Slasher-Hybrid Month: Silent Rage (1982)
Silent Rage is a movie that gets mentioned a lot when someone brings up the concept of the slasher-hybrid. Action and slash have a fairly decent history with each other and movies like Rage and Cobra especially, do much to knit the genres into something all its own. Rage also has science fiction working for it so it’s a bit of a hybrid-hybrid and the triple punch makes for one fine little film.
Chuck Norris plays Dan Stevens, a handsome sheriff who looks over a small and seemingly quiet town. Brian Libby is John Kirby and he represents the silent rage of the title. He’s a menacing, almost wordless killer who seems quite unstoppable, thanks to a bit of underground genetic engineering, all of which is going on right under Stevens’ nose. Kirby was created by a group of cocky but (sometimes) well meaning geniuses (including Ron Silver and Steven Keats) who took the delicate structure of humans into their own hands, and then totally fucked it up. It’s an oft-used theme in the sci-fi genre, and not much is really given here to the story other than that. But pay no mind to its threadbare nature because Rage also has a few awesome action moments (Norris actually goes toe to toe with an entire bar full of bikers!) and a couple of incredible stalk and slash set-pieces. The opening scene sets the dark and suspenseful tone which Rage will carry elegantly throughout the film. Sure there are moments of nothingness, mostly when Stevens engages in odd banter with his partner, played by Stephen Furst, or when he’s dealing with his hot-headed but passionate girlfriend Alison (Toni Kalem), but they only add to the charm of this offbeat film. There’s even a fantastic romance montage featuring Stevens and Alison getting hot and heavy to the tune of soft rock. Wow, romance-horror-action-science-fiction, all rolled into one big ball of manly machismo and some great bloodshed! What more can one ask for?
Kirby is the very definition of terrifying and is perfectly cast as the unstoppable killer terrorizing Pleasantville, USA. Norris is Norris, but frankly, I like that. I would dare say that as confident as Norris is in regards to his martial arts prowess, he’s also completely aware of his limits as an actor. And while he may lack certain qualities in the dramatics, he manages to maintain his presence onscreen. It certainly doesn’t hurt that I think he’s got a fantastic build (not too buff like Van Damme and not to scrawny like Seagal used to be), his physical appearance really floats my boat (his politics are another thing, but a girl can’t have everything, can she?) and I think he possesses likability in all of his films. Ron Silver is great as the doctor with a conscious and he’s probably my favorite character in the film. He’s in a devastating and creepy scene that any slasher fan would appreciate. I was surprised to see that Rage played the action-slasher hybrid card so early into the 80s. It came out during the heyday of the best slashers going, but predates the flurry of high-kicking machismo which hit its stride in the latter part of the decade. The combination is delightful and Rage is a film that I think just about anyone would enjoy. It would also make a great double feature with the lesser Norris action-slasher hybrid The Hero and the Terror.
Found the indestructible killer much more threatening than Arnuld in The Terminator! Though to be fair, Chuck Norris could borrow some sweaty gravitas from Michael Biehn.
great film, one of my fav Norris films. great review!!
Chuck Norris is fairly affable in this. Libby gives the killer odd mime like movements, which work really well.
I’ve never actually seen this, Amanda, but now I gotta track it down.
The 2009 film Indestructible was a semi-remake of this film, it was played as a straight slasher with no martial arts elements in it. I know this because I played the part that Ron Silver played in the original.
Does Chuck roundhouse kick the guy? Sorry, I had to ask.
@Lizzyroman at least on 2 occassions, yes.
I would like to see this film in its original aspect ratio. The region 1 dvd has a Fullscreen presentation.
Hey Amanda – Because of this review, I picked up a copy of the flick and really enjoyed it. I agree with you about Norris’ politics, but if I can enjoy Roman Polanski and Woody Allen movies without the filmmakers’ personal lives interfering with my viewing, I guess I can do that for Chuckie too. I loved the opening shot of the stained glass window during the opening credits and its transition to daylight. I found a few bits slow, but that’s okay — they lead up to the action. The final shock coda was hilarious, but necessary given the flick’s slasher elements. And Silver was my favourite character too. Definitely an enjoyable flick.
Oh, and I agree with Lyhue – This, and all films, need to be released in their original aspect ratios.
Is this available in any way besides VHS? I think I saw it on one of those cheap movie compilations they sell at Wal-Mart. Because They made it (and The Hero and the Terror, which was included) look like action films, I ignored it.