Makeup has a great deal to do with this story, so much so that it could have been given Oscar consideration. You won't even know how much until the very end of the filmHaving said that The Zebra Force is one incredibly dumb action adventure film where a group of Vietnam veterans who were an elite unit have taken to ripping off the Mafia, known here as 'The Outfit'. They've done this in such a way that the blame is being placed on a local group of black gangsters whom The Outfit considers are getting too uppity. A nice little gang war erupts before the truth is known and most of the cast is killed.The Zebra Force seems very much to be influenced by Sam Peckinpah and his work. A few slow motion violence ballets are in this film, but believe this ain't Peckinpah.Makeup great, the rest of it you can have.

You know, I'd like to see some film maker tackle this story today because it might really turn out to be pretty good. There were some really cool elements here that resulted in a neat twist ending that I saw coming in only the last five minutes, but even then, I didn't think the Lieutenant would turn out to be the black guy.But oh man, is this totally mired in the Seventies with the cars, clothes and hair styles. I have to admit, I'm guilty of wearing some of those dated fashions back in the day and can see how ridiculous I must have looked back then. But only from today's perspective seeing how everyone else dressed the same way.Well this flick had an interesting premise, as a group of ex-Viet Nam vets battles the local drug kingpins by posing as black gang bangers and ripping them off, thereby creating animosity with a rival black gang. Making things more interesting is a police detective with connections to the Mafia who's forced to broker a drug deal with the boys in the hood. Thinking he's pulled one off for the police force, Sergeant Stangman (Stafford Morgan) is taken out by a Mafia sniper, at which point all hell breaks loose.It's all pretty typical Seventies TV movie hokum, with the cheesiness in just the right amounts. You've got your car chases and shoot 'em ups, and the obligatory guy who gets shot and falls through an upper story window into a swimming pool. Still, there's the germ of a good idea here, and done right, I think it could be made to look original even today.

This is nothing more that an excuse for a bunch of scenes of slaughter. It has virtually no plot or motivation. The characters are stereotypical and really questionable actors. Their reason for doing what they do wouldn't stand up under any scrutiny. It's the Zebra force against the Mafia. I don't know why because it's never clear. If they are both basically evil, why don't the just stay away from each other. There's virtually no conversation and when it happens it is senseless and pointless. The old running back, Timmy Brown, is in it. So is the Sinatra kid. It's a monumental waste of time. There isn't even the "bad movie" syndrome at work here.

Even though this late-night action flick has aged, it still has what many of today's multi-budget movies are lacking in: ORIGINALITY! Don't expect good guy heroes in "The Zebra Force" because this definitely is not your typical action film. Instead, this is a first-person anti-hero show that knows no limits. Watching the soldiers in black masks terrorize the innocent is rather deteriorating, but that's part of the fun. Overall, the real show stealers are the gang's leader with a deformed face who communicates via mini walkie-talkies, plus an unexpected finale. If you can live with obscure '70s trashies like this one, then I can't blame you for that!