Rampage 4K 1987 Ultra HD 2160p

Liberal district attorney decides to seek the death penalty for a man who slaughtered a family at Christmastime, then drank their blood. He escapes, though, and starts killing again.

User Review

Director William Friedkin, in adapting this book for the screen, certainly did not reach the level of mastery of his two previous films, generously praised by critics, such as The French Connection and The Exorcist. Therefore, the film did not enjoy widespread popularity. However, the work is well worth the attention of anyone interested in controversial thrillers.

The story touches on a controversial and extremely complex issue on the eternal theme of “execute or pardon,” when the verdict on a person's fate is decided by a large majority in the courtroom. The ambiguity is compounded by the fact that the defendant is a proven maniac who has committed terrible crimes, sparing neither women nor children. Therefore, the defense will argue for preserving the monster's life in order to attempt to treat his mental illness and study such inhuman behavior, while the main character, played by the famous Michael Biehn, will try in every way to urge the jury — and us, the audience — to take radical measures to eradicate the “malignant tumors” of society by means of the gas chamber.

As mentioned earlier, the thriller, which takes place in a courtroom, is only a prologue that frightens us with bloody horrors about a serial maniac, and then builds a psychological conflict based purely on the question of moral and ethical norms. As a result, there is no need to expect any dramatic clashes on screen, as the entire film has only a couple of additional chase scenes and does not reduce the ideological conflict to a confrontation between positive and negative characters. They are only indirect enemies who act in separate planes: the prosecutor, confident in the correctness of his firm decision, and the demonstrative killer, who is not clearly portrayed as a sadist or a complete madman who is not accountable for his actions. Perhaps it is precisely the uncertainty of the director's position, with the presentation of ambiguous material so as not to completely destroy the controversial nature of the villain's personality, that introduces an unfavorable moment into the viewing experience, forcing the viewer to wander in vague guesses, guided by the dry facts of what has been done. It is particularly regrettable that the side with motives and prerequisites is not revealed at all.
Based on a real story from the late 1970s, with the name of the prototype changed from that of the serial American maniac Richard Chase, the film does not focus so much on following the series of real deeds of a madman, simplifying and bypassing the iconic elements of the antagonist's inadequate behavior that are capable of evoking a chill of true horror from his perverted acts, but rather attempts to dissect the duality of the position of society passing judgment.

As a result, the film may disappoint fans of intricate detective puzzles and intense manhunts for cunning maniacs due to the villain's initially open personality and the measured pace of the narrative. Without giving any direct hints and being careful about how he treats people on the other side of the screen, the author just shows the two sides of the coin, where it's hard to decide whether he's “sick” or “not sick,” whether to “treat” or ‘destroy’ him, which means “can't execute, must pardon” or “must execute, can't pardon.” And if you are curious about this approach to the thriller genre, you will find it quite enjoyable.

Info Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (56.1 Mb/s)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Info Audio

#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
#English: FLAC 2.0
#English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Commentary by Film Historians Howard S. Berger and Nathaniel Thompson)

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