Even by today’s standards, there really wasn’t anything else like grindhouse releases.
To some degree, it’s difficult to explain this unique subset of Horror, Mystery, and Fantasy to younger, contemporary audiences, mostly because this kind of story just doesn’t get told for screens big and small any longer. While some might chalk that up as an unintended consequence of the #MeToo Era, I tend to believe that storytellers have moved on from them as there just isn’t any marketplace for such schlock. Back in the days of the VHS craze and the launch of pay cable channels, you damn well couldn’t avoid such flicks – exploitation had its time and place – and even a modestly-budgeted stinker could still turn a profit if the producers invested in some ample flesh on display, a few buckets of well-timed blood, or a bloody power tool.
Ahhhh … the memories …
However, I’d argue that time hasn’t exactly been kind of these films of yesteryear, so much so that the moneymen have turned their interests elsewhere. Heck, I recall a time when you could sign some former TV juggernaut – say, William Shatner in the early 1970’s – bring in a storyteller schooled in trashy mediocrity – say, someone like writer/director/producer William Grefé – and somehow against all odds the magic still happened … magic that looked an awful lot like 1974’s Impulse. Such cinematic endeavors were never meant to transcend time and space. Instead, they were just intended to separate a fool from his money, leaving him just enough to purchase a drink and a small popcorn at the concession stand.
Well, the good people at Grindhouse Releasing – on an Impulse – have decided to bring Impulse back for today’s discerning viewers with an incredible assortment of extras. As imperfect as the film was (and still is), I suspect most will be drawn to this set for the expansive extras than they will the main event. Even the great William Shatner – at the absolute height of his Shatnerism – can’t quite rescue this one from obscurity no matter how hard he might try.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few ‘modest hints,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“A paranoid, leisure-suit wearing conman/gigolo named Matt Stone seduces lonely women, bilks them of their savings via an investment scam, then kills them. When he begins seeing an attractive widow, her daughter Tina becomes suspicious of his motives.”
Kids, I don’t like to harp on films.
To some degree, it’s difficult to explain this unique subset of Horror, Mystery, and Fantasy to younger, contemporary audiences, mostly because this kind of story just doesn’t get told for screens big and small any longer. While some might chalk that up as an unintended consequence of the #MeToo Era, I tend to believe that storytellers have moved on from them as there just isn’t any marketplace for such schlock. Back in the days of the VHS craze and the launch of pay cable channels, you damn well couldn’t avoid such flicks – exploitation had its time and place – and even a modestly-budgeted stinker could still turn a profit if the producers invested in some ample flesh on display, a few buckets of well-timed blood, or a bloody power tool.
Ahhhh … the memories …
However, I’d argue that time hasn’t exactly been kind of these films of yesteryear, so much so that the moneymen have turned their interests elsewhere. Heck, I recall a time when you could sign some former TV juggernaut – say, William Shatner in the early 1970’s – bring in a storyteller schooled in trashy mediocrity – say, someone like writer/director/producer William Grefé – and somehow against all odds the magic still happened … magic that looked an awful lot like 1974’s Impulse. Such cinematic endeavors were never meant to transcend time and space. Instead, they were just intended to separate a fool from his money, leaving him just enough to purchase a drink and a small popcorn at the concession stand.
Well, the good people at Grindhouse Releasing – on an Impulse – have decided to bring Impulse back for today’s discerning viewers with an incredible assortment of extras. As imperfect as the film was (and still is), I suspect most will be drawn to this set for the expansive extras than they will the main event. Even the great William Shatner – at the absolute height of his Shatnerism – can’t quite rescue this one from obscurity no matter how hard he might try.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few ‘modest hints,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“A paranoid, leisure-suit wearing conman/gigolo named Matt Stone seduces lonely women, bilks them of their savings via an investment scam, then kills them. When he begins seeing an attractive widow, her daughter Tina becomes suspicious of his motives.”
Kids, I don’t like to harp on films.
I know, I know, I know: many of you have read a review or two of mine, and even a few have reached out to me privately, suggesting that I was a bit too harsh on one of your personal favorites. I’ve always reminded those interested that, ultimately, each of us gets to make of any project what we will; and if your particular project wasn’t to my liking that doesn’t mean it’s inferior in any measure. It just failed to resonate with me … and “to each his own.”
But I have – most likely – watched far, far, far more flicks than the average person, mostly because I like films. I like good films. I like bad films. I like ugly films. I like expensive productions, and I have a fondness for ones that somehow squeak by with pennies on the dollar. In fact, I often spend more time talking about low budget projects to give them and those who participate in their manufacture the same kind of attention paid to tentpole releases. As I say, it’s just how I’m wired.
Being modestly familiar with the works of William Grefé – an auteur known in certain circles for completing a respectable portion of theatrical stinkery – I can also assure you that Impulse is not his best product. Granted, he may not have written the film – the script is credited Tony Crechales – but his imprimatur remains all over it. Known chiefly for his time in exploitation pictures, Grefé capably puts Shatner through his paces here, and it’s likely a walk good ol’ Bill would like to forget.
