Eye of the Tiger (film)
Encyclopedia
Eye of the Tiger is a 1986 action/drama
film
, starring Gary Busey
, Yaphet Kotto
, Denise Galik
, Seymour Cassel
, William Smith
and Judith Barsi
. The movie was directed by Richard C. Sarafian
.
), a Vietnam
veteran, returns to his old hometown to start his life over with his wife Christie (Denise Galik
) and their five-year-old daughter Jennifer (Judith Barsi
). However, he learns that the small town where he grew up is overrun by a large motorcycle gang that rides through the town in large numbers, harassing various citizens. On his first night back to his old job at a construction yard Buck hears a woman screaming in the distance. He follows the screams to discover a large group of bikers attacking and attempting to rape a local nurse. Buck manages to chase the gang off using his truck thus saving the nurse's life. The leader of the biker gang, Blade (William Smith
), takes Buck's actions personally and begins to terrorize his family and him. The following night, the gang attacks the Matthews' home, beating Buck and killing his wife. This leaves Jennifer, his young daughter, in shock as she witnessed the entire event.
The local sheriff (Seymour Cassel
) holds a grudge against Buck for some reason that is never explained in the movie, so he refuses to help Buck, leaving him with no other option but to take justice into his own hands. After calling in a favor from an old friend Jamie (Jorge Gil), a Miami-based Columbian drug kingpin whom Buck saved his life in prison during a riot some years back and whom was also paroled with Buck in the opening scene. Buck receives a high tech truck, equipped with machine guns and mortars. Buck's friend, J.B. Deveraux (Yaphet Kotto), a local deputy who is also a Vietnam veteran, fills Buck in as to the history of the motorcycle gang. The sheriff is shown to be in cahoots with the motorcycle gang as Blade and his men give the sheriff bribes of cash to ignore their activities.
Soon, Buck and J.B. team up together and begin to retaliate against the bikers through various means. Buck uses a wire to string out onto a road to decapitate at least two of the bikers. He lures another small group to their deaths by exploding his old truck when they attack it, as well as shoot more at random whom they witness committing crimes in and around the town.
Eventually the bikers kidnap Jennifer from the hospital, forcing Buck to go to their camp in the desert outside of town. Buck, with the help of J.B., flying a bomb-dropping crop-duster airplane, successfully defeats the gang and rescues his daughter. In an explosive climax, Buck has the local sheriff killed (it seems the sheriff framed Buck for a murder committed years earlier) by offering him as a target for the gang, and then has a one-on-one fistfight with the gang's leader which ends with the death of the villain when he accidentally ingests cocaine the gang is manufacturing. With their leader dead, the surviving motorcycle gang members ride away.
The film ends with a final fight scene in which the song "Eye of the Tiger" is played, taking place in a cocaine filled shack at the gang's hideout.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, starring Gary Busey
Gary Busey
William Gary Busey , best known as Gary Busey, is an American film and stage actor and artist. He has appeared in a large variety of films, as well as making regular appearances on Gunsmoke, Walker, Texas Ranger, Law & Order, and Entourage...
, Yaphet Kotto
Yaphet Kotto
Yaphet Frederick Kotto is an African-American actor, known for numerous film roles , and his starring role in the NBC television series Homicide: Life on the Street .-Early life:Kotto was born in New York City, the son of Gladys Marie, a...
, Denise Galik
Denise Galik
Denise Galik-Furey is an American actress who has starred on television and in film.-Career:Born in in Cleveland, Ohio, Galik has starred in television on soap operas, daytime and night time soaps. Her first soap opera role was in the 1980s CBS soap Knots Landing as Linda Stricker from 1980 to 1981...
, Seymour Cassel
Seymour Cassel
Seymour Joseph Cassel is an American actor.He first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent films of writer/directorJohn Cassavetes...
, William Smith
William Smith (actor)
William Smith is an American actor who has appeared in almost 300 feature films and television productions.Smith began his acting career at the age of 8 in 1942...
and Judith Barsi
Judith Barsi
Judith Eva Barsi was an American child actress. She was small in stature and often played characters younger than her actual age...
