Thompson Ainda Vive

My review was written in April 1990 after watching the movie on AIP video cassette.

This routine actioner about a futuristic machine gun is notable as one of the last films featuring Joe Spinell, late character actor whose "Maniac" remains a cult fave.

Spinell is cast against type as a CIA-type chieftain who hires hero Ron Waldron to hunt down escaped terrorist Del Zamora. Ruthless Michael Wayne, toting a futuristic machine gun, has sprung Zamora from captivity on a battleship.

Not coincidentally, Wayne is Waldron's old nemesis dating back to their serving together in Vietnam, so there's a natural vendetta set in motion. The gun comes into play at the film's climax in the form of a booby trap.

Filmed in the Mobile, Alabama area, pic is low on action in the middle reels but otherwise typical of Action International Pictures direct-to-video product. A melancholy musical score is a plus.