Targets

1968
R
1h 30m

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

13K

YOUR RATING

An elderly horror film star, while making a personal appearance at a drive-in theatre, confronts a psychotic Vietnam War veteran who has turned into a mass-murdering sniper.

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Crime Drama Thriller

An aging horror star contemplates retirement amid the modern culture of random violence, while a disturbed young gun collector embarks on an unprovoked killing spree.An aging horror star contemplates retirement amid the modern culture of random violence, while a disturbed young gun collector embarks on an unprovoked killing spree.An aging horror star contemplates retirement amid the modern culture of random violence, while a disturbed young gun collector embarks on an unprovoked killing spree.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

13K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win total

Trivia
Roger Corman told director Peter Bogdanovich that he could make any film that he wanted to, on two conditions: he had to use stock footage from the film The Terror (1963), and he had to hire Boris Karloff for two days (Karloff was under contract to Corman and owed him those two days). Karloff was so impressed with the film's script, however, that he refused any pay for any shooting time over his contracted two days. He worked for a total of five days on it.

Goofs
Bobby's check to the gun shop is dated late July, but when Orlok picks up a newspaper story about the supermarket massacre several days later, the paper carries a March date.

Quotes
Byron Orlok: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I'd like to leave you with a little story to think about as you drive home - through the darkness. Once upon a time, many years ago - there should be a pin spot on my face as I'm talking - once upon a time, many, many years ago, a rich merchant in Baghdad sent his servant to the marketplace to buy provisions. And after a while, the servant came back, white-faced and trembling, and said, "Master, when I was in the marketplace, I was jostled by a woman in the crowd, and I turned to look, and I saw that it was Death that jostled me. And she looked at me and made a threatening gesture. Oh, Master, please, lend me your horse, that I may ride away from this city and escape my fate. I will ride to Samara, and Death will not find me there." So the merchant loaned him the horse, and the servant mounted it and dug his spurs into its flank, and as fast as the horse could gallop, he rode towards Samara. Then the merchant went to the marketplace, and he saw Death standing in the crowd, and he said to her, "Why did you make a threatening gesture to my servant when you saw him this morning?" And Death said, "I made no threatening gesture. That was only a start of surprise. I was astonished to see him here in Baghdad, for I have an appointment with him tonight in Samara."

Crazy credits
The film's original theatrical prints began with a written title card that read, "Why gun control? Why did a lunatic sniper kill or maim 11 innocent victims in Texas on June 3, 1966? Why were over 7,000 Americans slain or wounded by gunfire in 1967? Why in 1968 after assassinations and thousands of more murders has our country no effective gun control law? This motion picture tells a story that sheds a little light on a very dark and a very deep topic." This title card was added by Paramount Pictures only as a result of the then-recent assassinations of both Doctor Martin Luther King and Senator Robert F. Kennedy, but it was not approved by the film's director, Peter Bogdanovich at all and, as a result of this, it was removed from all later releases of the film, including those for home video.

Alternate versions
The film was cut for a "GP" rating only once, mainly for a 1971 re-release of it in order to capitalize on the success of Peter Bogdanovich's then-recent hit film, The Last Picture Show (1971). Later releases of it on home video were all uncut.

Connections
Featured in 100 Years of Horror: Boris Karloff (1996)

Soundtracks
Green Rocky Road
(uncredited)
Written and performed by The Daily Flash (Don MacAllister, Steve Lalor, Jon Keliehor and Doug Hastings)

User reviews132

Review

Featured review

8/10

The last great film of Boris Karloff (?)

Peter Bogdanovich is a man that, to me, is too intelligent to make a film without anything to say. With that in mind, however; if Targets does have a point to it, it is masked well. The only thing resembling any kind of comment is that the film professes the differences between screen horror and real life horror, but even this idea is put forward in a muddled way. That being said, however; Targets is a world away from being a bad film. The film marks one of the last performances for the great Boris Karloff, and serves as a nice swansong to his career, especially as he's almost sending himself up in this film. The great man plays Byran Orlock; an aging horror film actor who has decided that he wants to retire. However, things are not as simple as that as, on the same day that Orlock is due to make his final public appearance at the screening of last movie (Roger Corman's 'The Terror'), there's a serial killer on the loose who's taking pot shots at people with a sniper rifle. As real life horror and screen horror icon clash...who will be the resulting victor?

Despite the point being rather muddled, Targets makes up for that with the exciting way that the plot plays out and the stream of tributes and comments on Karloff's (sorry, Orlock's) career. It's nice to see Karloff enjoying himself, and the introspective nature of the movie ensures that he gets the chance to do this. Peter Bogdanovich is well known for being a director who is also a fan of cinema, and this movie also gives him a chance to tribute the medium that he evidently loves. As a fan of cinema myself, it always makes me happy to see this sort of thing, and that marks another reason for my enjoyment of this movie. The way that the plot plays out makes the movie predictable, but in a way that adds to the idea of 'real horror', as we can see what's going to come; it's like a car crash - it's obvious what's going to happen, yet all we can do is just sit back and watch. On the whole, this is a classy thriller and while it never hammers home it's point enough to ensure that you know it's actually got a point, it works because of it's tension and well paced plot. This will also be a must see movie for fans of the great Boris Karloff.