I love bad movies like this, and this one's pretty bad, where among a lot of unintentional moments of laughter, we also have these WTF? moments, where we're just in disbelief. But believe me, there were worse films out around this time. Let's start with the opening music score, where at some point, during the mood of the sad piece, changes tempo, like into hysterical form, that cuts back to the previous mood. The acting is terrible, from everyone in the film, and there's laughable dialogue, done as if, off the cuff, just thrown in. There are some real pathetic moments too. The story involves a hot headed cop, and he can really kick ass, who accidentally kills his girlfriend's lover. Meanwhile little sister, thanks to her best friend, has been introduced to the life of drugs and sex, run by this stylish sleaze, Carl. When little sister had disappeared (she's really cute too) our arrested cop, flees, via route a hearing, to try and track her down, where we can only guess, or left questioning, what his fate is, in the final real. That actor has a face that looks like many, where the eyes get you. He looks like that Russian out of White Nights, only this guy's acting range is limited. Believe it or not, the score is the best thing I liked out of this '85 mess of a "make up as you go" movie. Aspiring writers/film makers should watch Death Flash, just an example of what s..t film making is, and this is pretty bad, but will guarantee a few laughs, plus some nice beauties in bikini wear.
5 Reviews
Indie action chore
Leofwine_draca1 May 2019
Warning: Spoilers
DEATH FLASH is an independent action flick from the mid 1980s that fails to impress very much. The conception and look is heavily modelled on stunt-filled action shows from the era such as THE A-TEAM, but with poor writing and acting throughout, it's hard to enjoy this one. After an opening which feels more like some sappy family drama than anything else, we move into the usual territory where women are kidnapped and the male hero goes single-headedly up against the kidnappers. Some of the stunts are quite impressive here, given that there clearly wasn't a budget for much in the way of special effects, but with nothing to hang them on they're quite meaningless.
Crap with capital C, R, A and P
servo-97 March 2003
I'm glad there is documentary proof on IMDB that someone else has seen this film. It's so incredibly bad that I have wondered for years if I just dreamt it all. It's hard to see how Zarindast, reputation for woeful movies notwithstanding, could have really been playing this straight. It works as a comedy, being not a million miles from Naked Gun territory at times, but as anything else it is a monstrosity.
Cliche follows misfired stunt follows non-actor cameo follows cliche, etc, etc, ad nauseum, as the incoherent plot stumbles to a violent conclusion.
Structurally, it plays like two unrelated episodes of a very bad TV show. I saw it on Sky Movies in Ireland around 1992, and it was billed as "A cop goes undercover against the Mob", or some such, but the film seems to have nothing at all to do with the Mob. Instead, it seems to be about the kidnap of two glamour models by a bunch of bumbling idiots with machine guns.
The best bit is when our hero zooms across a car park on a motorbike, trying to prevent the bad guys from escaping in a helicopter. They must have done it in one take, because the helicopter has to hover for ages to give our hero time to reach it and then attain a tenable position on the leg things underneath the fuselage. The helicopter rises to an altitude of a couple of hundred feet. The bad guy in the passenger seat just sits there, hands on knees, looking at our hero, apparently unperturbed, until our hero reaches up and throws him to his death. Cuts then to a long shot of a dummy falling from a chopper.
Cliche follows misfired stunt follows non-actor cameo follows cliche, etc, etc, ad nauseum, as the incoherent plot stumbles to a violent conclusion.
Structurally, it plays like two unrelated episodes of a very bad TV show. I saw it on Sky Movies in Ireland around 1992, and it was billed as "A cop goes undercover against the Mob", or some such, but the film seems to have nothing at all to do with the Mob. Instead, it seems to be about the kidnap of two glamour models by a bunch of bumbling idiots with machine guns.
The best bit is when our hero zooms across a car park on a motorbike, trying to prevent the bad guys from escaping in a helicopter. They must have done it in one take, because the helicopter has to hover for ages to give our hero time to reach it and then attain a tenable position on the leg things underneath the fuselage. The helicopter rises to an altitude of a couple of hundred feet. The bad guy in the passenger seat just sits there, hands on knees, looking at our hero, apparently unperturbed, until our hero reaches up and throws him to his death. Cuts then to a long shot of a dummy falling from a chopper.
