THE DAY THEY ROBBED AMERICA (Philippines 1985) [REVIEW]

Original Filipino English title: The Sangley Point Robbery
aka American High Commando

VHS / Greece / fullscreen / English dub / Greek subs / uncut afaik
300 dpi hi-res scan

Dir: Manuel 'Fyke' Cinco

I'm not even sure if I should post this review on my When the Vietnam War Raged... in the Philippines blog or on my Backyard Asia blog! Hell, maybe I'll do both!

The thing is, the latter is a blog about wild and crazy Asian films and the first is dedicated to Vietnam War flicks made in the Philippines. And Manuel "Fyke" Cinco's THE DAY THEY ROBBED AMERICA is part Vietnam War flick - kinda without actually being a Vietnam War flick - and part wild and crazy Asian movie!

Most of these Filipino Vietnam War films are filmed in the Philippines but they're set in the Vietnam War which took place in, well, Vietnam, obviously. But this film, while it does take place during the Vietnam War, and while it does star a soldier who's just been fighting in the Viet Cong, the film is actually set in the Philippines! And lots of wild and crazy stuff take place! But, hey, it's been a long while since I wrote my last review of a Filipino Vietnam War movie and I'm stalling. Grab your beer and let's get going with the plot.

1971. An American soldier in Vietnam is captured and tortured by the Viet Cong. The soldier is played by a gwilo called James Acheson who I've never seen in any other film but according to the bloody IMDb he was also in the Vietnam War movie P.O.W. THE ESCAPE from 1986. The Viet Cong kidnap his girlfriend and they're going, "If you don't tell us what we want to know we're gonna off yer girlfriend". The American soldier knows bloody well he's out of luck so he goes, "Fuck you and fuck the horse you rode in on". Fortunately, his mates arrive just in time to save him and kill the Viet Cong. Unfortunately, they've already off'ed his gf. After this he's a mental wreck and the army send him to a US base in the Philippines.

In the Philippines Rudy Fernandez plays a cop who kills a bad dude in the line of duty and decides to quit the force as a result. The bad dude's brother is obviously pissed off and asks one of his henchmen to off the cop, but the henchman dude misses his mark and shoots the cop's dad instead. The cop, who's really a good law-abiding feller, then decides to participate in a bank robbery in order to pay for his dad's operation. He's got a wife and a girlfriend and neither of them are happy about the situation (!).

The ex cop and his posse of misfits plan to hit the American bank at the army base (!!) and needless to say it all goes terribly wrong. In the middle of the robbery a ton of American soldiers start shooting at them (what did they expect!), and the American solder who returned from Nam, his gf works at the bank and the ex cop and his gang kidnap her to use as a shield. They let her go soon enough but it still leaves her completely traumatised (quite funny actually, earlier on in the film she said to the soldier, who had experienced heinous things in Vietnam and had seen his ex girlfriend get killed in front of him, "you gotta leave all this behind and move on". Well, obviously she didn't handle being kidnapped for half an hour too well as she ends up traumatised in a wheelchair!). The ex Nam soldier decides to go on a revenge spree and starts to hunt down the cop and his mates one by one.

This is a quick run down of the plot and there's a lot that I'm leaving out. THE DAY THEY ROBBED AMERICA is a wild and obscure film - but also slow in places and talkative. Obscure because the film doesn't stay in just one genre. It's part Vietnam War movie, part cop flick, part vigilante film, and it's part ... crazy Asian. It's not least obscure because we've actually got two main characters, the ex Vietnam soldier turned vigilante - and the ex cop turned bank robber. Neither of them is a bad person, and as a viewer we feel for the both of them. It's a dilemma and makes for a different and captivating storytelling in a genre that, despite being entertaining, is often more straight forward than straight forward.

In addition to  Rudy Fernandez I also noticed a few other well known faces, Nick Nicholson, David Light, and a few more. You can check the complete credits list on Andrew Leavold's blog.

Highly recommended.


VERSION REVIEWED: Greek ex-rental VHS. Fullscreen, English dub, Greeke subtitles, good picture quality.

NAKED VENGEANCE (Philippines, 1985) - review

[This is the uncut trailer from a Danish ex-rental VHS, not the censored Australian trailer]


By Fred Adelman

NAKED VENGEANCE (1985) - Now don't get me wrong here: I find most of director Cirio H. Santiago's films to be average at best, but he must have been taking hallucinogens here because he has turned out a perfectly crazy rip-off of I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978), maybe even outdoing it in sheer sleaze factor alone. Carla, a commercial actress (Deborah Tranelli of DALLAS fame), watches as her husband is gunned down by a creep he tried to stop from raping a girl.

She leaves New York City for her home town in the country and is savagely raped by five townies in her parents house. When her parents come home and see what is happening to their daughter, they are shotgunned by the gang and then kill the local retard, making it look like the retard did the killings. Thinking that Carla is dead, they leave the house and go to a bar and get drunk. Of course Carla is not dead, just in a catatonic state and she is brought to the hospital.


The local sheriff (Bill McLaughlin, who walks around with an expression on his face like he was sucking on a lemon all day), doesn't quite believe the story and wants to question Carla on what really happened. Her doctor refuses as Carla fakes amnesia while picking off her attackers one-by-one. She lops off the dick one one of them with a knife and, just to make sure he suffers more, attaches a grappling hook to his chest an has his boat drag him out to the middle of the lake to bleed to death.

