Los satánicos

In order to get any enjoyment or entertainment, or just dumb-fun in a B-movie (if that) kind of way, like Satan's Sadists (not inappropriately released on DVD in some circles by Troma), is to take into context that it was, of course, the late 60's, and it remains in the sub-genre that is the biker-movie. I almost hesitate to slap the label 'exploitation flick' on it because one would have to take completely into mind what exploitation entails. Maybe there were many (maybe mostly) good-hearted bikers like the ones in Easy Rider that wanted nothing more than to get stoned and ride their wheels without too much trouble. But that is in a particular kind of movie that tries (and succeeds) to rise above the expectations of the enclave of biker movies. For the most part, as with Satan's Sadists and many others, a biker gang with a cool sounding name goes into a town, bothers the habitants to a point of total suspense and shock, and the filmmaker may or may not try to dig a little under the surface, go beyond the expectations up to a point.

One of the things that makes Satan's Sadists work, up to a point, is that producer/director Adamson usually doesn't mistake what it is that he's making. A film like this, when it played (where and if of course being part in question), would just be used as fodder for make-out sections and beer contests for those in the cars at the drive-ins, just good enough to not make anyone start chucking things at the screen. Adamson brings forth all the ideal elements- a gang of six (including the perennial grungy/sexy female) with attitude braced in their eyes and sunglasses, the older straight-laced couple, the good-looking younger couple, and plenty of room for tracking, driving shots of bikes. The gang here of the title run into a cop and his wife, a waitress, another young guy and the owner of a small pit stop in the middle of the California desert.

Basically, describing the plot would be moot; say enough that it is as much of a usual biker film as it is a revenge picture (and usually the two go one in the same with these movies). To Adamson's credit, given a group of non-professional actors (or B/C/D movie actors) that are hit or miss (the bikers are all alright, as are the cop and his wife, but some of the other parts of the younger women are pretty bad), he tends to push some of the boundaries of what can be done within the framework of the structure. We have an idea of what will go on, of course, after a crucial moment in the film, but there are little things, like when the bikes brake-down in the desert, or when other minor female characters are introduced all of a sudden in the desert, or the impromptu dance scene in the restaurant (though that is a staple in many of these flicks, a cool one at that). It's when Adamson sometimes kids himself with what he's doing that it steers away, like a little mini-speech given by the groups leader about 'the man' versus the 'love' generation before a certain murder takes place. And the music, while with a cool opening number, is draining aside from an interesting drum solo here and there.

I wouldn't say to start with Satan's Sadists if you're just starting to get into these kinds of films, as it is relatively hard to find and Adamson, while not without his cult fan-base, was unknown to me before seeing the film and really does nothing more than make your standard genre movie. However it's not to say that within the 'standards' there aren't some creative flourishes. I liked how there was always the one character clinging onto getting stoned and tripped whilst the others went on with their tough business, who even provides a couple of laughs. And where the film heads to is exciting on the most primitive, fast-food sort of level. There are certainly 'better' movies out there, probably with better acting and better use of music and locations. But at least in Adamson there is a little experimentation and touches of daring in his style; little insert close-ups and zooms/pans are interesting, and at times a certain zaniness tries to work its way into the steady shots. If a biker picture, in all of its likely exploitive tendencies and cardboard psychology, is more about attitude and using what is there within the limitations, Satan's Sadists is not bad, though not great.

I watched this dud just because Russ Tamblyn was in it :why on earth did he have to get involved in that business? Tamblyn plays the leader of a pack of Hell's Angel's who spread panic and bring death and destruction to the region.The prologue is particularly obnoxious : a scene of rape and the victim seems to appreciate bestiality.

But the movie is outright reactionary: that long-haired youth is fatally dangerous ,but fortunately the clean cut kid,a former marine,is here to save the damsel in distress in miniskirt.THe hero utters this hilarious line :"in Vietnam,at least,I was paid when I killed someone".