Crap with a capital C, but good for a laugh (if you're drunk, stoned or both)
OkkieDeGruwel5 February 2002
This movie is what mid eighties action movies where about! Only, where some of those movies where good, this one just sucked ass! The acting is horrible, the special effects are overdone in a bad way, and the musical score is the worst i have ever heard in a movie (including porn, and that should say enough)
The story is about a cop called Johnny Duncan, who finds out his wife is having an affair, he shoots the guy and turns himself in, then he finds out that his sister is having drugs problems, so he escapes (in a 'briljant' escape scene) and comes to save her day!! That sums it up, he kills all the 'baddies' like he's in a video game, all the classic stereotypes are here, the shouting chief, the jail scene, the helicopter, flying cars which explode when they hit the ground, the druglord (who is doing loads of bakingpowder himself) the 'hot' chicks with 80's poofed hair, and the 'badboys' who just look tough, but die when you sneeze at them.
But, if you want to laugh at bad actors, bad scenes and bad music, you really should see it! I did laugh my butt off when i watched it, and it's a MIRACLE that it doesn't have an Alan Smithee credit, Tony Zardindast must be really proud of this!!
The story is about a cop called Johnny Duncan, who finds out his wife is having an affair, he shoots the guy and turns himself in, then he finds out that his sister is having drugs problems, so he escapes (in a 'briljant' escape scene) and comes to save her day!! That sums it up, he kills all the 'baddies' like he's in a video game, all the classic stereotypes are here, the shouting chief, the jail scene, the helicopter, flying cars which explode when they hit the ground, the druglord (who is doing loads of bakingpowder himself) the 'hot' chicks with 80's poofed hair, and the 'badboys' who just look tough, but die when you sneeze at them.
But, if you want to laugh at bad actors, bad scenes and bad music, you really should see it! I did laugh my butt off when i watched it, and it's a MIRACLE that it doesn't have an Alan Smithee credit, Tony Zardindast must be really proud of this!!
Action on a rock-bottom budget, but it's just plain fun!
tarbosh2200019 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Johnny Duncan (Nay) is a classic COTE (Cop On The Edge) who goes OVER the edge when he finds out his wife Fiona (Alderman) is having an affair. Duncan is out of control, and he ends up behind bars. He ends up cleverly breaking out of prison when he finds out his sister Annie (Evans) and her friend Julie (Williams) are being kept under the iron fist of a wealthy drug lord. Duncan then proceeds to launch a one-man war against all the baddies involved in order to save his loved ones. Anyone opposed to this sort of action say Nay!
Death Flash (AKA Solitary) is a ton of enjoyable fun from start to finish. You just have to love movies like this - they really are true gems. Director/Co-Writer Tony Zarindast predated his Hardcase and Fist (1989) with this treasure, although this one doesn't feature Beano. Well, I guess you can't have it all. Zarindast even has a small role as the Machine Gun Joe character, Mr. Russo. One of the most pleasurable aspects of Death Flash is just how 80's it is. This movie is 1986 through and through, and no 80's fan can afford to miss it.
Our new hero is one Arthur Jeremy Nay, but we call him A.J. He did a lot of work in stunts and appeared in small roles in some action movies, but here he really comes out to shine. While there are a lot of crazy stunts towards the end, we do see him display his abilities as a master of trickery when he dons a foolproof disguise to infiltrate the baddies. We won't give it away, but remember Fred from the Dunkin Donuts commercials ("Time to make the donuts!")? He would dress up as various things in order to get his precious donuts, including a woman. Fred had a large mustache, but he just covered it up with his finger when he went undercover as the opposite sex. Let's just say A.J. Nay does that, but in reverse.
He also will engage in barfights with tough guys in order to defend the honor of his wife's singing voice. Her band sings a catchy tune called "Secrecy" (performed by Cheryl Jewel), but some rowdy bar patrons don't approve. They then feel the wrath of Nay.
The music overall is yet more classic 80's, and mostly performed by a man known, mysteriously, only as Mrozinski. The soundtrack should be released on CD and/or vinyl, and this movie should be released on Blu-Ray stat. It could be packaged with Hardcase and Fist and put out under the banner of "The Tony Zarindast Collection". Here's hoping (against hope) that that happens soon.
