Fight for Your Life (1977)

Sorry, this movie sucks

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Blistering performances.

Don't get that twisted, I liked this flick. That was just one of the many offensive lines our lead villain had. And he had a couple doozies. I really enjoyed the time he told his Asian side-kick to get a move on by saying, "Chop-chop!" What made it funny was that he laughed at his own creativity. We all know creativity makes racism funny so take it easy.Anywho, what we got here is a story about a trio of villains who are out on the lamb and trying to escape the coppers. They take shelter at a black family's house and let's just say they aren't the most polite guests the Turner family have entertained. So now the Turner family have three murderous convicts in the house and they're making themselves comfy by drinking loads of booze, humiliating the head of the house, threatening the grandma and a whole bunch of other awful things. Do the Turner's make it to see another day? Find out in Fight For Your Life.Overall, FFYLife was a pretty entertaining ride. From the over-the-top acting and writing the villains had, to the look at how the family is reacting to their abuse. The picture managed to keep the viewer (me) interested in what will go down next and how the picture will finally end. And by the end, I was completely satisfied. Alright! Definitely give this flick a looksee if you're into some old-school exploitation. It's a serious drama at heart, but it has that hardcore racism and violent themes to throw it over into exploit territory. Really good film here, y'all! Just ask Turd.

There are all kinds of movies out there. Great movies, bad movies, mediocre movies, etc. I've seen so many different kinds of films in my time that few are capable of evoking a strong reaction out of me. Fight for Your Life is simply unlike any movie experience I can remember having.Let me say that this is not a film for everyone. It is hardly what I would call an enjoyable experience, but it is an important experience nonetheless. While the film features some of the most heinously racist dialog of any movie I've ever seen, there is never a moment in the film that seems self-indulgent for white people. Sexual violence at the hands of the villains is portrayed in typically shocking form as well.As if that weren't enough, it also has a very touching bond between two young boys, only to leave you completely broken hearted at their fate.I sat there at the theater, riveted and nearly sick to my stomach throughout the film, and left completely stunned. I knew I had seen an important film. This is not just another grind house exploitation feature. This is something else entirely.

This is a movie for people who enjoy offensive dialog and taboos on display. Movies like this are not made anymore and i feel that is sad. We live in a country that's at war but we are too afraid to show fictional violence. This was made in the era that put out such cult classics like "Last House on the Left", "Cannibal Holocaust" and "I Spit On Your Grave". Three convicts escape jail and then hold a religious black family captive in their own home. This film has all the exploitive treats like rape, humiliation, child murder and racism. For it's time "Fight For Your Life" had to be one of the most offensive movies in 1977. I have news for you it still is today. The cast was wonderful, especially the bigot played by William Anderson. He hit all the right notes when it came to portraying a despicable and hateful character. He makes a minister do a shuck and jive dance while shooting at his feet for crying out loud. The thing i like about exploitive films like this is that it delivers with eventual revenge. I don't mind being showed ugliness because it reminds me how wrong things like bigotry and crime are. If you want to see a movie with guts and thats willing to push the envelope and entertain, this is the film for you. The Grandma in this movie is hilarious , especially when the whole family is singing gospel at gunpoint. ***1/2/****

Presumably the absolute BEST "Last House on the Left" imitation ever made, mainly because all the other – mostly Italian – rip offs are uninspired and repetitive while this rape & revenge film features a lot more depth and a personality of its own. "Fight for your Life" may not be as gore as "House on the Edge of the Park" or as controversial as "I Spit on Your Grave", but it's suspenseful and the only one containing affectionate drama and realistic human interest situations. Three heavyweight criminals escape from their prison transport after a banal accident and flee into the countryside. They have different backgrounds and origins, but the most dangerous one is a white-trash murderer with racist ideas and a nihilistic world perspective. With every police officer in the state looking for them, the three convicts home-jack a black family and spend the next long hours humiliating, abusing and petrifying them. The family of five cooperates, despite all the brutal insults and racist remarks (seriously, how many variations on the term "coon" can you put in one screenplay??) but when they rape the young daughter, the usually deeply religious father takes the law into his own hands. With the victims being a black family, this movie counts as "blacksploitation" as well as regular 70's exploitation and that's pretty unique! The vengeance sequences near the end are extremely intense and I swear you'll never cheer as loud as you cheer for the Turner family! "Fight for your Life" was included in the list of Video-Nasties once, probably because of that jaw-dropping shock scene in which a young boy is beaten to death with a rock, but please don't let this keep you from seeing this savage exploitation masterpiece whenever you have the opportunity! Great stuff; hits you in the face with the effect of a ten-ton hammer!