Terminal Force

• Directed by Fred Olen Ray
• August 28, 1989 (West Germany)

A trigger-happy cop agrees to work on a case during his suspension.

What becomes obvious within seconds is that Terminal Force is trying to be a bargain basement Dirty Harry. A bit of irony since this film’s star Richard Harrison turned down A Fistful of Dollars and recommended Clint Eastwood. Oops! If only it could be as entertaining

Richard Harrison plays Nick Tyree, a is a ridiculously trigger-happy cop in a movie that consistently plays it straight but given everything Harrison does Force could’ve easily been a comedy in the vein of Sledge Hammer! or the Naked Gun films rather than a bad Dirty Harry ripoff. This movie is so close to accidental parody but never quite gets there. Director Fred Olen Ray has a list of credits, many of which rank as cult classics, that I think such was within him. It’s just so close to making fun of not only itself but of so much else yet never decides to go for the joke joke.

Tyree is on the outs with his boss Capt. Pepper (James R. Sweeney as Jeffrey Culver) for loose cannon movie cop stuff he did before the opening only to get in more trouble by blowing away a few crooks at a liquor store that interrupted Tyree’s booze run. This leads to a ban on him carrying a gun.

Reportedly this was filmed in five days. I can believe it and so will you after watching. There is a distinct feel of guerilla filmmaking where they went to a location and filmed as quickly as possible before the authorities showed up seeking permits. Other instances look like whatever building somebody involved allowed them to use. Capt. Pepper’s office looks like something quickly repurposed. A storage closet becomes a warehouse. The director’s home with the very ‘80s tacky interior design is the villain’s home. And so forth.

This was not a film that tried to cast the right actor. This was a film that took whoever said “Yes” first. Richard Harrison for his part looks absolutely crestfallen to be in this movie. It’s a performance that speaks of broken dreams on the part of the actor. The man was not bad and certainly deserved better than this.

Dawn Wildsmith as Delilah (Tyree’s girlfriend) and Christin (Angela Porcell) are the only two women in the film and neither does much to entertain. Director Fred Olen Ray tries to use Porcell to bring much of the sexy, but neither are necessarily timelessly attractive or even strongly attractive for the time. They’re not two baggers but they were affordable and willing to perform in the movie.

Tyree’s loose cannon ways turn out to be just the answer to Sgt., er, Capt. Pepper’s pretty perplexing problem. Seems the daughter (Christin) of a witness has been kidnapped and to get the guy to talk his princess needs to be rescued. I swear during her captivity she gets her hair did. Pretty sure she changes color and hairstyle a bit before the end.

She is in the clutches of criminal Johnny Ventura (John Henry Richardson as Jay Richardson). The actor’s name may be meaningless, but I recall the face from multiple B-grade productions usually in the part of the jerk or a villain of a type. Not that he was good as the chief threat. He’s more ham than serious and his evil lines come off as silly or creepy. Maybe that was the point.

What of the villain’s henchmen? Leonard (Cleve Hall) has a striking resemblance to a young Rosie O’Donnell. I’m not making fun of her. I’m making fun of the actor and the way they dress. That is all I saw when I looked at the guy and he is perhaps the most entertaining part of the movie because of that.

Hall tries to be a creepy psycho and comes off more as lonely nerd. He doesn’t know what not to say. I really can’t say much more about him than that. In comparison to Richard Harrison’s obvious depression, over being in the movie, Hall displayed distinct apathy in some scenes while showing genuine excitement in others which I think is a clear indication of the order in which his stuff was filmed.

Troy Donahue, who had seen better days, plays bartender Slim in a part that is utterly forgettable set in what looks like a diner that needed new décor. Fox Harris is informant Hendrix who took his cue from Dennis Hopper at his wildest.

Despite all its flaws and general problems, I couldn’t stop watching. It tried so hard to get things right and falls so epically short. It grabs your mind and doesn’t let go until the credits roll. Viewers are treated to a slow-motion disaster that crushes the dreams of the performers and the viewer.

Terminal Force is a textbook example of how to make a bad movie without accidentally doing anything good. What could’ve ended up as loving mockery became sad imitation. Yet there is something watchable about this mess and maybe it’s because it is a mess.