All the classic clichés that we know, love, and can't live without are here, including the aforementioned barfight, a truly excellent WYC (White Yelling Chief) in Captain Stanhope (de Soto), lots of punch-ups, blow-ups, shootings, and motorbike-to-helicopter chases, among others. There's a terrific shootout in a bar with some pinball machines, most places characters go (including strip clubs) have stand-up arcade machines such as Centipede and Pac-Man, the cocaine is plentiful, the hair is big, and the women's clothes are asymmetrical. Duncan even has a Black partner in Dawson (Lewis) - because the 80's-ness wouldn't be complete without a reference to Crockett & Tubbs.
For the atmosphere alone, Death Flash is worth seeing. It's a pleasant surprise from a time when energetic and enterprising filmmakers could make action movies on a rock-bottom budget and come out with a winner. Comparisons to Samurai Cop (1991) and Miami Connection (1987) wouldn't be unwarranted. It's just that they've gotten more attention of late. Now that Death Flash is on Amazon Prime (as of this writing), hopefully that will change.
Thank goodness for A.J. Nay, thank goodness for Tony Zarindast, and most of all thank goodness for the 80's. It was the best decade ever and Death Flash is proof. The whole thing might not be polished to the degree some people might like, but, much more importantly, it's just FUN. We guarantee you will be entertained by Death Flash, and that's more than a lot of movies with many more resources can claim. We really recommend it.
Death Flash (AKA Solitary) is a ton of enjoyable fun from start to finish. You just have to love movies like this - they really are true gems. Director/Co-Writer Tony Zarindast predated his Hardcase and Fist (1989) with this treasure, although this one doesn't feature Beano. Well, I guess you can't have it all. Zarindast even has a small role as the Machine Gun Joe character, Mr. Russo. One of the most pleasurable aspects of Death Flash is just how 80's it is. This movie is 1986 through and through, and no 80's fan can afford to miss it.
Our new hero is one Arthur Jeremy Nay, but we call him A.J. He did a lot of work in stunts and appeared in small roles in some action movies, but here he really comes out to shine. While there are a lot of crazy stunts towards the end, we do see him display his abilities as a master of trickery when he dons a foolproof disguise to infiltrate the baddies. We won't give it away, but remember Fred from the Dunkin Donuts commercials ("Time to make the donuts!")? He would dress up as various things in order to get his precious donuts, including a woman. Fred had a large mustache, but he just covered it up with his finger when he went undercover as the opposite sex. Let's just say A.J. Nay does that, but in reverse.
He also will engage in barfights with tough guys in order to defend the honor of his wife's singing voice. Her band sings a catchy tune called "Secrecy" (performed by Cheryl Jewel), but some rowdy bar patrons don't approve. They then feel the wrath of Nay.
The music overall is yet more classic 80's, and mostly performed by a man known, mysteriously, only as Mrozinski. The soundtrack should be released on CD and/or vinyl, and this movie should be released on Blu-Ray stat. It could be packaged with Hardcase and Fist and put out under the banner of "The Tony Zarindast Collection". Here's hoping (against hope) that that happens soon.
All the classic clichés that we know, love, and can't live without are here, including the aforementioned barfight, a truly excellent WYC (White Yelling Chief) in Captain Stanhope (de Soto), lots of punch-ups, blow-ups, shootings, and motorbike-to-helicopter chases, among others. There's a terrific shootout in a bar with some pinball machines, most places characters go (including strip clubs) have stand-up arcade machines such as Centipede and Pac-Man, the cocaine is plentiful, the hair is big, and the women's clothes are asymmetrical. Duncan even has a Black partner in Dawson (Lewis) - because the 80's-ness wouldn't be complete without a reference to Crockett & Tubbs.
For the atmosphere alone, Death Flash is worth seeing. It's a pleasant surprise from a time when energetic and enterprising filmmakers could make action movies on a rock-bottom budget and come out with a winner. Comparisons to Samurai Cop (1991) and Miami Connection (1987) wouldn't be unwarranted. It's just that they've gotten more attention of late. Now that Death Flash is on Amazon Prime (as of this writing), hopefully that will change.
Thank goodness for A.J. Nay, thank goodness for Tony Zarindast, and most of all thank goodness for the 80's. It was the best decade ever and Death Flash is proof. The whole thing might not be polished to the degree some people might like, but, much more importantly, it's just FUN. We guarantee you will be entertained by Death Flash, and that's more than a lot of movies with many more resources can claim. We really recommend it.
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