Russ Tamblyn sank really low :he's best remembered for " the last hunt" "west side story" and the extraordinary horror classic "the haunting" (1963)

I say "One of the Best" because I collect "Cheap Biker Movies" and this IS one of the best. The cheaper (as in low budget, minimal plot, horrible acting, etc.) the better. I realize most accidents in the home happen in the bathroom,so take note of the medicine cabinet scene in the diner's restroom. Did you know you can DIE if someone opens a medicine cabinet door in your face? It was a very graphic and horrible scene (notice any tongue-in-cheek, here?) I felt sorry for the Bro who died a terrible and bloody death. Also, these "Bros" can really handle a "Hog" off road. Realistic? Wow! Honestly, this movie keeps me on the edge of my seat every time I break it out and watch it. I have to be on the edge of my seat 'cause my head is in a bucket! Highly recommended movie to watch if you love the best of the worst.

The title bunch are a particularly odious motorcycle gang in this, producer / director Al Adamsons' contribution to the then popular cycle of biker films. Adamson does tend to take a lot of flak for his somewhat less than slick low budget productions, but this is actually one of his better efforts. It benefits from a very enjoyable gathering of B movie regulars, both new (at the time) and old. Russ Tamblyn stars as cheerful psycho Anchor, leader of this gang. Anchor and company terrorize the customers at a diner / service station, and end up pursuing some of them into the remote California wilderness. This movie lets you know right off the bat just how depraved its antagonists are, as they help themselves to an unwilling woman and then send her, her boyfriend, and their car over the edge of a cliff. When they happen upon a group of college age gals out in the desert, they drug them and have their way with them. They just can't get their comeuppance soon enough. Also among the cast are Scott Brady as weary cop Charlie, Kent Taylor as the diner proprietor Lew, Regina Carrol (Adamsons' real life partner) as biker mama Gina, Jacqueline Cole as comely waitress Tracy, Gary Kent as nice guy former soldier Johnny, and John 'Bud' Cardos, Robert Dix, Greydon Clark (who himself became a director years later), William Bonner, and Bobby Clark as the gang. Carrols' slutty dance number inside the diner rates as a highlight, as do the fight sequences between Tamblyn & Cardos and Kent & Cardos. The soundtrack is quite good, with Harley Hatcher composing both the songs and the score. The prolific Gary Graver serves as both the editor and cinematographer (assisted in the latter capacity by an uncredited Vilmos Zsigmond). The makeup artist is a young Susan Arnold (daughter of the great sci-fi director Jack Arnold), who went on to great success as a casting director and, eventually, a producer. But it's really Tamblyns' scenery devouring performance that makes this worth seeing; he even came up with a monologue on his own. As far as biker films go, this definitely has to be one of the trashiest ones ever made, and it's nothing if not amusing for its entire 87 minute running time. It's rough, crude, and suitably rousing, and the sleaze just oozes off of the screen. Seven out of 10.

There are several things this picture cannot overcome with its very low budget: the pacing is very slow at points, photography is almost amateurish in places (blown up from 16mm, I think), there's filler - too many shots of motorcycle riders moving on the freeway, and lousy dialog/acting. But, there's enough entertainment value for 3 stars from me. The credits song, 'I Was Born Mean...' is just super. Then you have star Tamblyn, the biker leader, overacting or subverting his persona, depending on how you look at it. He makes this weird speech a third of the way in (famous to people familiar with the flic) about how peaceful hippies are persecuted by cops; this is how he justifies his murderous actions (yes, I do this for the hippies, since they're too peaceful to do it). Scott Brady is a cop on vacation and the object of Tamblyn's antagonism. It doesn't explain why Tamblyn kills 3 young women later - what do they have to do with it? He giggles like a madman as even his own fellow biker (Cardos) rebels against such pointless murder.

Is Tamblyn just playing a joke on the audience? Here I am, he seems to be implying, once a nice boy in Hollywood movies. Look at me doing all this crazy stuff! I am one crazy dude. The 2nd half of the pic is all in the bleak desert, with the various surviving characters running about. There are no other police or establishment figures intruding; it's mentioned in the beginning how desolate the area is, that you can go 200 miles(!) without seeing another person. Greydon Clark is amusing as another biker who lives to get stoned on acid or LSD; his goal is to go on a one-way trip. And this was Regina Carrol's first big role, as a biker momma. Some of her dialog, as mentioned, is atrociously dated and poorly delivered besides; pining for Tamblyn, she asks another biker, "doesn't he know I dig him?" So what were they all rebelling against, these lowlife bikers? It's anyone's guess. Like in other such pictures, they just looked bored with everything and spewed moronic rationales out of their dirty little mouths - but the filmmakers put them there. Next was "Dracula vs.Frankenstein" - a reworked biker tale.