Review of Race with the Devil (1975) by David G — 27 Jan 2012

Directed by Jack Starrett, (Slaughter (1972) and Cleopatra Jones (1973)), this is a road chase thriller mixed with occult horror. It mixes the two well, and it all builds up throughout to a massive, high octane chase, it might come across as dated now, but you could imagine stuff like this happening.

Motorbike racer Roger Marsh (Peter Fonda) and bike shop owner Frank Stewart (Warren Oates) go on a holiday in an RV across America with their respective wives Kelly (Lara Parker) and Alice (Loretta Swit).

They set off from San Antonio, Texas for a break of bike racing and skiing in Aspen, Colorado. On the way there, they stop off in a quiet plain, but during the night, across the river, Roger and Frank spot what looks like a bonfire, but it actually turns out to be a Satanic ritual human sacrifice.

The Satanists spot them, and they manage to escape, only just. They tell the Sheriff (R.G. Armstrong) in the nearby town, but he is unable to help them, believing it might have been an animal that was killed.

As the families head on their way, they're soon followed by a convoy of Satanists in trucks, set on killing them. It's a suspenseful thriller, cut from similar cloth to Straw Dogs (1971) and Deliverance (1972), even Kevin Smith said it was a huge influence on Red State (2011), Fonda and Oates, both underrated as actors, make good action men in this suspenseful tale.