Brutalization (1973) (DVD Review)
Directed By: Fons Rademakers
Starring: Sylvia Kristel, Bryan Marshall, Alexandra Stewart
Rated: UR/Region: 0/1:77/Number of disc: 1
Available from One 7 Movies
Sylvia Kristel, of Emmanuelle fame, stars in this revenge thriller in which a gang of wealthy bastards break into peaceful homes and torture the women while forcing their husbands to watch in pain. Inspector van der Walk (Bryan Marshall) a strong-willed police cop, is determined to make them pay for their awful crimes but the members of the gang are bounded by an oath that is linked in some unpredictable ways to some high ranking people in the upper echelon of the Dutch society. Thus begins a painstaking quest for truth and to make sure that the ruthless gang is put behind bars. But van der Walk has to play against all odds…
Things get started right out the gate here as a group of yuppies in suits and wearing pantyhose over their heads force a man to watch as they rape his wife. From there I was hoping we’d get a real rape and revenge flick. One that would of sorta reminded us of I Spit on Your Grave. Instead, we get a cop on the hunt for the gang and things just start being bogged down by a very slow pace that hurts the film.
We watch as our main man goes along trying to find anything and everything to pin these dudes. Of course, this leads to the problem being much bigger than originally thought as I just sit and ponder why my rape and revenge flick went. I wanted to see a woman going for revenge not an officer of the law with a plot doing a bad Dario Argento impression. The movie isn’t what you might think it is going by the cover and the plot. It is slow and hard to finish. Not my favorite release from One 7 Movies, still not the worst.
– Trailer
