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We all know that there are dozens and dozens of films from the 70s that were neglected or completely unseen by a large audience. With the upcoming release earlier next year of The Yakuza on DVD, I was wondering whether anyone has heard of anything with regards to another Paul Schrader penned feature -- Rolling Thunder from 1977. If you haven't had a chance to see it, its amazing, about a guy comes back from Vietnam. You'd think that Quentin Tarantino would've released this one on his distribution label, especially considering that its one of his favorite films and he even named his goddamn company after it!

I've been waiting for a while for a DVD of this to emerge actually. I would have much rather that Schrader stuck with the script and directed it himself (who knows what kind of greatness the film would of been then) but I remember watching this on tv when I was like 8, and thinking it was one of the best films I've seen up to that point. Who knows how well it'll stand up now, but I remember then being impressed with William Devane and Tommy Lee Jones. This and John Flynn's other 70s film, The Outfit really both deserve to be released on DVD (along with a few dozen other 70s films), and I'm quite suprised that either hasn't yet.

The trailer for Rolling Thunder is on the recently released DVD from Synapse Films, 42nd Street Forever: Volume 2, along with one for the other major unreleased on DVD film, Abel Ferrara's Ms. 45.

I've never seen Rolling Thunder, but it looks interesting from the trailer!

Great performance by William Devane. I believe that it is an MGM property as it was an AIP production. It is quite strange that we are still waiting for the DVD. Tarantino is a big fan of this one.

This should be airing during january in north america on the flix network, I think, and is highly recommended. Try to watch it back to back with Schrader's "Hardcore" for a good night of revenge & calvinism during the pre-am hours.

I used to watch Devane on soap operas as a kid (then "Phenom", which really needs a commentary-rich once or twice over, soon?), and he is something unnerving in this film. Take no prisoners?

Rolling Thunder

William Devane. Tommy Lee Jones. One of Paul Schrader's finest scripts. It needs a DVD release. A masterpiece. Gene Siskel put it on his top ten for the year it came out!

I saw Rolling Thunder again a few months back, via a DVD-R, I wasn't all that impressed. Flynn's direction isn't that good, to be honest. Like Walking Tall - the Joe Don Baker original - it takes itself far too seriously, yet is also OTT and hysterical. The violence in both films seems so straightforward today, but has a lumbering, over-rehearsed feel to it. Rolling Thunder is worth seeing, though, but I have a feeling that many people will be disappointed when it finally hits DVD. Much of the material is very, very familiar now, but Devane's performance is superb.

Having said all of this, I discovered my favourite 70s revenge film recently: The Human Factor (1975, Edward Dmytryk) starring George Kennedy and John Mills.

Person wrote:Having said all of this, I discovered my favourite 70s revenge film recently: The Human Factor (1975, Edward Dmytryk) starring George Kennedy and John Mills.

Have you see The Outfit? I think that is one of my all-time fave 70s revenge films also directed by Flynn and starring Robert Duvall and Joe Don Baker. Great film and I wish they would put that bad boy out on DVD as well!

Fletch F. Fletch wrote:

Person wrote:Having said all of this, I discovered my favourite 70s revenge film recently: The Human Factor (1975, Edward Dmytryk) starring George Kennedy and John Mills.

Have you see The Outfit? I think that is one of my all-time fave 70s revenge films also directed by Flynn and starring Robert Duvall and Joe Don Baker. Great film and I wish they would put that bad boy out on DVD as well!

Duvall and JDB in the same movie? Wow, yeah, I'd definitely check that out. Love JDB in the 70s - he is fucking amazing in Charley Varrick. Duvall had his moments, too.

Person wrote:Duvall and JDB in the same movie? Wow, yeah, I'd definitely check that out. Love JDB in the 70s - he is fucking amazing in Charley Varrick. Duvall had his moments, too.

Heh! Yeah, Charley Varrick is one of my faves as well... Don Siegel, Walter Matthau AND Joe Don Baker? Yeah... But you'll really dig The Outfit, it's a great no frills '70s crime film.

Here's a link to a clip from it:

Fletch F. Fletch wrote:Here's a link
to a clip from The Outfit

Man, Duvall is a raw muthafucka in this movie, huh? Awesome. Score by the great Jerry Fielding, too. I'd love to see this one on legit DVD. Cheers, Irwin!