Ladies and gentlemen, may we present to you... Mr. Teddy Page! The name doesn't exactly sound like he's a cinematic genius, and you probably won't ever find the films he made on any best-of lists. Still, Teddy Page hasn't disappointed me yet, and the same cannot be said about his more famous compatriots from the Philippines, like Cirio H. Santiago and Eddie Romero.
Teddy non-stop made and released cheap and straightforward action/exploitation flicks during the 80s and early 90s. Obviously none of them reach a half-decent quality level in terms of plotting or continuity, and the acting performances and stunt work are often downright laughable. But our good friend Teddy did one thing extremely well, namely never wasting time on boring introductions or the overlong building up of tension. "Blood Debts", for instance, is basically a blatant imitation of the Charles Bronson classic "Death Wish", only ... faster! Within the first three minutes of the film, a bunch of idiotically laughing rednecks rape and murder the daughter (and her fiancé) of proud mustache-wearing Vietnam veteran Mark Collins. Barely another ten minutes later, Mark already finished avenging his daughter and single-handedly massacred the five culprits responsible. I'm not even sure if he really wanted revenge, or just needed an excuse to shoot up random thugs!
In case you wonder what else can happen throughout the remaining 70 minutes, don't worry! Mark joyously continues to play the angry vigilante and even shoots hoodlums in the head for stealing a miserable $200. The script loses its last little bit of sense when Mark's wife gets kidnapped, and he gets forced to work as a contract killer. Mark enjoys firing bullets into criminals so much that he doesn't realize he's doing the dirty work for a rivaling drug cartel, and he certainly doesn't seem in a hurry to rescue his wife. The police are also doing their part by sipping coffee around a desk and secretly rooting for the anonymous avenger. The climax is fabulous and legendary (within very secluded cult-cinema circles, at least), and involves homemade bazookas, flare guns and the most abrupt freeze-frame ending in history.
In case you and your friends like absurdly over-the-top exploitation from the Philippines, complete with atrocious acting from a washed-up American star (Richard Harrison) and dialogues so preposterous they make your head spin, this is your Saturday night main feature! Completely free of charge, we'll also throw in gratuitous nudity, cheesy romantic montages, musical scores shamelessly stolen from other films, and a goofball golfing incident. Final tip, make it a double-feature with Teddy Page's equally bonkers "Movie in Action"!
