Rolling Thunder

• Directed by John Flynn
• October 7, 1977 (LA)

When the family of a United States Air Force officer and former POW family is killed by a group of criminals he sets out to get revenge.

Rolling Thunder is yet another movie I sat on for far too long. I cannot call it perfect, but it certainly bested my preconceived notions. From the start it is clear they put some real thought into this film. Maj. Charles Rane (William Devane) among other POWs are returning to San Antonio. Rane doesn’t simply step back into his life but experiences problems and goes through some readjustment. This movie is not just about getting revenge or blind violence. It’s also about a man acclimating back to his old life and the deep scars left by war. Rolling Thunder is a slow burning film where the main character tracks down those that crossed him. It is all about the hunt. There are a few moments of action, but things do not really pick up until the finale.

I never thought of William Devane as a tough guy, but he is an effective enough tough guy in this. You believe he is an Air Force officer who was hardened by his time as a POW. And you’re even convinced that he’s probably a little off kilter because of it. That maybe a part of his soul is completely gone and can never be retrieved.

But he is far from stupid. Rane is a vengeance minded man and begins plotting what he’s going to do to the people who harmed his family almost immediately. He has no desire to seek retribution through the law. In his quest Rane uses loyal and quite hot groupie Linda (Linda Haynes) as part of his plot. She is clearly in love with the idea of Rane but not the actual man.

I assumed John Flynn and pals would go for some level of spiritual redemption for Rane via a romance with Linda before a violent close to the story. That never really comes because once he’s through with her Rane just moved on and left Linda alone.

That there bothered me. I did not need Linda to necessarily be a part of the gunfight. Nor did I need Master Sergeant Johnny Vohden (Tommy Lee Jones) to be front and center for the action the whole time. I just needed a little more presence from both. Something to build up the bond between Vohden and Rane rather than Vohden breeze in and out of the film just enough to remind us he existed. Or maybe a little more relationship between Rane and Linda. While Vohden was a blank slate pretty much from the start, Linda at least had enough to her where Rane’s abandonment of her could have been tragic for both with a touch more effort.

We have other elements that are entered into this movie but are not part of the plot. They’re more part of Rane’s life. The villain of The Texan (James Best) is never an opposing force despite the whole goal being to kill him and his cohorts. Rane’s psychotherapist/doctor Maxwell (Dabney Coleman) just is. His wife’s new beau Deputy Cliff Nichols (Lawrason Driscoll) gets on the same trail as Rane, but Rane never knows it because Cliff dies in isolation having accomplished zip.

Despite these flaws this is a good film. It’s more about the damage of the war than it is about seeking revenge. It’s about how this man has been left hollowed out by his experiences and that what he saw as his way to become whole again has been taken from him. His wife left him and his son and his wife are now dead. He is a man with nothing and is unleashing his anger over that. 

And despite a lack of action in this revenge film, it’s very good. It’s a good film that seems to have been largely forgotten in this day in favor of others. It’s not nearly as bloody or violent as some that have remained in the public consciousness. Nor does it have much action or are the moments of action done to be cool.

Rolling Thunder is a good movie that seems to be known by far too few these days. It’s also not something that comes to mind when you think of William Devane. It won’t get your adrenaline pumping but you will be satisfied throughout.