There is no other way to describe this thing. It felt very real. Great filmmaking on all levels - in particular story, acting and photography.
I get that some films are underrated, but I'm bewildered this is not more well-known. More talked about.
It's flown under the radar and that baffles me. Maybe it's because the late 1960s are just packed with so many gems? I don't know, but everything from the acting to the atmosphere is perfect.
shareYes, this one was highly impressive. The film literally blow one's mind because of how effective it is. In my gut I feel this is the exact way a situation like this would play out in real life. People don't get involved, until they do. And of course the filmmaking was flawless.
Parts of the film made me squirm-- it felt quite believable. I've seen people complain that "it's not realistic that no one would do anything," but you are correct-- no one wants to get involved. They keep their heads down and hope they won't be picked on next, because there's no gurantee anyone else will back them up.
shareYes, this is basic human psychology (although there are brave souls in this world who would risk their life in these kind of situations). But most people will try to look away and hope they don't need to get involved. The main villains of this film understood this very well, and used it to their advantage.
The way these characters were introduced to us (another brilliant part of the film), it was no shock that the all-american soldier boy (Beau Bridges) would be the one to finally say enough is enough. Even the "tough guy" boyfriend was scared to do anything. All the characters were terrorised by the two main villains and they correctly judged them as very dangerous.