Gritty Realistic 70s Action/Dramas...

[Clive Smith noodle doodle Find all posts View Profile Close Clive Smith]

Hey, where's NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER anyway? I've a hankering...

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

FREEBIE AND THE BEAN is essential. It has some spectacular action scenes. Apparently, it was one of Kubrick's favourite films. The Warner Archives DVD has a great transfer, but the sound isn't very good.

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

Hey, where's NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER anyway? I've a hankering...

It's on youtube, but I've hesitated to watch it because I've heard that the photography is really dark. What are the chances of this getting a Bluray release? Like Clive, I'm tired of waiting...

[Marshall Crist Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Marshall Crist]

Anybody care to tell me whether DUSTY AND SWEETS McGEE, out now on Warner Archives, is worth the investment? I've never seen this one; sounds interesting.

Three years later...

I enjoyed this one a lot, but it is in no way an action film.

Meanwhile, I have been thinking really hard about blind-buying PRIME CUT.

[Mike DiRoma Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mike DiRoma]

PRIME CUT is wonderful.

[Marshall Crist Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Marshall Crist]

Next time I have two pennies to rub together, it will be mine.

Some other films that I like that might fit in this category:

BUSTING (mentioned earlier in the thread)
HICKEY AND BOGGS
ELECTRA GLIDE IN BLUE
DEALING: OR THE BERKELEY-TO-BOSTON FORTY-BRICK LOST-BAG BLUES
BONNIE'S KIDS
THE CANDY SNATCHERS
KIDNAPPED COED

Not sure how elastic this "genre" is, but I am also reminded of:

CISCO PIKE
THE LONG GOODBYE
ESCAPE TO PASSION
NORTHVILLE CEMETERY MASSACRE
STINGRAY
THE OBSESSED ONE
YALAN (1976)

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

Three years later...

I enjoyed this one a lot, but it is in no way an action film.

Thanks for the feedback, Marshall!

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

Saw a great one the other day, John Flynn's THE OUTFIT. Robert Duvall starts robbing the mafia as payment for the death of his brother, with help from Joe Don Baker. Lots of action and tough guy dialogue.

[Keeth Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Keeth]

I saw The Outfit on Turner Classic Movies a couple months back. It was pretty good & a nice surprise as I just ran across it along with having never heard of it before.

Is there a crime film called Bare Knuckles that has something to do with a serial killer? I remember it on video & catching it on late night tv. The main character may have been an unlicensed detective or a bare knuckle fighter...?

This is it: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075727/combined

https://www.grindhousedatabase.com/i.../Bare_Knuckles

[Mike DiRoma Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mike DiRoma]

Yeah! BARE KNUCKLES is very entertaining. Soundtrack is boss as well. This was released as a d/f dollar dvd & went out of print quick. Never grabbed it, but I still have the dvdr from my VHS.

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

BARE KNUCKLES has been on my most-wanted list for awhile. I'm tempted to buy the DVD-r from Just for the Hell of It.

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

So I watched NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER on youtube and it's even better than I expected. It's a very well-made thriller that has a phenomenal 10 minute chase sequence near the beginning and many more memorable set-pieces, including a great scene that takes place in a peep show booth. The youtube upload is perfectly watchable, too, except for the climax, which takes place in almost complete darkness. It's a mystery why this great film hasn't been released on disc. It's fucking awesome.

[Mike DiRoma Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mike DiRoma]

Yeah, that film is great. The dark scenes near the end are very problematic; nearly impossible to see on VHS, especially the Media tape.

[Randy G Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Randy G]

Yeah NIGHT is yet another 70s gem.

Good to see others mention PRIME CUT. I would also include CHARLIE VARRICK by Don Siegel and WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN, perhaps the great CUTTER'S WAY but that is more thriller than action.

Loved the druggy 70s vibe of DUSTY AND SWEETS MCGEE but there is definitely no action in it that I can recall.

[Matt H. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt H.]

I haven't seen CHARLEY, but another good one by Siegel is MADIGAN, with an aging Richard Widmark playing a total badass detective searching for a psycho who gives him the slip in the opening scene.

Somebody else mentioned THE LAUGHING POLICEMAN, which is a pretty good police procedural with Walter Matthau and Bruce Dern playing the investigators. The plot gets a bit confusing at times, but Dern gives the performance of his career.