United States

This slick, fast-moving and action-packed thriller delivers a strong dramatic punch and was described by the Financial Times as "a modern-day Western". The setting is a small California Community which has been turned into a boom town by the opening up of reserve oil wells. But it has also become plagued by violence and so embittered. Vietnam war hero Kris Kristofferson-once thrown out of the community as a trouble-maker-is hired to come back and head up a vigilante police force. He and his tough squad use violent and strong-arm methods and soon clean up the town-and then proceed to take it over themselves. And finally it is up to Kristofferson's brother Jan Michael Vincent to end the vigilante force's reign of terror.... Kristofferson and Vincent are very well cast and give powerful and effective performances, Dallas star Victoria Principal scores as Vincent's girlfriend and Bernadette Peters is outstanding in the role of a bar-room singer. Writer-director George Armitage comes up with an exciting and suspenseful and immensely entertaining movie and stages a stunning climactic shoot-out in the oil-fields which said The Observer, is "A gleefully mounted excuse to employ every spare stunt man and explosives expert".