Three obnoxious clowns with guns in the backwoods
A couple (Cornelia Sharpe & Alberto de Mendoza) is apprehended by three sadistic goofballs (Peter Fonda, John Phillip Law & Richard Lynch) and taken to the wilderness in northern Michigan for some depraved ‘fun.’ William Holden is on hand in a peripheral role.
Based on the book by David Osborn, “Open Season” (1974) is a wilderness crime thriller/survival flick that riffs on “The Most Dangerous Game” mixed with elements of “Straw Dogs” (1971) and “Deliverance” (1972). It’s similar to later movies like “Nightmare at Bittercreek” (1988), “Black Rock” (2012) and “Rust City” (2018).
But it’s the least of these IMHO because the clownish antagonists are too annoying in a pompous, nonchalant manner on top of little sympathy being worked up for the victims. As such, the first hour is dramatically tedious but, thankfully, the last act is pretty compelling with an interesting surprise at the end. Meanwhile Sharpe is an exquisite beauty.
At the end of the day, it’s not about redemption, but rather universal justice (beyond human courts).
The movie runs 1 hour, 44 minutes. The interiors were shot at Pinewood Studios in England on a life-sized set while the exterior scenes of the wilderness cabin & surrounding area were all filmed in Spain, outside Madrid. Additional scenes were done at the Mackinac Bridge, etc. in Michigan.
GRADE: C