3:15 the Moment of Truth

Adam Baldwin of "My Bodyguard" fame is front and centre as Jeff Hanna, a former teen gang member who goes straight, taking his studies more seriously and having some success as a player on the school basketball team. But his old associate Cinco (Danny De La Paz, "Miracle Mile") continues bearing a lethal grudge against him. When the scheming principal (an effectively weaselly Rene Auberjonois, 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine') and a sardonic, cynical cop (an amusing Ed Lauter of "Death Wish 3") orchestrate a massive drug bust, Cinco decides to lay all the blame at Jeffs' feet, and he and all of Jeffs' former buddies are determined to punish him. They intend to have a big fight at the title time of day.

"3:15 the Moment of Truth" has its moments, but in truth it might have had more with a better script and better direction. As it is, it's watchable enough, but mostly what it does is under-utilize a solid cast that's been seen to greater advantage in other things. There's violence aplenty without much gore, and overall this offers some fun for devotees of gang films and stories of crime & violence in schools. At least the pacing is sufficient enough to have this move along without any meandering; the film wraps up in a tidy 86 minutes. The characters don't have a lot of depth, but they're set up adequately; for one thing, you do dislike the antagonists enough that you wait for the inevitable moment of their comeuppance.

Baldwin does a decent job in the lead, while the luminous Deborah Foreman ("April Fool's Day") is once again irresistible as his concerned girlfriend. De La Paz is not a particularly menacing presence physically, but he gives a good performance nonetheless. A steady parade of familiar faces turn up in roles big and small: Scott McGinnis ("Joysticks"), Bradford Bancroft ("Bachelor Party"), Wayne Crawford (who'd co-written the popular 80s romance "Valley Girl" that co-starred Foreman), Lori Eastside ("Get Crazy"), Panchito Gomez ("Borderline"), Mario Van Peebles ("Exterminator 2"), future big time screenwriter / producer Dean Devlin ("Independence Day"), John Doe ("Road House"), Gina Gershon ("Bound"), and future director Rusty Cundieff ("Fear of a Black Hat").

Worth it for a decent finale where Jeff employs a "divide and conquer" strategy to defeat Cinco and pals, and for the very enjoyable soundtrack.

Six out of 10.

My review was written in March 1986 after watching the film at a Times Square screening room.

"3:15" is a weak entry in the trickle of gang rumble films which made some box office noise back when Walter Hill's "The Warriors" was released. Debuting helmer Larry Gross, formerly a screenwriter for Hill, minimizes the action and comes up with a forgettable pic ill-suited to theatrical release. Filmed two years ago, it has been in regional distribution since January.

Adam Baldwin (title roler in "My Bodyguard") is too old to be the high school student here, a former member of the Cobras gang who is now at odds with the Cobras' leader, Danny De La Paz. Crisis comes when a drug bust, organized by cop Ed Lauter, nabs De La Paz and Baldwin refuses to help his former leader. Branded a traitor by most kids at school, Baldwin is also being pressured by principal Rene Auberjonois to fink on his former crony.

On a half-day of school (morning only), Baldwin sets u a final confrontation with De La Paz' gang at, surprise, 3:15 p.m. Showdown is an anticlimax, with only Baldwin's girlfriend Deborah Foreman and a nerd played by Joseph Brutsmancoming to his aid against five armed toughs. Pledges of support to Baldwin from a black gang and an Oriental one amount to nought.

Pic suffers from the absence of action, with fights mainly consisting of kids running down school hallways and stabbing each other. Low budget and weak production values are inferior to a typical telefilm.

Acting is also weak, with Baldwin generating little sympathy in the lead underdog role (he physically towers over the rest of the cast) and Foreman stuck with an inconsistent part, De La Paz is the most impressive performer, upsetting the script's balance since he wins sympathy by virtue of forceful thesping yet is supposed to be the hissable villain. Screenplay skirts over racist conflicts, though the good guys are all white and the bad guys are mainly Chicanos.

3:15 (1986) was one of the many 80's "teenage" gangster/ school violence films (the teenagers are usually in there mid to late 20's). Like most of them they're highly entertaining and are filled with the mandatory hardcore violence and the IL' T & A. This one promises an all out mano y mano, hand to hand combat film and guess what? It delivers. No lame cop out story or phony situations that would later destroy this genre. They promise and the filmmakers deliver. Fun stuff, not to be taken serious. Watch out for Adam Baldwin, Mario Van Peebles and Gina Gershon.

Highly recommended (if you can find a copy).

8 ( as a film)

10 (for it's genre)

This title was banned in Queensland, so it must be good! 3:15 (rated R in Australia) is a tense little pot-boiler set at a typical American high-school. The characters and acting help to pull the cliched story line together, which is also true of its cinematic cousin SAVAGE STREETS (cut heavily in this country). There are also some unintentionally funny 1980s dialogue, fashions and attitudes as well. The violence is not as brutal as I expected, but it fits with the tone of the piece. Try to spot Dean Devlin and Gina Gershon. Definitely worth a rental. I wish there was a DVD release.

I put this one right next to other take place in crime ridden LA 80's Grindhouse flicks such as Tuff Turf, The Principal, Savage Streets, Angel, Hollywood Vice Squad, Avenging Angel, Vice Squad, etc