Act of Vengeance

After being brutally beaten and raped one night by a mysterious man wearing a hockey mask "Linda" (Jo Ann Harris) learn that there have been four other women who have had to endure the same kind of treatment by this same person. He then rapes another woman named "Karen" (Lisa Moore) not long afterward. Much to their surprise they soon come to the realization that the limited information they can give to the local police is insufficient to identify their assailant--let alone allow law enforcement to make an arrest. So with few other options left to them they decide to form a "rape squad" in an effort to build awareness of this issue. At the same time, they also secretly decide to aggressively pursue and punish those who have committed these vicious acts but have somehow managed to escape conviction. Unfortunately, while they all of this is taking place they soon discover that the lunatic responsible has not only continued his acts of depravity but subsequently kills one of his victims in the process. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was an okay film for the most part which suffers somewhat from the rather dated script and weak acting. It does, however, benefit from the presence of some cute actresses--in particular Connie Strickland (as "Teresa") and the aforementioned Jo Ann Harris. Again, while not exactly a blockbuster by any means, the movie itself wasn't that bad overall and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Average.

With a totally clueless police force unable to catch a serial rapist, five victims decide on a vigilante solution. Their "rape squad" takes on the hockey masked perpetrator and any other men behaving badly. All the men in "Act of Vengeance" are portrayed as insensitive creeps, including cops, hustlers, pimps, and even boyfriends. While the middle part of the film deals with these various male annoyances, the conclusion in an abandoned zoo, is totally about the "jingle bell rapist". The films greatest weakness, besides some marginal acting, is that very little is revealed about the orange clad hockey man. In the end however, it is what it is, an above average female revenge flick. - MERK

I thought this movie would be a good movie to watch. It has a couple of my favorite actors in Jo Ann Harris and Peter Brown, and I liked the idea behind the movie - rape victims getting together and trying to capture their rapist. However, I believe the film concentrates too much on the Rape Scenes, showing the Rapes once or twice would have been more than enough. And I absolutely hated them using Jingle Bells during the Rape Scenes.

This movie could have been made as a made for TV movie without the nudity and I think most people would have called it an OK movie. For me, there is way too much nudity and the acting is not very good. You get no idea why this guy is raping these women and that would be fine if the movie did not spend a considerable amount of time with him on the screen committing these attacks. For me this movie was OK, but not great.

Rating Breakdown: Story - 1.25 :: Direction - 1.25 :: Pacing - 1.00 :: Performances - 1.25 :: Entertainment - 1.25 :::: TOTAL - 6/10

If you only judged Acts of Vengeance by its alternate titles - The Violator and Rape Squad - you'd expect the kind of grimy, bottom-shelf exploitation that makes you want to shower afterwards. But surprise! This little revenge thriller has more righteous fury and narrative heft than its schlocky marketing suggests.

The plot? Simple but effective: an orange Jumpsuit hockey-mask-wearing rapist is on the loose, and the police are about as useful as a chocolate teapot. When the system fails them, a group of survivors, led by the ferociously compelling Jo Ann Harris as Linda Shoemaker, decide to take matters (and self-defence weapons) into their own hands. Think Death Wish, but with feminist rage and flared jeans.

The script is better than you'd expect from the genre, giving the women distinct personalities and making their camaraderie feel real. Where it falls short is in its reluctance to dig deeper into the emotional trauma of the victims, or the twisted psychology of the predator. It scratches at these themes but never quite commits.

Bob Kelljan's direction is stylish for the genre, delivering some well-composed shots and a moody '70s aesthetic. Sure, the pacing lags in places, but the film never fully loses its momentum. And let's talk about the cast: Harris is an absolute scene-stealer, her performance brimming with grit and defiance. The rest of the women hold their own, giving their characters enough personality to make you root for them.

Then there's Peter Brown as the villain, who is about as intimidating as an Ikea chair. His wooden performance undercuts what should have been a nail-biting final showdown, making him the weak link in an otherwise strong cast.

Despite its flaws, Acts of Vengeance delivers a surprisingly effective tale of empowerment, revenge, and '70s street justice. Not quite I Spit on Your Grave, but more than just sleazy fluff, it's a grindhouse gem worth unearthing.

How about that. My first movie with the word "Rape" in the title and it's not Japanese! Unfortunately the Japanese are still the winners when it comes down to movies with the "Rape" in the title. But hell, this was still a nice effort.

Story focuses on a group of women who refer to themselves as The Rape Squad. Guess what they all have in common? Wrong! They've all been raped by the same guy! Jeez, how can you be so off? They all love the black guy from the Mod Squad....? Wow, awful guess. Anyways, they've all been raped by the same Hockey Mask, Orange Jumpsuit wearing rapist who loves the song Jingle Bells. Now they've joined forces and they're about to show these pushy men what real women can do! Rape Squad was a decent enough flick. There are many rape and revenge flicks out there that are much better, but this is definitely one to check out if you're a big fan of the genre. Checking out the Rapist alone is reason enough. It's tough to beat a confident, smooth talking rapist who dresses up like Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees combined. And the coolest thing is, this predates both of those movies by a couple years. Oh and he sings Jingle Bells. Whoever was writing this flick had their creative juices flowing big time. The movie suffers from a few lulls when the girls are just chit-chatting....but you gotta admit, it's realistic. And I was hoping for the movie to be a little more graphic, especially the ending, but hell, the movie entertained me enough. So yeah, if you're into rape/revenge films, give this baby a shot. 6.5 outta 10.