U.S.A. | 1985 Directed by Josh Becker Starring Brian Schulz Sam Raimi Cheryl Hansen Color | 83 Minutes | Not Rated Blu-ray / DVD Combo (RA-HD / R1-NTSC | 2-disc set) Synapse Films Hold your mouse pointer over an image for a pop-up caption

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		Review by Brandon Tenold Film:6 BD/DVD:9

NOTE: Screenshots were taken from the DVD

Vietnam, 1969. Sgt. Jack Stryker (Brian Schulz) and his band of roughnecks have been "living in a world of shit" in the jungle and have been going through 2nd Lieutenants like hotcakes. When their latest CO, 2nd Lieutenant David Miller (John Manfredi), orders an assault on a heavily armed VC-occupied village, Stryker insists that Miller is not assigning enough men to the mission and that the resulting operation would be a disaster. However, Miller refuses to listen to Stryker and orders that the mission go ahead. Needless to say, the operation goes badly and Stryker ends up being shot in the leg. Now forced to walk with a cane, Stryker is sent back home and tries to piece his life back together and patch things up with his on-again, off-again girlfriend Sally (Cheryl Hansen). One night, a couple of Stryker's army buddies (along with Lt. Miller) spontaneously decide to visit Stryker at his cabin in the Michigan woods, and the group has a good time drinking, shooting the shit and admiring Stryker's impressive gun collection. However, unbeknownst to them, there's a bloodthirsty cult roaming the woods nearby, led by a crazed lunatic who fancies himself a new messiah (played by Evil Dead and Spider-Man director Sam Raimi). When the cult kidnaps Sally after brutally murdering her father, Stryker and his friends decide to take justice into their own hands and show these dirty hippies why you never, ever fuck with a marine.

Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except is the directorial debut of Josh Becker, who worked on the first Evil Dead doing sound and lighting. Rallying together several of his Evil Dead buddies, including producer Scott Spiegel, co-writer Bruce Campbell and even Evil Dead director Sam Raimi in a rare acting role, Becker made Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except (originally called Stryker's War) on a shoestring budget. When judged objectively, Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except is not a good movie by any stretch. The acting, fight choreography and script are all amateurish, and the film's low budget frequently shows, sometimes to a hilarious extent (for example, "Vietnam" looks suspiciously like somebody's backyard in Michigan and Stryker has different rank insignias on his uniform). But hey, whoever said a "Marines vs. The Manson Family" movie had to be slick and polished... or even halfway competent? The film is a deliberate throwback to the type of '70s style drive-in fare that had gone out of fashion even when the film was made back in 1985, emphasizing blood, sleaze and even a bit of gratuitous nudity thrown in for good measure. In fact, this may be the most purely "grindhouse" film that Raimi and Campbell have ever been involved with! Another plus is the gore effects are for the most part effective. (I guess that's where most of the money went!)

My biggest complaint with the movie has more to do with what it could have been, rather than what it is. Originally, Bruce Campbell was set to star as Stryker, but when Campbell joined the Screen Actors Guild, Becker couldn't afford to pay him scale to be in the film and they had to replace him with Brian Schulz. Schulz is serviceable as Stryker, but that's all, and he doesn't possess near the charisma that Campbell could have brought to role. (If you need proof, just look at the short film starring Campbell included in the extras.) Most of the other actors put in similarly workmanlike performances, although Raimi gives a suitably bug-eyed, over the top performance as the Charles Manson-esque cult leader, spitting out his lines from beneath his ratty wig and blackened teeth. Also, look for Sam's brother Ted Raimi in a brief but entertaining role as the "Chain Man".

When taken for what it is and viewed with the right frame of mind, Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except is an entertaining bit of retro (even for 1985) exploitation cinema. Just be sure not to take it too seriously.

Just like their recent Blu-ray/DVD "combo" release of Intruder, Synapse Films have done a fantastic job with Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except. The film is presented in its original 1.66:1 aspect ratio and considering that this was a very low budget film shot on 16mm (or in the case of some of the stock footage used, 8mm), the picture quality is understandably grainy and a bit washed out in places. Having said that, Synapse has done the absolute best that anyone could possibly ask for with the film's HD transfer. Picture quality is consistent with no noticeable color bleed or defects and the corn syrup blood looks appropriately thick and red. While it certainly can't compete with Blu-rays of recent, big-budget movies in terms of picture quality, Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except looks far better than a movie of its age and modest budget has any right to.

The only sound option is DTS-HD 2.0 Mono track, and just like with the video, one has to temper their expectations regarding the quality. Dialogue and sound effects are clean and clear, although the track seemed to be mixed a bit low in my opinion.

Synapse has gone all out with the extras, the centerpiece of which is the inclusion of Stryker's War, a 48-minute short film shot on 8mm that Becker used to raise money for the feature version.* Bruce Campbell, coming fresh off the original Evil Dead, plays Stryker here, and I dare say I enjoyed the short almost as much as the final movie (in fact, the Vietnam scenes are slightly more convincing here than in the final movie!). The other big extra is Made in Michigan (32 min.), a making-of documentary where the cast and crew share stories about the film's production, from their constant problems with getting money to the reason why the film was eventually called Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except. It's an entertaining featurette, although just like with the making-of doc included with Intruder, Sam Raimi is conspicuously absent.

There are two audio commentaries, one with Josh Becker and Bruce Campbell imported from Anchor Bay's DVD release and a new one with star Brian Schultz and Red Shirt Pictures producer Michael Felsher. Of the two, the one with Becker and Campbell is the most entertaining, with the two of them striking a good balance between being informative and humorous and self-deprecatingly pointing out the movies flaws and obvious low budget.

Other extras include a short video interview with Bruce Campbell, a deleted scene with optional commentary from Becker, an alternate title sequence and the theatrical trailer. The reversible cover art is also a neat touch. 4/16/12

* Not to sound like a broken record, but Sam Raimi REALLY needs to release his Within the Woods short one of these days!

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