Pete (Arell Blanton) and Stick (Alex Rocco) are two bikers. They have that "Of Mice and Men" relationship with Stick not being all there. They are too bad for the biker gang and get kicked out and do the home invasion scene.The film was horrible on many levels.Guide: Sex. rape, nudity (Sherry Bain, Elizabeth Knowles, Linda Johanesen)

This low budget b-movie is very much on the sleazier end of the exploitation spectrum. It was released by those dependable purveyors of good time schlock, Crown International Pictures. In advance, this one looks like it's another in the biker film cycle that followed in the wake of the big box office success of Easy Rider (1969). But despite its title, poster and two central characters, there is actually little in the way of biker action to be found here. Instead, it is a very early example of a type of movie which would become more popular as the 70's went on and would go on to be one of the most controversial sub-genres, namely the house invasion movie. In this respect, Wild Riders is quite clearly ahead of the curve and this does make it interesting.It's about two biker thugs, who are exiled from their gang for killing a girl, they go on to conduct a house invasion of an affluent suburban home; their victims are two unfortunate women. From the outset this one makes it clear how it means to go on with a savage opening scene where a girl is nailed to a tree. Later there is more nastiness in the form of rape, murder and verbal abuse. It crescendos with a violent finale that was not only satisfying but also very funny. Despite how it may sound it's really not as disturbing as most films of this type that followed it but it definitely has a mean streak to it quite a bit of the time. It was after all refused a certificate in the UK when initially released and then re-refused again when it was submitted for home video in the late 80's. Definitely one of the tougher films released by Crown and one well worth checking out if you enjoy 70's exploitation.

This film starts off promisingly, (for sick, sick thrills) when our two main characters torture and kill Pete's girlfriend because she dared to cheat on him, and with a man who had the gall to be born with a high melanin content, no less. This is too much to stand, even for the rest of the scuzzy biker gang they are riding with, so the gang leader tells them to beat it, hit the road and don't come back, the gang is splitting up and some of us are going to California.So, the two scuzz buckets, Pete (reminiscent of Peter Fonda's Heavenly Blue, only meaner) and Stick (he's a bit slow but lovable, for a moronic sadist), go off by themselves like some crank-addicted George and Lennie in a white-trash version of "Of Mice and Men". Out of money and desperate, our two anti-heroes take over a somewhat posh suburban home where two sisters are holed up, bickering, since hubby is away on business.The two creeps take over the house and hold the ladies hostage, and we settle in for over an hour of what appears to be a sort of bargain-basement "Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf" on meth. Various physical and psychic tortures are inflicted upon both the victims and tormentors, as mind games galore play themselves out, until the inevitable, bloody conclusion. And since this was made during the post-Altamont era, you just know that the ending is most certainly NOT going to consist of the main characters going off into the sunset or sharing milk and cookies. Let's just say you'll never look at the cello the same way again.A violent creep fest full of ugliness, recriminations and unnecessary cruelty. But in spite of that, I still didn't like it.I can sum up the problem here in four words: not enough bike riding. A few more chase scenes, biker parties with naked chicks, or even a shootout with the police, and I might have gotten on board with this little sleaze fest. But, they blew it. I totally get that they had a very low budget to work with, but this wasn't the way to solve that problem. In spite of this, I give it a three since Alex Rocco puts in a good performance as a mildly retarded reprobate.

***spoilers*** Smooth talking Pete and his smelly,idiot pal Stick leave Florida(as well as a girl nailed to a tree)and travel west to California. From a lookout point in the Hollywood hills,Pete spies Rona by her pool sunbathing with her friend Laura. Before long,Pete manages to talk his way into her yard,into her pool,into her home,and into the bed of the sex starved lady of the house. Meanwhile,Laura insults Stick, so he beats and rapes her. When Laura tells Rona, Pete gets violent. The terrified women are then held captive as the two bikers ransack the house and threaten them with more rape and worse. Despite this, Rona falls in love with Pete. Unfortunately for Rona,her musician husband returns home and proceeds to kill Pete and Stick with his cello! This movie kind of reminded me of a much tamer "Last house on the Left" with it's crude production values,sadistic goons,and shocking just desserts. It even has a theme song written and performed by it's lead dirtbag. Surprisingly, "The Wild Riders" predates the other movie by a year I wouldn't go as far as to call this a must-see,but I enjoyed it enough to reccomend it to fans of low budget,low class exploitation.