Stanley

Stanley is a rattlesnake ,the companion of Tim ,a Native American Vietnam veteran who lives in seclusion in the Everglades where he ekes out a precarious existence .He clashes with a local petty crime lord who wants to kill as many snakes as possible in order to turn their skins into boots ,belts , purses -anything in short that will turn a quick profit .Stanley's brood of baby rattlers are slaughtered and Tim strikes back by using the snake as his instrument of revenge even going so far as to kidnap his rival's teenage daughter an event which precipitates a bloody and fiery climax This is dreadful on every level and in every department -the acting is wooden ,the script simplistic and the pace funereal Not recommendable even to 70's monster movie completists or the most undemanding of spectators.

Crap! Another bad killer snake movie. Actually, this movie is pretty much just "Willard" with snakes instead of rats. Chris Robinson plays a Vietnam Vet and a Seminole Indian (neither very convincingly) whose only friends are poisonous snakes. He uses these "friends" to take revenge on greedy developer and snakeskin dealer (Alex Rocco, who appeared in "The Godfather" the same year)who was also conveniently responsible for the death of his father, and on a skanky stripper who bites the heads off of snakes as part of her act (because, of course, THAT'S a real turn-on).

There are several problems with this movie. First, it is somewhat believable that rats might have affection for humans and do their bidding, but it is far less believable that snakes would (and the character here isn't given any special psychic powers over them a la Jennifer Connelly in "Phenomenon"). Second, poisonous snakes aren't very good at attacking people. Even when confronted with a large number of poisonous snakes, all the victims would have to do is run away--it's not like snakes are going to chase you. (The most ridiculous scene has Rocco's character attacked in his swimming pool by dozens of water moccasins). The movie really goes off the rails at the end though when Robinson suddenly falls in love with and kidnaps Rocco's sexy, bare-midriffed blonde daughter. After she spurns him, he tries to get the snakes to bite her, but they refuse, so he reacts in an unintentionally hilarious "Willard"-esque fashion and finally gets his just desserts.

On the plus side this movie was directed by Willam Grefe who would go on to do equally ridiculous but much more entertaining movies like "Impulse" with William Shatner. It's also certainly no worse than many other killer snake movies-"Jennifer, "Rattlers" , "Spasms", "Venom", or more recent CGI crap like "Boa", "Python" and "Anaconda". Maybe filmmakers should just give up on these killer snake movies.

The topic itself, a man getting vengeance with the use of his "pets," sounds very familiar to me, especially snakes. I have seen it before but more in the horror style, not psychotronic, as here. Director William Grefe was one of my favourites in the domain of exploitation features, destined to saturday evening audiences. Actually I above spoke of Bernie Kowalski's SSSNAKE, where it was also question of a young man involved with snakes, but the scheme in the way of showing them was not exactly the same though, it was not a matter of revenge. Anyway, I love this kind of indie productions, far from Hollywood industry and those producers who snoop around, seeking every dollar spent, the paper toilet you use each time you go to the men's room. Here, you are sure there is no director's cut, or maybe a very little. We are lucky that there were batches of them during the seventies. And as I said fifteen years ago on Imdb about another Grefe's film: JAWS OF DEATH, the director uses here the same scheme, but snakes instead of sharks. If you prefer, remember Daniel Mann's WILLARD. The lead used rats instead of....

1971's "Stanley" is one of director Wiiliam Grefe's better known titles, others include "Sting of Death" in 1965, "Death Curse of Tartu" in 1966, "Impulse" in 1973 (a rare starring role for William Shatner), and "Mako: The Jaws of Death" in 1975, all of which were shot on location in Florida. I found myself captivated by the two pop songs on the soundtrack, both written and performed by Jack Vino, and produced by Steve Alaimo, who appears on screen as the villainous henchman Crail (former singer and host of WHERE THE ACTION IS). The opening credits are accompanied by the beautiful "Sparrow," which is briefly reprised during the end credits, while the other tune, "Start a New World," features late in the film, as Tim drives Susie in a boat to his swamp hideaway. Lyrically, both tracks are odes to the environment and they lend a kind of stature to a film populated with unsympathetic characters and a clichéd storyline in which Tim Ochopee (Chris Robinson), a half-breed Vietnam veteran, turns his back on his tribe and the rest of society to live in isolation with a family of rattlesnakes in the Everglades. Shortly after completing "The Godfather," Alex Rocco returns to his exploitation roots ("Blood Mania") by playing the lead villain, making belts out of reptile skins, and is also responsible for the shooting death of Tim's father. He also shows an unfatherly and creepy incestuous desire for his gorgeous blonde daughter Susie, played in her one and only film by Susan Carroll (even the distracted director calls attention to her bikini clad assets by focusing on her perfect ass from her opening scene). Television veteran Chris Robinson made his movie debut in the title role of Roger Corman's 1959 "Beast from Haunted Cave," creating the beast himself. A native of West Palm Beach, now residing in Miami, Robinson proved easily available for this rare leading role, working very well with his dangerous co-stars. The recent DVD release makes up for the numerous truncated VHS issues, none of which were intact at a full 106 minutes. "Stanley" made four appearances on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater, on Nov 6 1976 (followed by Lugosi's original 1931 "Dracula"), and three more solo: Apr 28 1979, Dec 13 1980, and Jan 16 1982. As a footnote, I also have great fondness for another Chiller Theater classic with a terrific theme song, 1973's Texas-filmed "Horror High" aka "Twisted Brain," its song titled "Vernon's Theme," performed by Jerry Coward.

I saw this film when it first came out in the early 1970s riding the coat-tails of the highly successful movie, Ben. Filmed in the South Florida Everglades, the film stars two sunshine state film "idols", Chris Robinson and Steve Alaimo. Robinson was best known to die-hard fans for his uncredited role as the "lisp" speaking Melvin in Frank Sinatra's, Lady in Cement. Alaimo known more for his singing career, made a name for himself as the singing drag racer in the Wild Rebels. The two play off each other very well, and for nothing more than a "B" film, it's surprisingly entertaining. Surely not their best acting roles, yet any fans of Robinson or Alaimo, or snakes named Stantley should see this film. Above average entertainment.