Tied for the best movie I have ever seen
... View MoreI have absolutely never seen anything like this movie before. You have to see this movie.
... View MoreExcellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.
... View MoreThe movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity
... View More*SPOILERS* Exploitation flick drags along sluggishly. The story is okay, I definitely feel like the production was a little shoddy and the acting is just plain huff at times. There are plenty of moments of awful dialogue, horrible stereotypes, points when the movie forgets where it was trying to go and ends up being repetitive to the point where certain scenes seem to be playing over and over again. The actors do the best with what they are working with here, but that's not saying much. Random nudity and some nice moments of violence save this tripe from being completely awful.I would say it is interesting on a campy cult level, enough to see at least once, but this is not something I will be revisiting anytime soon. I would recommend the 'Walking Tall' movies if you are looking for something with better production since that seems to be the kind of feel this flick was going for at times. I will give it a five out of ten to be fair.JOHNNY FIRECLOUD ----- 5/10.
... View MoreGritty, pulpy but professionally handled 70s revenge exploitation that could have easily been a Western. It has a familiar selection of characters, plot themes and set-pieces that could easily have been set 100 years previously, substituting horses for cars.The performances are more than adequate for this sort of thing, the redneck hicks coming across as bug-eyed, one-dimensional and evil, whereas the more sympathetic characters are given more sensitive treatment. It does have a real comic book feel interspersed with some very nasty action, which may sit awkwardly with those unfamiliar with grindhouse cinema from this era. If you're used to films like 'Fight For Your Life' or 'Gator Bait', you will probably love this.The pacing is pretty good. It threatens to drag a little towards the end but redeems itself with some strong dialogue between Johnny and the sheriff character. One of the unexpected things about this film is the dialogue - it's hardboiled stuff but cleverly done. The cinematography and score are also effective, again with some clever touches that elevate this movie above many of its ilk. Recommended.
... View MoreJohnny Firecloud borrows heavily from the other stand up and fight action/revenge flicks of it's day like Walking Tall and Billy Jack. Comparing it to the latter, it's less pretentious and overtly political, making it much more entertaining in my book, although it does have a slight problem with being overlong.I think Johnny's goal of working hard and trying to find a place to fit in his hometown and as an Indian in modern America, is quite admirable. It makes the eventual (very bloody) war on the town bully and his group of nasty rednecks very satisfying.The final scene isn't particularly exciting but still worthwhile.Another thing that struck me about this film is the number of complex characters (for a drive-in movie) and sympathetic whites among the population of Johnny's town. Most of the time in these type of movies the only good white person is the town's lone attractive female. It blunts some of the other over-the-top redneck stereotypes presented in the film.For the perverts out there, Marlon Brando's favorite fake Indian, Sacheen Littlefeather, shows off her breast implants in a gratuitous rape scene where we're "treated" to the sight of a greasy fat redneck reaching up her skirt and snatching off her panties, holding them up to the camera and grinning!One of the morals of this movie is that when you have the cops on your side, don't abuse it. The same policeman that's going to let you get away with murder is liable to look the other way while your own throat gets slit!
... View MoreIndian Johnny Firecloud (Victor Mohica) lives in a small Western town. He's constantly being tormented by Colby (Ralph Meeker) and his gang of friends who basically run the town. Things escalate--Johnny is beaten up repeatedly and whipped, his grandfather is publicly humiliated and lynched and a female friend of his is raped to death. Johnny explodes and hunts down Colby's friends and extracts some very bloody revenge...Hard to believe that 20th Century Fox released this--basically it's a drive-in exploitation flick. It has some huge problems--the acting isn't really good (Mohica yells all his lines, Meeker appears indifferent); the violence against the Indians is more than a little disturbing--the rape scene was just too savage and the script is WAY overdone and does nothing with its racism storyline. Still this is very good OF ITS TYPE.It's well-directed and when Johnny takes his revenge it's exciting and extremely bloody--but these guys all deserve it. Also it has a subplot involving a gay man that's treated sensitively--that's pretty daring for a 1970s movie. Also the DVD print is in great shape--letter boxed with bright, strong colors.I recommend it but it is very violent and unpleasant--it's definitely not for everybody. I give it a 7.
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