Gordon’s War/Off Limits – DVD Review

The Films:

Shout! Factory releases these two Vietnam-themed action films together in their latest Action-Packed Double Feature, where these two films are worthy of Killer Film‘s Action Packed Flashback label.

In Gordon’s War, seems like a tried-and-true example of the blaxploitation genre, with its Harlem setting, drugs and pimps centric story, but it eliminates the funky sounds in its score, as it’s a largely quite, gritty Death Wish clone. But let’s not be too harsh on it for aping the Charles Bronson classic, since the film is one of the grittier 70s blaxploitation films.

Paul Winfield stars as Gordon, a decent man coming home from the Vietnam War only to find his sister dead thanks to the lowlife pushers and Mafia dealers in the neighborhood. Teaming with his retired Green Beret buddies, Gordon seeks to end the corruption in his city. For all of the elements that we love about the blaxploitation genre – the girls, the music, the funk, the language – Gordon’s War doesn’t use them. It has a relation to Coffy, but as you can tell from the plot crunch, it’s Death Wish. So? Like I mentioned, it’s gritty, dark, sophisticated crime movie, something that was rather seen in the blaxloitation genre. There’s plenty of action, let it’s nicely handled within the story.

Off Limits is a great little unseen gem. Starring Willem Dafoe, the film follows two MPs who are investigating murdered Vietnamese prostitutes who have carried American children. The film takes place i 1968, and the U.S. involvement was just beginning, yet that’s the backdrop to the story, as we are taken on a deep, dark route with plenty of mood. Dafoe is fantastic throughout, as he always is, but Killer Film readers should get a kick out of the supporting cast: Fred Ward (Tremors), Keith David (Marked for Death), David Alan Grier (In Living Color), and Scott Glen (Sucker Punch).

Off Limits features a more dramatic route than an all-out actionfest, but the mystery, the dialogue, and the acting, are snappy and excellent. The Bangkok location for the shoot, appropriately aids the murky, sweaty feeling this icky serial killer hunt needs. Luckily, the film doesn’t show what was so wrong with that damn un-winnable war, but just offers a thrilling narrative set along the outskirts of the war, tickling American disobedience, rather than saying anything profound. It’s a great movie.

The DVD:

Audio/Video: Shout! is up to their usual great standards. Both have the 70s gritty, grainy aesthetic, yet the balance, the colors, the shadows, are all well done in these new transfers. The audio mix is okay. The one flaw is the loudness of the gunfights compared to the rest of the mix.

Both films have Commentaries. On Gordon’s War, actor Tony King and the cinematographer offer up a nice look back at the film, the cast, and the production, even if it’s a little slow. For Off Limits, Dafoe is here with the film’s director for a great chat. Dafoe is always great on these tracks when he does them, and offers plenty of funny stories, as well as insight into the production. There’s also a great talk on the late Gregory Hines, who co-stars with Dafoe.

Trailers and TV spots round out the extras on the disc.

The Films: Rating:

The DVD: Rating: