Highly Overrated But Still Good

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The highlight of director Anthony M. Lanza's biker flick "The Glory Stompers" is lenser Mario Tossi's sensational cinematography. Tossi's use of wide angle lens gives this tame outlaw motorcycle melodrama lots of atmosphere and grit. Best known for the original "Carrie" and "The Stunt Man," Tossi has an eye for detail and depth. The opening images of this low-budget, exploitation epic are absolutely riveting! Quite simply, this is probably the best-looking biker movie that I've ever seen. If you ride, you will love the up-close and personal attention that he gives the bikers and their bikes. Moreover, the landscape imagery is terrific. When the villains cross a desert, it makes "The Glory Stompers" look like "Lawrence of Arabia." The story resembles a latter day western. The action is largely confined to biker rallies, places along the road, and fisticuffs in random places in the desert. "The Glory Stompers" is a road movie, and the bikes and the babes look good. Obviously, since it was a studio release in the late 1960s, the violence couldn't have been more any more graphic than it was. Glory Stompers' chief Darryl (Jody McCrea of "Young Guns of Texas") is beaten up and left for dead by a rival biker gang, The Black Souls, headed by Chico (Dennis Hopper of "Rebel Without A Cause"), who abducts Darryl's blonde babe Chris (Chris Noel of "Soldier in the Rain") so he can take her to Mexico and sell her into white slavery. Predictably, our resilient hero recovers from the beating and sets out in pursuit of Chino and company. Once Chino has taken Chris, he finds his leadership questioned by one of his burly minions, Magoo (Robert Tessier of "The Longest Yard"), who wants the girl for himself. Tessier makes a great second-string heavy, and this was before he shaved off his unruly mop of hair. Mind you, with a full head of hair, Tessier just doesn't look as intimidating. Magoo proves to be more than a handful for the scrawny Chino to handle. Worse than the hostile Magoo is Chino's own jealous girlfriend, Jo Ann (Sandra Bettin of "Angels from Hell"), who is rather dexterous with a knife. Chino discovers to his chagrin just how dexterous she is during the final quarter of this atmospheric biker yarn. As Darryl sets out to rescue Chris, he finds help from an unexpected quarter, an older chapter member of another Glory Stomper group, Smiley (Jock Mahoney of "Tarzan Goes to India"), shows up. Smiley spends more time advising our protagonist than taking licks for him in close-quarters combat. This American International Pictures release is a low-budget, but entertaining saga that doesn't wear out its welcome. Jody McCrea-yes, Joel's son-is too clean-cut to be believed, but his girl is trying to wean him off the biker thing. He is reluctant to give up his bike because he prefers the free-wheeling style of his biker pals. They set their own hours, do their own thing, and have freedom galore. This sounds a lot like Peter Fonda in another AIP release "The Wild Angels." Dennis Hopper makes a solid antagonist, and he appeared in this drive-in feature before he elevated biker flicks to the level of art with "Easy Rider." As motorcycle mayhem goes, "The Glory Stompers" doesn't have a whole lot of stomp, but it is a gorgeous film to gaze at with a good cast.

The Glory Stompers is what I love about old movie making, especially bikie films. This is one which has probably gone under the radar to a lot of bikie fans, but it's one I urge to see, although of course it's no masterpiece, or not really even good. But it's what I call, "Something worth it's watch". But I am I hard, when it comes to judging bikie films, which doesn't help more, when coming out of the late sixties and seventies. This is a movie, legendary Hopper did before Easy Rider. I was quite impressed by how well this movie came off. After seeing Chrome And Hot Leather (what a waste of viewer's time-don't remind me) and Werewolves On Wheels, I mean really, this bikie film was refreshing. Hopper, plays Chino, the lead of this badarse motorcycle group, you've guessed it, The Glory Stompers, preferably known as The Stompers, who clash with a much friendlier and more chilled out motorcycle gang, The Outlaws. When two lovers of the outlaws are a having a private moment, following this beef, the boyfriend is beaten up, and thought to be dead, while the girlfriend is snatched, and on her way to soon be sold a a sex slave, once the Stompers cross the borders. It doesn't take much to work out the outcome or, the situations that pop up in between, if seeing other bikie movies, with Hopper's lady getting jealous of course, and the snatched outlaw is quite delicious, while playing Hopper's younger brother against Hopper. Featuring a kick arse title song, the film retains a good above average quality about it, and if those other two dire bikie movies don't cut it for ya. May'be give this one a go, you might be surprised. Robert Tessier as a Magoo, a dirty, crass, and repugnant sort, and a member of the Stompers.