. The movie was directed by Richard C. Sarafian
Richard C. Sarafian
Richard C. Sarafian is an Armenian-American TV and film director. Richard Sarafian has complied a versatile career that has spanned over five decades as a director, actor and writer. He is most popular for his film Vanishing Point . He is the father of: Richard Sarafian Jr., Tedi Sarafian, Damon B...
.
Plot summary
After a long stint in prison Buck Matthews (Gary BuseyGary Busey
William Gary Busey , best known as Gary Busey, is an American film and stage actor and artist. He has appeared in a large variety of films, as well as making regular appearances on Gunsmoke, Walker, Texas Ranger, Law & Order, and Entourage...
), a Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
veteran, returns to his old hometown to start his life over with his wife Christie (Denise Galik
Denise Galik
Denise Galik-Furey is an American actress who has starred on television and in film.-Career:Born in in Cleveland, Ohio, Galik has starred in television on soap operas, daytime and night time soaps. Her first soap opera role was in the 1980s CBS soap Knots Landing as Linda Stricker from 1980 to 1981...
) and their five-year-old daughter Jennifer (Judith Barsi
Judith Barsi
Judith Eva Barsi was an American child actress. She was small in stature and often played characters younger than her actual age...
). However, he learns that the small town where he grew up is overrun by a large motorcycle gang that rides through the town in large numbers, harassing various citizens. On his first night back to his old job at a construction yard Buck hears a woman screaming in the distance. He follows the screams to discover a large group of bikers attacking and attempting to rape a local nurse. Buck manages to chase the gang off using his truck thus saving the nurse's life. The leader of the biker gang, Blade (William Smith
William Smith (actor)
William Smith is an American actor who has appeared in almost 300 feature films and television productions.Smith began his acting career at the age of 8 in 1942...
), takes Buck's actions personally and begins to terrorize his family and him. The following night, the gang attacks the Matthews' home, beating Buck and killing his wife. This leaves Jennifer, his young daughter, in shock as she witnessed the entire event.
The local sheriff (Seymour Cassel
Seymour Cassel
Seymour Joseph Cassel is an American actor.He first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent films of writer/directorJohn Cassavetes...
) holds a grudge against Buck for some reason that is never explained in the movie, so he refuses to help Buck, leaving him with no other option but to take justice into his own hands. After calling in a favor from an old friend Jamie (Jorge Gil), a Miami-based Columbian drug kingpin whom Buck saved his life in prison during a riot some years back and whom was also paroled with Buck in the opening scene. Buck receives a high tech truck, equipped with machine guns and mortars. Buck's friend, J.B. Deveraux (Yaphet Kotto), a local deputy who is also a Vietnam veteran, fills Buck in as to the history of the motorcycle gang. The sheriff is shown to be in cahoots with the motorcycle gang as Blade and his men give the sheriff bribes of cash to ignore their activities.
Soon, Buck and J.B. team up together and begin to retaliate against the bikers through various means. Buck uses a wire to string out onto a road to decapitate at least two of the bikers. He lures another small group to their deaths by exploding his old truck when they attack it, as well as shoot more at random whom they witness committing crimes in and around the town.
Eventually the bikers kidnap Jennifer from the hospital, forcing Buck to go to their camp in the desert outside of town. Buck, with the help of J.B., flying a bomb-dropping crop-duster airplane, successfully defeats the gang and rescues his daughter. In an explosive climax, Buck has the local sheriff killed (it seems the sheriff framed Buck for a murder committed years earlier) by offering him as a target for the gang, and then has a one-on-one fistfight with the gang's leader which ends with the death of the villain when he accidentally ingests cocaine the gang is manufacturing. With their leader dead, the surviving motorcycle gang members ride away.
The film ends with a final fight scene in which the song "Eye of the Tiger" is played, taking place in a cocaine filled shack at the gang's hideout.