Another one has a car dropped on his body as she steps on the gas and has the tire rim cut off his legs. The leader of the raping pack, Fletch (Kaz Garaz, who played a sheriff in the 1996 remake of HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP), who is the town's butcher, knows who is doing the killings and decides to form a posse (the whole town seems to be full of torch-weilding hicks) and trap Carla in a house and burns it down. Thinking Carla died in the fire (she didn't), Fletch goes about his business in his butcher shop only to be surprised by Carla, who cuts off his fingers with a meat slicer, plants a meat cleaver in his back and then blows his head off with a shotgun.

The sheriff declares that Carla is dead and the killings are over. The next time we see Carla is back in New York City, getting even with the punk who killed her husband. This is grand sleaze that never slacks off its premise, which is highly unusual for a Cirio H. Santiago film (FUTURE HUNTERS anyone?). The film moves at a brisk pace and is never boring. It was released in both R-rated and Unrated editions, the Unrated edition showing more of the gang rape and lingers more on the bloody violence. Guess which version you should track down?

Mr. Santiago has directed over 100 features (many for Roger Corman) and is highly-regarded in his homeland of the Philippines. I consider NAKED VENGEANCE to be his crowning achievement. A Lightning Video Release which has been long OOP. This is another film crying out for a DVD release. Also starring Ed Crick, Nick Nicholson, Terrence O'Hara and a cameo appearance by Carmen Argenziano (HELLRAISER:INFERNO - 2000 and STARGATE SG1). Also known as SATIN VENGEANCE, but I've never seen it released under this title. Unrated.

[Thanks to Fred for letting me post his reviews from his Critical Condition web-zine!]

[This is an ex-rental tape from Greenland!!! Sadly it contains the R-rated print Fred mentions. Thanks once again to Diabolik of Cinehound for the VHS and for uploading the trailer for me. Cheers, mate!]

DEATH BOND (Philippines, 1988)

Nick Nicholson as a double-crossing sleaze-bag in DEATH BOND


Nick: "You know, I can't get over it".

Other guy: "What?"

Nick: "The striking resemblance between you and horse-shit!"


[review to come]




Puzon Film Enterprises, Inc. presents
A Conrad Puzon and Pierre C. Lee Production

Glass: Jeff Weston
Lt. Lane: Eves Hudson
Donahue: Darwyn Swalve
Stroh: Henry Strzalkowski
Lido: Nick Nicholson
Petey: Jeff Griffith
Sam: Eli Marder
Camille: Casey Staub
Admiral Smith: Francis Nerone
Frank: Marvin Bund
Sylvie: Chantal Manz
Ex-Wife: Melissa Dozier
Boyfriend: Guel Romero
John Lawrence: Warren Mclean
Bodyguard 1: Allan Klem
Bodyguard 2: Gregory Walsh
Young Lady: April Schutz
Young Kid: Aaron Staub
Bartender: Tony O'Donne
Bar Waiter: Dave Harrison
Rebel Leader 1: Joe Fisher
Rebel Leader 2: Albert Bronski
Helicopter Gunner: Philip Gordon
Helicopter Pilot: George Soeth
Car Driver: Robert Allen
Hotel Receptionist: Judy Smith
Assistant Director: Joe Towers
Production Manager: Glenn Parian
Casting Director: Vic Saad
Fight Stunt Director: Rey Sagum
Car Stunt Director: Baldo Marro
Costume Designer: Merlito Santos
Set Designer: Melchor Defensor
Special Effects: Jun Marbella
Script Continuity: Juliet Chentes
Production Assistant: Jerry Asuncion
Field Soundman: Donald Santos
Camera Operator 1: Pablo Bautista
Camera Operator 2: Bernardo Gavino
Electrician: George Rosales
Set Director: Tanny Perez
Wardrobe Master: Ron Henry Tan
Make-Up Artist: Teresa Mercader
Stunt Coordinator: Jolly Jogueta
Post Production Manager: Johnny Leoncio
Sound Mixer: Vic Macamay
Sound Effects Editor: Tony Gosalvez
Asst. Sound Effects Editor: Greg Torres
Assistant Editor 1: Willie Asuncion
Assistant Editor 2: Rene Dugtong
Property Master: Jerson Arididon
Location Manager: Dories Gallardo
Transport Manager: Lito Roranes
Schedule Master: Renato Mendoza
Wardrobe Assistant: Jude Quinito
Property Assistant: Angelito Estacio
Set Carpenters: Isko Ginoo, Romy Tarin
Set Artist: Jun Peregrino
Setman: Max Pangilinan
Property Custodian: Fe Herrera
Field Cashier: Meddy Tajonera
Production Accountant: Rita Pontanares
Production Secretary: Jossie Almazan
Best Boy 1: Jon-Jon Salazar
Best Boy 2: Alejandro Mendoza
Best Boy 3: Joey Lotivio
Props & Armory: Multi-Props, Inc.
Shooting Equipment: X'Or Production
Laboratory: P.I.A.
Sound Facilities: Magna Tech Omni
Title: Amang Buencamino

[all credits are from the print, not the bloody IMDb!!!]




[All screen grabs in this post are from my own ultra rare Greek video tape]