BA_Harrison After seven years of being tortured in a Vietnamese POW camp, Major Charles Rane (William Devane) returns home a war hero, the admiring folk of his hometown showering him with gifts and money (a brand new red Cadillac and a shiny dollar for every day he was locked up). His wife isn't so happy to see him though: while he's been suffering in prison, she has been getting it on with local sheriff Cliff (Lawrason Driscoll), who has also been playing surrogate father to Rane's son.War-weary, Rane seems resigned to the fact that life has changed, and realises that to respond with anger at his situation is futile, but when a ruthless gang break into his home looking for the money, reduce his hand to bloody pulp in the waste disposal, and shoot his wife and kid dead, peace is no longer an option: as soon as he is discharged from hospital, Rane sharpens up his new hook, grabs his shotgun, and goes looking for revenge, with a little help from local 'groupie' Linda Forchet (Linda Haynes) and old army pal Johnny Vohden (Tommy Lee Jones).Rolling Thunder gets a lot of love from the cult-movie crowd, and has unsurprisingly been heartily endorsed by Quentin Tarantino, but for me it didn't quite hit the spot, with a little too much of the film devoted to the emotional drama of the story and not nearly enough in the way of brutal revenge. Paul Schrader's sharp script and solid performances from the excellent cast keep the viewer on board, but the revenge comes way too late in the day (in the form of a bloody Peckinpah style shootout) and is over all too quickly to be a wholly satisfying experience.

punishmentpark When I saw Paul Schrader credited for the original story, but not the final screenplay, I became as much enthusiastic as I grew suspicious. But I didn't get that right, because he díd co-write the screenplay... Reading his criticism (Imdb trivia) puts me in the right again, since the studio changed a lot of his original ideas; his script was simply reworked without his consent.I must say I liked this film anyway, but I am still hoping to find the book some time. The character Rane is not a racist as he would have been according to Schrader, but in this version he is still fascinating; quiet, letting things happen, but still one can sense there is a lot going on with him. I'm glad William Devane got the role instead of Kris Kristofferson, because he adds sympathy to the character and I'm not sure how well this would have worked with Kristofferson.The story is another matter. As said before, the criticism on the Vietnam War and the racist character that Rane was intended to be, are nowhere to be found. Rane is a hero, but 'dead' as he states himself and it is really hard to get a grip on him, ór the story. In the end, the only thing he wants is revenge for his murdered son, and there is still the camaraderie between him and his army buddy Vohden. In between, Rane hooks up with blonde bombshell Linda, who tries to get through to him. But between his broken family life - which is ultimately taken away from him by a merciless gang - and his new status a hero who is totally out of place, there is nothing left...A violent, nihilistic finale ensues, and I can only try to imagine what Schrader's intentions and input could have done better for this strange, but certainly not bad result.7 out of 10.

namashi_1 Late Fillmaker John Flynn's 'Rolling Thunder' is a gruesome & slow-paced vendetta fare, that works primarily due to Flynn's Direction, that's so Well-Done.'Rolling Thunder' Synopsis: Major Charles Rane comes back from the war and is given a number of gifts from his hometown because he is a war hero. Some greedy thugs decide that they want to steal a number of silver dollars from him. In the process they also manage to kill his wife and son and destroy his hand. And Now, The Major wants revenge.'Rolling Thunder' is slow-paced & gruesome. The Action-Sequences are unforgiving & very effective, while the pacing is slow & moves lethargically. Paul Schrader & Heywood Gould's Screenplay could've been tighter, but works nonetheless. Flynn's Direction is the biggest merit here. He's done his job wonderfully, from start to end. Kudos Indeed!Performance-Wise: William Devane plays the protagonist well. The Ever-Fantastic Tommy Lee Jones, stands out, yet again. Linda Haynes is adequate. Others offer good support.On the whole, 'Rolling Thunder' isn't Spectacular, but Well-Directed nonetheless.

dra-24 I liked the first review of this movie as posted, and I have seen it several times over the years. There is a point which seems to have eluded all the reviewers I have ever read. This movie is a *western*. This was the first western movie made after the disappearance of the genre for many years. The car was the horse, the girl friend typically was left behind, the revenge theme for the raid and the deaths of his family, the returning veteran from Nam instead of the civil war, the border locale, the dying buddy/trooper, even the name "John Rayne" being close to John Wayne all scream "I am a WESTERN MOVIE!", but not one print reviewer whom I have ever read picked up on it! Not one!