Devil's Angels

source: Devil's Angels

Although following a line of biker movies, stretching back to "The Wild One," "Devil's Angels" feels remarkably contemporary in its tone: anarchists on wheels ride into a town, smashing windows, stealing whatever they want, burning a car, disrespecting legal authority, boasting of their contempt for the bourgeoisie, and vandalizing everything. Their leader, John Cassavetes, is surprisingly reasonable and the beauty of Mimsy Farmer is hereby preserved forever.

A good example of 1960's biker films. Nothing too new here, just a basic story of a biker gang forced to flee its home town after a member accidently kills a citizen. Basically, they ride around and cause mayhem for anyone who gets in their way. More funny than violent in places, but a serious enough treatment of the subject matter.

Keep biker films other than "Easy Rider" out of time capsules as a representation of American art. Maybe put this one in a time capsule representing cultural fads that didn't work, or documentaries on how society tried to rebel and nearly destroyed it. Or maybe in a capsule involving films that had absolutely no plot and reminders of future filmmakers on how not to make a Salem. This certainly is colorful and filled with action, taking a bunch of bikers around the countryside and various peaceful communities, practically destroying every place that they visit. John Cassavettes must have needed some fast cash for his independent classic "Faces" to be made, so he did this and possibly "Rosemary's Baby" (a genuine classic as conparred to this), and didn't look back. The general premise concerns itself with the alleged biker gang on the run after one of the members is involved in a hit-and-run accident that killed an innocent bystander, and after getting out of the city end up in a suburban community that wants no part of them. There's an election in progress oh, and one of the candidates doesn't want them there. They badger the local law enforcement to get rid of the biker gang, and this shows how they deal with trying to get them away. If the filmmakers were trying to show any type of Injustice to these types of gangs, it didn't work because all it shows is how destructive they are and how they don't really belong anywhere in society. Freedom is one thing but the ruckus they create is another, and coming out of nowhere and acting the way they do isn't the same as riding down the highway minding their own business and being shot just for looking different. Beverly Adams will get noticed instantly for her Liza Minnelli hairstyle, even though this is a few years before "Cabaret" and Liza's doo hadn't become her keystyle at this time. You could watch this film and try to find some message in it, but the only message that it gives 50 years later is that some film makers were desperate to get anything on the screen no matter how pointless.

1967s Devils Angels as one big name critic said cheap and lurid. That means a must see. With what I call three stooges rebellion example breaking balloons at a gas station convenience store. Love the Davie Arrow score. There's also a cool reference to Of Mice &Men George and Lenny with the biker named Robot. Is available in wide-screen through Warner Archives. I proudly own the Tower OST and original one sheet poster. Just think what was going through John Cassavettes head while making this. Another check towards his own independent films. Thank you " Number 11"!! For doing this film.

The skulls. Trivia is wrong...hopper was in The Glory Stompers but played leader of Black Souls. In the late 1960s, a ton of biker films came out. Why? Because they were super-cheap to make (they rarely used stars and sometimes they just filmed actual biker from various gangs to save money)! Even if only a few folks came out to see them, the films made money and are almost all very similar. There are a few exceptions, such as "Werewolves on Wheels" (which is insanely weird) and "The Born Losers" (which is surprisingly good), but the rest have a certain sameness about them that make them forgettable. Is this the case with "Devil's Angels"? Well, unlike most it did feature a star (John Cassavetes)...but is it any good? A member of the Skulls motorcycle gang is driving recklessly and accidentally hits and kills some poor schmuck. The biker runs away and rejoins the gang. Soon the gang runs amok...stealing and making nuisances of themselves. However, instead of arresting the gang, the local sheriff makes a dumb decision...to let the gang 'protect' the city! What's next? See the film...or not! Like most of the rest of the biker films, this one is certainly no artistic masterpiece. It's mostly like voyeurism...watching jerks act like jerks. But it often is practically plotless...just showing the bikers being jerks and drinking. It is odd, however, that the leader of the jerks was pushing 40 in real life and although Cassavetes was a good actor, he was all wrong for the role. Overall, a dull film, believe it or not....and a poorly made one. I noticed that the summary mentions the Hell's Angels...well, they are not even mentioned in the film! Also, in the trivia section there is a slight mistake, as it says that the film makes reference to another biker gang, the Glory Stompers, who were in another AIP picture preceding "Devil's Angels". This is true...but Dennis Hopper was NOT the leader of this gang, but some rivals called The Black Souls. Not a huge mistake...but a mistake.

