Starring - John Hargreaves (Long Weekend, The Alien Years), Grant Page (Mad Dog Morgan, Stunt Rock), and Margaret Gerard (Out of the Body, The Siege of Firebase Gloria)
Release Date - 1976
Genre - Action/Crime
Tagline - "Meet Steve and Rod... stuntmen...saboteurs... HELLRAISERS!"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
During the last few years I've become a fan of ozploitation. I had no idea this was a thing until I befriended the fine folks over at Umbrella Entertainment. This Australian based company started their Ozploitation Classics line and it has been a lot of fun seeing these fantastic films from down under. Since then I've seen some amazing films that are part of their line. Sadly, there has been a few that I didn't care for as well. One such film is 1976's Deathcheaters starring stuntman Grant Page. The title and original poster for the film really peaked my curiosity. I went into this one really excited but it just didn't work for me. Like always I want to thank my friends over at Umbrella Entertainment for sending this one my way.
The film follows two Vietnam vets who returned home to Australia and are now working at spokesmen and stuntmen on commercials. However, after a few strange incidents they find themselves being recruited for a special mission by who they suspect is the Australian government. After some time they agree to the mission and find themselves headed to the Philippines for a major payday.
I was so fucking ready to check out Deathcheaters. The title, artwork, and cast had me fucking sold on this film but after about 15 or so minutes I realized that it was much like Stunt Rock. Stunt Rock was a vehicle to showcase Grant Page and his stunt work. Deathcheaters is much of the same but with a story wrapped around it. Sadly, that story was not as fun as I had hoped. The acting in this one is solid. Grant and Hargreaves are great together. You can tell these two has worked together on countless films previously because their on screen chemistry is amazing. They have a lot of fun on set and it shows in every scene of theirs. The supporting cast is great as well but they are more grounded and down to Earth when compared to the characters that Grant and Hargreaves delivers. The story for this one works almost as a highlight reel for the stunts performed by the two. The way the story is told is through a series of stunts performed by the two and it's obvious that the story was written around the stunts the two would be performing. I know Grant was like a rock star during this time due to his stunt work so it makes sense this film would exist. If you take away the over the top stunts you are given an action film with awkward spy elements that just doesn't make sense. I love over the top action films but this one fails to pull together any sort of story that actually makes sense. Finally, this is not a bloody flick. If watching stuntmen do insane stunts, at least insane for the mid-70s, then this film is for you but that's about it. Overall, Deathcheaters was not what I was expecting. I know it was to cash in on Grant's fame but the lack of a compelling story did not justify the pointless stunts that are not that impressive almost 50 years later. Collectors will want this one for their collection but for a first time watch I would recommend something other than Deathcheaters.
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