Race with the Devil

I'm very pleased with this little occult road-movie classic from the 70's. It's fun and moves at a decent pace. Of course you have to wait for more than an hour before the racing starts, but the climactic last 20 minutes make up for it. Two couples on a holiday with their mobile home are witness to a satanic ritual killing during one night. Naturally, the local authorities have some difficulties believing all this, and soon the two couples find themselves being harassed and eventually chased by several cult-members. I liked the sense of paranoia this film has. Just about everyone in this movie could be a satanic cult-member. I liked the ending too. And Peter Fonda was cool as always. This time he used the word "terrific" a lot as an expletive, instead of "groovy".

As low budget horror movies go, "Race With The Devil" has aged well. The plot is simple--two couples en route to Aspen for a long overdue skiing vacation, end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, and witness a human sacrifice. The rest of the film deals with their attempts to escape their pursuers, who happen to be modern day witches! Peter Fonda, Warren Oates, Loretta Swit (M*A*S*H) and Lara Parker (Dark Shadows) are the couples in question, and R.G. Armstrong is the local sheriff they enlist to help them. All the performances are fine, especially the vastly underrated Oates, who is only now receiving the acclaim long due him, (he has since passed away) and his acting is as compelling as ever. The just-released DVD includes a commentary from producer Paul Maslansky and Lara Parker, a retrospective documentary with Peter Fonda, trailer, still and poster galleries and radio spots. Enhanced for widescreen TVs the film looks great, and is a great one to watch late at night (if not alone) when you feel the need for a few genuine scares.

Let's hop into the wayback machine and return to the North Cedar Drive-In Theatre in Spokane, Washington, circa 1975. It's hot and muggy and my best friend and I are seeing maybe the fortieth movie of the summer, sitting in my Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser or his 12 year old F-250 (I can't remember which). We sit back to watch Race With the Devil, an obvious B-grade horror flick we've heard great things about from friends.

I haven't seen Jack Starrett's RWD since that night in the summer of '75, but I distinctly remember how good it was, how merrily hell-bent-for-leather the action was, and the way it tied into our goofy fear of Satanic cults and human chains thirty years ago. If you were around the greater Spokane area (now there's an oxymoron!) way back when, you must have heard the stories coming out of Rathdrum, Idaho, north of Coeur d'Alene. This flick was shot in the southwest, but with all the rural versions of urban legends clanking about the Idaho Panhandle, Race With the Devil seemed like a home movie.

I believe the movie made a gob of money that year.

I recommend Race With the Devil in no small part for the fact that it's obvious the people involved are having a great time, a must for a low-budget movie. It has the pacing and the chills to scare teenagers wearing long hair and bell bottoms and, I'm sure after I order a copy from Amazon, it will put a grin on the face of this paunchy, middle-aged nostalgist.

"Race With the Devil" is an excellent blend of spine-tingling horror, riveting suspense, and slambang action. I had heard good things about this one, and I definitely got what I was looking for. In fact, I got too much because this is one spooky movie and is the type of film that I love because it's a great movie, but hate because it sends my paranoia levels spiralling through the roof. In it, four vacationers are traveling in their badass RV and end up getting drunk out in the middle of an isolated countryside. The two guys see something that piques their interest across the river at night and spy on it, thinking they're watching hippies have an orgy. What they don't expect is the Satanic ritual sacrifice that takes place right in the middle of it all, and they don't make a very clean getaway. Before you know it, devil-worshippers are coming out of the woodwork everywhere they end up at, chasing them all over the state. It is a very creepy and believeable film, and I've got to commend a movie that makes car chases exciting when I can't remember the last time I ever gave a crap about a single one. An exhilarating, fast-paced movie that is an edge-of-the-seat thrill ride! I highly recommend it!

I have not read through all the reviews, so I'm hoping no one spoils the ending. Read the ones marked spoiler after watching the movie.

Considering how long ago this was made, it was a very cool movie. Starts off a little slow, but once you see the bonfire start, things pick up.

Roger (Peter Fonda) and his buddy, Frank (Warren Oates) take their wives, Alice (Loretta Swit) and Kelly (Laura Parker) on a nice vacation in a large motor-home. There are some comical scenes, some sad scenes, some motorcycle action and, of course, some suspense and action. I have to agree with one reviewer about the women being in it to provide screaming and in fear of almost everyone else in the movie. The car chase scenes were very good. You won't see any gross scenes in this. I would recommend seeing the movie. Enjoy!