for curiosity's sake.

You can see this movie, but not hope a rate 10 movie. Scott is well as usual but the history is poor. The movie begins well but decreases much. For George C. Scott fans I recommend 'Patton(71)', 'The Changelling(80)', '12 Angry Men(97)' and others, but this is not a 'class A' movie. To watch in a rainy day - OK!

Outstanding action. Ruthless vengeance on an uncaring military bureaucracy bent on covering the truth to protect themselves. This came out during the discovery of the Watergate cover-up.It was a timely tale of righteousness. Well acted,taut paced. One of the few times made for tv is not an excuse.