Assault On Precinct 13 (1976) DVD Reviews

Starring	Austin Stoker, Darwin Joston, Laurie Zimmer, Martin West
Director	John Carpenter
Genres	Action/Adventure, Thriller

Critics' reviews (2) of Assault On Precinct 13
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"...Carpenter is an extremely resourceful director [with an] ability to construct film entirely out of action and movement..."
- New York Times
- Posted 11 Mar 2005
"...PRECINCT 13 is filled with delectable bits of business in direction and performances..."
- Sight and Sound
- Posted 11 Mar 2005
Most helpful members' reviews (3) of Assault On Precinct 13
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12 out of 12 people found this review helpful

Tautology

Ok, let's get the received wisdom out of the way. Like Woody Allen's 'early, funny films' John Carpenter is haunted by his formative, low budget brilliance. Should he ever return to form (even coasting, he's good enough for most) the acid comparison will be these: 'Dark Star' (a student film, which brought him to the attention of the studios) 'Halloween' (ditto the masses) and, of course, 'Assault on Precinct 13.'

'Assault,' for me, is the one. A tight budget and the tautest plot – nicked mainly from 'Rio Bravo,' with elements from other cowboy classics – and honed to within an inch of a 90 minute short.

The story has the good guys under siege from living, fast moving, intelligent zombies; in this case an LA street gang bent on suicidal revenge. It could have been merely an exercise in the mastery of plot mechanics but, and here's the stroke, you care about the characters. From the handsome black police lieutenant to the handsome and witty death-row convict who fights at his side (and eventually assumes an unofficial leadership of the besieged) and the more than competent girl who only submits to love-interestdom near the end; you will them to live.

There's so much more to this small film (daring casting in the non-PC 70s for a start) but that would distract from the essence of a small masterpiece. See it and see why Halloween had you jumping. Oh, and pray that John Carpenter finds himself one day.
- - GoatsWriter from Buckinghamshire
  - Posted 14 Feb 2004 08:38
7 out of 8 people found this review helpful

classic!!!!!!

after recently going to the movies to see the new version i rented the original & have to say that john carpenter's is far & away the best. from the typical scene setting score to the b-movie acting, it just gets better with age. an all time classic but probably not for the ladies....
- - joseph slavin from coatbridge
  - Posted 08 Feb 2005 14:57
7 out of 8 people found this review helpful

Bomb the Bass

Excellent thriller (1st time I seen it in its full 2.35:1 ratio & like most Carpenter movies looks great). Very suspenseful, good acting & more realistic than most movies...

And yes, Bomb the bass did use the theme tune for there late 80's hit megablast.
- - TheElz from Durham
  - Posted 31 Jan 2005 21:03
Most recent members' reviews (2) of Assault On Precinct 13
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful

Solid stuff but feels dated

time hasn't been very kind to this film, i was interested to see this film because of the recent remake and a like of some of john carpenters previous work like halloween and the thing, however precinct 13 is a slow paced thriller, that seems very of it's time now.Very little dialogue and character development doesn't help, however the short running time and occasional set pices make this a perfectly watchable film.
- - DAVID WRIGHT from london,england
  - Posted 01 Apr 2005 22:28
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

A Classic

I first watched this film back in 1990 and was eager to see if it was still as good as i remembered.This film does not disappoint. It is wonderfully atmospheric and a true classic.
- - A customer from Bristol
  - Posted 14 Feb 2005 12:41

12 out of 12 people found this review helpful

Tautology

Ok, let's get the received wisdom out of the way. Like Woody Allen's 'early, funny films' John Carpenter is haunted by his formative, low budget brilliance. Should he ever return to form (even coasting, he's good enough for most) the acid comparison will be these: 'Dark Star' (a student film, which brought him to the attention of the studios) 'Halloween' (ditto the masses) and, of course, 'Assault on Precinct 13.'

'Assault,' for me, is the one. A tight budget and the tautest plot – nicked mainly from 'Rio Bravo,' with elements from other cowboy classics – and honed to within an inch of a 90 minute short.

The story has the good guys under siege from living, fast moving, intelligent zombies; in this case an LA street gang bent on suicidal revenge. It could have been merely an exercise in the mastery of plot mechanics but, and here's the stroke, you care about the characters. From the handsome black police lieutenant to the handsome and witty death-row convict who fights at his side (and eventually assumes an unofficial leadership of the besieged) and the more than competent girl who only submits to love-interestdom near the end; you will them to live.

