Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Rolling Vengeance Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 28, 2017

According to “Rolling Vengeance,” when life gives you lemons, you retreat to your farm and build a fire-belching monster truck capable of killing anything in its path. The 1987 revenge picture has a special way of doing business, trying to sell the specialty of a monster truck used as a lethal weapon, and why not? It gets the job done, with as much property damage as possible. It’s an amusing premise, but screenwriter Michael Thomas Montgomery doesn’t know the fine line between manipulation and punishment, keeping the feature on the nasty side when all it truly takes to inspire pushback is a lot of attitude and some mild maiming. The movie could do with less child murder and rape, but for those capable of absorbing overkill, “Rolling Vengeance” eventually becomes the film the marketing promises, pitting dim-wits against the might of an enormous truck stocked with weapons.

Big Joe Rosso (Lawrence Dane) is a trucker with a heart of gold, trying to care for his wife and two young daughters, while his eldest son, Joey (Don Michael Paul), has gone into the family business, helping to haul liquor to town boss, Tiny Doyle (Ned Beatty). Trouble comes with Tiny’s idiot sons, who enjoy drinking and terrorizing others on the road. When the brutes end up killing Big Joe’s spouse and girls, the truck driver is devastated, and his frustrations are multiplied when Tiny’s boys are set free by a corrupt judge. When Big Joe is killed by Tiny’s family, Joey steps up to defend what’s left of the homestead, finding love with Misty (Lisa Howard). And when misfortune find Misty, Joey gets angry, unleashing a massive monster truck with plans to target Tiny’s businesses and offspring, enraging the influential crook.

Not a lot connects in “Rolling Vengeance,” but there’s the central premise of a spineless boy becoming a truck-driving killer, receiving a shot of empowerment from a roaring engine and building-sized, crush-ready tires. Montgomery provides the basics in revenge cinema, establishing Tiny as a ruthless man of the community, owning a popular bar while working to establish a car dealership, getting him out of the booze game. Tiny is a hateable character, and Beatty does his duty by dressing up as Andrew Dice Clay, keeping the father a poisonous influence in the town, barely parenting moronic kids who live to cause destruction. Right off the bat, there’s a decent villain, a gang of inhebriated brutes, and a pronounced obsession with drunk driving, finding local church wives trying to get Tiny to see the error of his enabling ways. It’s all been done before, but “Rolling Vengeance” gets off on the right foot, also keeping Big Joe angelic with a loving family to sweeten the conflict.

Horror visits Joey over and over again in “Rolling Vengeance,” who suffers the loss of his parents, his little sisters, and endures the violation of Misty, who gets caught up in the war of escalation between the families. There’s no law to help, inspiring Joey to create his own brand of justice with a monster truck, using the metal beast to ruin everything Tiny holds dear. Granted, it takes 45 minutes before the truck comes out to play, but it’s a fine debut, with the vehicle stocked with flame throwers and drills, adding a little “Mad Max” to the cinematic equation as the beefy truck is put to the test wrecking cars and homes. However, to get to this point of release, “Rolling Vengeance” overdoes the inspiration, showcasing an ugly side for a movie that’s about a monster truck. Not that this should be a PG-rated endeavor, but killing kids and adding sexual assault feels gratuitous, going for obvious sensitive spots to make an impression and trigger Joey’s rage. “Rolling Vengeance” isn’t careful with exploitation touches, misjudging the mood of the feature as genuine pain is summoned and cruelty dilutes the picture’s fun factor.

Rolling Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation doesn't appear to offer a recent scan, showcasing persistent softness that robs the viewing experience of most fine detail. Textures only really come through in close-ups, while a metallic presence on the trucks is only moderately appreciated. Colors also seem fatigued, offering muted hues on costuming and small town decoration. Greenery also lacks snap. Skintones are adequate but a little bloodless. Delineation is passable. Source is satisfactory, without any noticeable display of damage. Some mild banding is detected.

Rolling Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD sound mix also suffers from age-related issues, offering a muffled listening event that keeps dialogue exchanges subdued. Intelligibility isn't wiped out, but definition is lacking, missing expected crispness to help appreciate performances. Music also suffers from the same problem, unable to carry the feature as intended. Sound effects are appropriately loud. Hiss is detected throughout.

Rolling Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features film historians Paul Corupe and Jason Pichonsky.

• Interview (9:45, HD) with Lawrence Dane provides only a brief understanding of the "Rolling Vengeance" production experience, with the actor recalling his relationships with co-stars. The rest of the conversation details Dane's professional ambitions, ranking his achievements in acting, writing, producing, and directing.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:51, SD) is included.

Rolling Vengeance Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Beatty goes for broke as Tiny, and once the truck takes command of the feature, "Rolling Vengeance" provides some decent car stunts and chaos. Think of it as "Road House" but with a larger, weaponized monster truck, and that's essentially the tonality director Steven H. Stern is after, creating a battle zone between nice guys and rednecks. Sadly, "Rolling Vengeance" doesn't reach delirious highs of escapism, routinely grounding itself with shock value in a weird quest to motivate a lead character who doesn't need much to go berserk. However, if your only interest is watching a monster truck rampage around Canadian locations and reduce cars to chunks of metal, the picture might hit all the right spots, though there's a bit of a wait before the beast is unleashed on all the goons it can find.