Glory Stompers, The (1968)** 1/2 (out of 4) AIP biker film has Black Souls member Chino (Dennis Hopper) beating the pulp out of a Glory Stomper (Jody McCrea) and stealing his girlfriend (Chris Noel). They think the Glory Stomper is dead but he eventually comes seeking revenge. As far as biker flicks goes this one here certainly isn't at the top of the group but it's a decent entry. There are enough plot holes here that you might find yourself laughing when you're not suppose to. One such moment happens early on after they beat up McCrea. For whatever reason they think he's dead but they never check a for a pulse or anything else. This here is why he's able to come after them as they didn't finish the job or even check to see if they did. Another such moment is when Hopper tells everyone that they'll never find the biker's body because they hid it yet all they did was put him and his bike under a tree where everyone could see it. It's that type of goofiness that gives this film its charm as well as other scenes including one where there's a mass orgy of body painting. There's some silly sex scenes thrown in but everyone keeps their clothes on and just rolls around in the dirt. Hopper is at his very best here playing a real nut who is constantly coming up with silly things to say and always threatening someone. McCrea doesn't have his father's acting ability but he's fun enough in the role. I didn't care too much for Noel as I found here way too bland for the character even though she is playing the goodie type. Robert Tessier, with hair, has a pretty good role as the muscle-bound thug and most will remember him from his bald roles in HARD TIMES and THE LONGEST YARD. Casey Kasem and Lindsay Crosby (Bing's daughter) also appear. The movie moves along quickly enough and there's enough charm to make it worth viewing if you're a fan of the genre. There's certainly nothing terrific or ground breaking here but Hopper is a lot of fun and makes it worth checking out.

Excellent riding sequences and plenty of action made this a great movie to watch. You won't see the excessive carnage that I saw in "The Savage Seven" and "The Losers" but this movie has more than enough brutality to qualify it as a violent biker film.The Glory Stompers starts off by introducing you to the two basic types of bikers. Those who ride for pleasure and those who look for trouble. The Glory Stompers believe in fun and friendship while the Black Souls behave like opportunistic predators.The plot is rather simple yet engrossing. The Black Souls ambush a lone Glory Stomper, Darryl (Jody McCrea), and leave him for dead. The only witness is the Stomper's girlfriend, Chris (Chris Noel), so the Black Souls decide to silence her and cash in on her misfortune by selling her to some Mexican criminals. When Darryl regains consciousness he sets out alone after the Black Souls.The Black Souls make up an interesting group of villains. Dennis Hopper is brilliant as Chino the tough and ruthless leader. Chino's lady, Jo Ann (Sondra Gayle), can best be described as a knife-happy psycho. Paul (Jim Reader) seems to be too civilized to ride with the Black Souls until we learn that he is Chino's younger brother and that they have no other family. Magoo (Robert Tessier) is the largest and most sadistic member of this group. Mouth (Casey Kasem) and Monk (Lindsay Crosby) are the comic relief of the Black Souls as they spend most of their time just clowning around together.While Darryl is following the Black Souls he runs into Smiley (Jock Mahoney) who used to be a vice president of the Glory Stompers. Now older and wiser Smiley becomes Darryl's mentor and joins him on his pursuit of the Black Souls. They are eventually joined by Darryl's best friend and fellow Stomper, Pony (Gary Wood), and Pony's new bride Doreen (Astrid Warner). This posse of Stompers pursues the Black Souls into the desert where the Black Souls are waiting in a ghost town to sell their captive to the Mexican criminals. This sets up the final showdown.During my teens this film was one of my personal favorites. If you like "Good versus Evil" and "Damsel in Distress" movies, set to a motorcycle theme, then you should find this one entertaining.On researching this movie I found some interesting trivia about three of the actors who played Black Souls. Casey Kasem was inducted into the Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1995. Casey was also the voice of "Shaggy" in the Scooby Doo cartoons. Robert Tessier shed his hair and went on to play bald-headed, tough guys most notably in "Hard Times" with Charles Bronson and "The Longest Yard" with Burt Reynolds. Lindsay Crosby's father was none other than the legendary singer/actor Bing Crosby.By: Ron Forestieri