There's so much more to this small film (daring casting in the non-PC 70s for a start) but that would distract from the essence of a small masterpiece. See it and see why Halloween had you jumping. Oh, and pray that John Carpenter finds himself one day.
- - GoatsWriter from Buckinghamshire
  - Posted 14 Feb 2004 08:38
7 out of 8 people found this review helpful

classic!!!!!!

after recently going to the movies to see the new version i rented the original & have to say that john carpenter's is far & away the best. from the typical scene setting score to the b-movie acting, it just gets better with age. an all time classic but probably not for the ladies....
- - joseph slavin from coatbridge
  - Posted 08 Feb 2005 14:57
7 out of 8 people found this review helpful

Bomb the Bass

Excellent thriller (1st time I seen it in its full 2.35:1 ratio & like most Carpenter movies looks great). Very suspenseful, good acting & more realistic than most movies...

And yes, Bomb the bass did use the theme tune for there late 80's hit megablast.
- - TheElz from Durham
  - Posted 31 Jan 2005 21:03
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful

Worth a look

It was probably the mid-80s when I last saw this film and at the time it was one of my firm favourites. Ok, so the styling is bit dated and the acting a little dodgy, but this is still a very enjoyable thriller. One particular scene must go down as one of the most shocking shootings in film history. The electronic score still holds up very well and it is hard to believe this film is nearly 30 years old. The film is punctuated by some very well but together action scenes, all with Carpenters dark undertones. I have seen the remake and enjoyed that, though the films are quite different in terms of plot threads.
- - A customer from Hull, UK
  - Posted 04 Mar 2005 13:56
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful

A must for Jcarpenter fans

A film with flair, good dialogue and amusing one-liners. This is one of JC's earliest releases and is a bit of a cult classic. The audio is only mono and it does not have the highest filming budget. However, the ideas and characters are presented in an interesting and intelligent way.

Heartily reccomended.
- - jabba from derbyshire
  - Posted 23 Oct 2003 19:25
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful

just as good as i remember it

this classic is much better than the remake, the music score by carpenter adds suspense like the hitchcock films.
- - A customer from stanford le hope
  - Posted 04 Sep 2006 11:15
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful

Carpenter, musical genius?

This is a stripped down, souped-up action movie. It's lean, it's exciting, it has a wise-cracking anti-hero and a synthesiser score. Rock on.
- - TommyZ from Yorkshire
  - Posted 02 Apr 2005 23:06
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful

A tense, dark thriller...

An enjoyable, if slightly pedestrian, action thriller, the premise of this film is excellent. A gang of Hell?s Angel-esque hoodlums hold a police station under siege following the death of one of their members.

Unfortunately Jon Carpenter ultimately fails to make the most of the idea.

The problems with the film all result from various improbabilities within the story. The malevolent gang members aren?t really developed as characters at all (I don?t think we so much as hear one speak) and while they follow certain strange blood-rituals and so forth these are never properly addressed or explained. I dunno, perhaps they?re meant to be mysterious as well as malignant.

Other parts of the film seem wrongly pitched. At least two key points in the film seem to be devoid of dramatic tension. Though I wont elaborate here.

Taking the criticisms on the chin though, there remains a distinct charm - particularly to the understated aspects ? in this film. The shootouts are low key, glass is pierced rather than shattered, and they ring true precisely because of that. Just don?t expect big explosions.
- - Daniel Fox from Manchester, UK
  - Posted 26 Mar 2004 21:25
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful

THIS IS HOW IT SHOULD BE DONE!!!!

THIS IS WHAT THE REMAKE LACKED TENSION AND A GREAT SOUNDTRACK THAT IS JUST HAUNTING!!! SPOT ON WATCHED MANY YEARS AGO,AND TO BE HONEST SEEMS BETTER NOW...
- - darren from NORTH YORKS
  - Posted 09 Mar 2005 11:36
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful

oh.

I only got through the first 15 mins and swithched it off. Liked the remake though.
- - A customer from Essex. England.
  - Posted 17 Oct 2005 20:57

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Critics' reviews (2)
"...Carpenter is an extremely resourceful director [with an] ability to construct film entirely out of action and movement..."
- New York Times
- Posted 11 Mar 2005
"...PRECINCT 13 is filled with delectable bits of business in direction and performances..."
- Sight and Sound
- Posted 11 Mar 2005

Buy from the LOVEFiLM shop

- - Buy
- Assault On Precinct 13
  
  Director John Carpenter's second film is a brutal, realistic story about the siege of a small police precinct by a violent and well-armed gang. The gang is seeking the man who killed some of their members in revenge for the accidental shooting of his daughter. After the father enacts his revenge, ...