Ever since my Dad began 'blasting' the 'vinyl album' of "The Wild Angels Vol.2" back in the early 1970s when I was a child; and, after I began sneaking that album into my room when he was at work; I began to relate this Rock-N-Roll movie-music I love to this day (POWER-CHORD, ASS-KICKING ROCK-N-ROLL) to what sounded to me as if Keith Richards, Ray Davies, Peter Townshend, got together with Duane Eddy, and, some others, and, created "Magical Movie Kick-Ass Rock-N-Roll" for 'Biker exploitation movies!' HOWEVER...IT WAS "MIKE CURB"...ALL BY HIMSELF! The Greatest Rock-N-Roll Movie-Star Musician whom 'NO ONE' has ever even heard of!?!? "Easy Rider" is a classic...NO DOUBT, and, it has original music by Rock-N-Roll stars of the day! But, movies like "Devil's Angels;" "The Wild Angels;" "The Glory Stompers;" "Hells Angels On Wheels;" "The Born Losers;" etc...and, even the Clint Eastwood classic "Kelly's Heroes," had music by Mike Curb (at this time, The Mike Curb Congregation)...and, it's all GREAT MUSIC! These 'biker movies' were an 'institution,' just as the 'beach party' movies with Annette Funicello (BEAUTIFUL LADY) and Frankie Avilon were an institution. These biker movies were GREAT 'Drive-In' movies that kept your attention when you weren't fondling your date. These biker movies represented the time in which they were made; they had GREAT MUSIC (thanks mainly to Mike Curb); and, in many ways, they were fun to watch. They never intended to become Academy Award Winners, but, they were good and they kept your attention at the Drive-In! :) God...I miss the Drive-In Theaters SO VERY MUCH! :(

First there are no Hell's Angels as in mentioned in the main summery, the MC is the Skulls for you trivia lovers. As is so often the case in many of these summaries their weakness makes me wonder if they actually watched the movie. The movie does have a common plot for the genre, the beat music and slang of the Sixties fills the movie. The leader, John Cassavetes, is one of the not really bad guys, just a guy trying to find his way. So his performance is above what one often sees in these types of movies. Over another normal 60s biker "gang" stereotypes in plot but without the why so common death ending so in so many of films. At least more of a more positive ending

Daniel Haller directs this campy low-budget biker film produced by Roger Corman. The biker gang The Skulls, are on the move after one of the members, Gage(Buck Taylor), accidentally kills a man stopped road side by a traffic cop. The morally conflicted gang leader Cody(John Cassavetes), makes the decision to move an already decimated gang to a newer "home". The rebellious followers are hard to keep in check; always wanting to raise havoc. On the way to a mythical "hole in the wall" hideaway, the riders look for a place to lodge and find a small town having a carnival. When barging in on a beauty contest some of the gang members claim to be insulted and going against Cody's orders decide to terrorize the little community with aid from another gang as payback for the citizens that offended them. Roaring cycles, the shimmy of dancing bottoms in bikinis and the soundtrack of fuzzy, twangy surf guitars...makes for terrific 1960s "drive-in" fare. The cast also features: Mimsy Farmer, Beverly Adams, Marc Cavell, Leo Gordon, Russ Bender, Buck Kartalian and Nai Bonet. There is some humor inside the very bad acting; and it appears Cassavetes took the budget and ran.

Under the theory that the smellier the manure the more bountiful the crop you can file the info that Cassavetes used his salary for this moron fest to complete "Faces". Give it a D.