The Ransom

1977 "The demand is simple...$5,000,000 or the whole town dies!"
5.1| 1h30m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 29 April 1977 Released
Producted By: New World Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A Native American travels around a resort town, murdering cops and rich people with a high-powered crossbow, while demanding that the town's richest residents pay him money to stop the killings.

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Reviews

Greenes Please don't spend money on this.
MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting
SpecialsTarget Disturbing yet enthralling
Console best movie i've ever seen.
bellino-angelo2014 This was one of the b-thrillers of the '70s released when there was the craze of the ''Dirty Harry'' movies (until the mid-1980s), and it has an unusual plot.A sniper (Victor) hops around in a town where he kills people and demands that he wants money so he can stop his killing spree! So a tough law enforcer tries to stop the killer with every possible solution.This thriller is very tame in comparison to flicks like ''Mitchell''; there is no blood, no sex scenes, and not much bad words. The problem is the script full of holes; Victor is a sniper (and former swimmer) that has a bone to pick with the USA because of his Vietnam war experience. His motives are explained in the end credits song, and to complete the weird stuff, he dresses as a native American and kills his victims with a jagged crossbow! So the city folks hire macho detective McCormick, and then the movie unfolds in a slow pace, with cheesy action sequences and subplots about the characters. But the ending it's a bit surprising, and the hero ends his killing spree with clean hands and with the money. It seemed to me that they compensated the plot holes with some nice shots of the Phoenix mountains in Arizona!The actors are the true high-lights of the movie: Oliver Reed steals the scene with his bombastic appearence, but his only flaw is that his drunkness has the first focus on the movie instead of the plot, and in certain scenes talks like growling. By the way, Oliver Reed even here gives a great performance, and it's also funny to look at in some scenes. It's supported by few famous actors of those years: John Ireland, James Mitchum as a tracker, and Stuart Whitman as an arrogant milionaire are very good in their roles.If you want to look some '70s thrillers of the Dirty Harry type, pick this one. It's a decent time-passer for an hour and a half.
Michael_Elliott Assault on Paradise (1977) ** 1/2 (out of 4)A small town full of rich people find themselves being terrorized by an Indian who is shooting and killing people with a crossbow. He offers to stop the killing in exchange for one million dollars. The rich people decide to bring in Nick McCormick (Oliver Reed), an expert in tracking down people like the killer.ASSAULT ON PARADISE was also released under the title MANIAC but no matter what you call it the film itself is fairly entertaining if a bit brain dead. I say that it's a bit brain dead because it's not quite clear what the killings are for and it's not quite clear what all the rich people are hiding. Everything is pretty much being done in secret yet there's really no explanation of what is happened and why.The film's strongest point are the cast members who turn in very fun performances. Reed could play a role like this in his sleep and I'm sure this was just a paycheck to him but he still manages to turn in a good performance. I thought he was quite believable in the part and he made for a good lead. Veterans Stuart Whitman and John Ireland add some nice support as does James Mitchum in his role as a tracker. Deborah Raffin plays a somewhat love interest but her character and the motivations are about as strange as the killers. Paul Koslo plays the killer.The film's biggest problem, other than the screenplay, is the fact that the direction by Richard Compton doesn't really get any suspense from the material. I would have liked a bit more tension but that's just not to be found anywhere. The film also shows some signs of tinkering as the opening sequence was thrown on for no real reason and it sticks out like a sore thumb. With all of that said, if you're a fan of the cast then there's some entertainment to be found here.
FieCrier Paul Koslo plays an ex-olympic athlete who for unspecified reasons is now trying to collect millions of dollars from a town's rich people by dressing up like a native American in leather and warpaint and killing police and prominent citizens with a bow and arrow.While it seems like he put a lot of effort into his plans to kill people, collect the money, and escape, at the same time he's very careless, nearly getting shot or caught almost every time. At one point, he kills a man in a parade. No one seems to know where he was when he shot the man, but inexplicably he jumps onto his motorbike and rides right into the parade route so that everyone can see him, and easily follow him.The rich people hire McCormick, played by Oliver Reed, to try to catch or kill Koslo. Early on, Reed purposely drives off with a TV journalist's microphone, and then when she follows him to a bar to retrieve it, he has a Tequila Sunrise ready for her. However he then pulls out a loaded gun and holds it to her head, threatening her not to move. Inexplicably, a moment later they're consensually in bed together.The story is absurd. This is not a very good movie at all.
emm This killer MANIAC is an Injun who brings down two cops with an arsenal of arrows, only to be wanted and captured by local authorities. Want to find out the rest of the story? Then sit back and stay comfy out of this dumb and boring thriller that reveals a wrongful identity of lameness. Otherwise, I've just saved you a great deal of 90 minutes from this! And no, this isn't the Caroline Munro bloodbath classic that would consume your everyday life forever.