Matt Stone (Shatner) is a conman who exists solely to take advantage of women. Though the script strongly suggests this is how he gets by in life, viewers have to take that on faith as we’re only shown a single set-up involving a doomed missus who never quite sounds nor acts like she’s ‘rolling in the dough.’ But we are given a black-and-white psychological set-up involving a young boy – a young Stone played by Chad Walker – who “accidentally” kills his mother’s potential rapist; and this sequence is meant to show Stone retains a desire to commit murder when and if life starts to close in on him … which it does here at nearly every turn.
Eventually, Stone sets his sights on the wealthy widow Julia Marstow (Ruth Roman), a madame slightly smitten with his charms but not so much she wants him for her own. Instead, Julia encourages her friend Ann Moy (Jennifer Bishop) – also widowed – to spend a bit of quality time with Matt if for no other reason to start the process of healing wounds left from the loss of her husband. All of this would be well and good except Ann’s daughter, Tina (Kim Nicholas), happens to show up when Matt needs her least, namely whenever he’s involved with the commission of a bloody crime. Given that there’s seemingly no end to the man’s dastardly deeds, Tina becomes ‘the boy (girl) who cried wolf’ to both Julia and Ann as the lovely ladies just can’t accept that Matt is anything other than the most eligible bachelor around.
That said, Impulse is an irrepressibly predictable affair.
Stone can’t stop himself from behaving badly, and – as mentioned above – Tina is somehow always miraculously present to witness his dark deeds. Had either director Grefé or screenwriter Crechales taken five minutes to authentically think about their story, they might’ve realized that nothing in here develops completely on its own accord. Every next chapter in Matt’s affairs moves exactly as designed, stripping an otherwise good performance by Shatner of any true nuance. Instead, he apes and mopes and grimaces for the camera on command; Tina – in contrast – runs and screams and sounds like a snotty little girl at each opportunity. By the time the last reel rolls around, I suspect everyone involved knew exactly what was going to happen, and – lo and behold – yep … that’s what happened.
On the plus side, Bishop emerges as about as lovely a leading lady to come out of the exploitation scene as ever did. It was a reasonably short stay in the limelight, however, as her IMDB.com profile shows she only enjoyed fifteen screen roles. Granted, she wasn’t quite given much to do here but look swell and constantly challenge her spunky daughter, but who knows what could’ve been had she broken through the white noise of Drive-In theatrical stinkers and found Hollywood success.
But I have – most likely – watched far, far, far more flicks than the average person, mostly because I like films. I like good films. I like bad films. I like ugly films. I like expensive productions, and I have a fondness for ones that somehow squeak by with pennies on the dollar. In fact, I often spend more time talking about low budget projects to give them and those who participate in their manufacture the same kind of attention paid to tentpole releases. As I say, it’s just how I’m wired.
Being modestly familiar with the works of William Grefé – an auteur known in certain circles for completing a respectable portion of theatrical stinkery – I can also assure you that Impulse is not his best product. Granted, he may not have written the film – the script is credited Tony Crechales – but his imprimatur remains all over it. Known chiefly for his time in exploitation pictures, Grefé capably puts Shatner through his paces here, and it’s likely a walk good ol’ Bill would like to forget.
Matt Stone (Shatner) is a conman who exists solely to take advantage of women. Though the script strongly suggests this is how he gets by in life, viewers have to take that on faith as we’re only shown a single set-up involving a doomed missus who never quite sounds nor acts like she’s ‘rolling in the dough.’ But we are given a black-and-white psychological set-up involving a young boy – a young Stone played by Chad Walker – who “accidentally” kills his mother’s potential rapist; and this sequence is meant to show Stone retains a desire to commit murder when and if life starts to close in on him … which it does here at nearly every turn.
Eventually, Stone sets his sights on the wealthy widow Julia Marstow (Ruth Roman), a madame slightly smitten with his charms but not so much she wants him for her own. Instead, Julia encourages her friend Ann Moy (Jennifer Bishop) – also widowed – to spend a bit of quality time with Matt if for no other reason to start the process of healing wounds left from the loss of her husband. All of this would be well and good except Ann’s daughter, Tina (Kim Nicholas), happens to show up when Matt needs her least, namely whenever he’s involved with the commission of a bloody crime. Given that there’s seemingly no end to the man’s dastardly deeds, Tina becomes ‘the boy (girl) who cried wolf’ to both Julia and Ann as the lovely ladies just can’t accept that Matt is anything other than the most eligible bachelor around.
That said, Impulse is an irrepressibly predictable affair.
Stone can’t stop himself from behaving badly, and – as mentioned above – Tina is somehow always miraculously present to witness his dark deeds. Had either director Grefé or screenwriter Crechales taken five minutes to authentically think about their story, they might’ve realized that nothing in here develops completely on its own accord. Every next chapter in Matt’s affairs moves exactly as designed, stripping an otherwise good performance by Shatner of any true nuance. Instead, he apes and mopes and grimaces for the camera on command; Tina – in contrast – runs and screams and sounds like a snotty little girl at each opportunity. By the time the last reel rolls around, I suspect everyone involved knew exactly what was going to happen, and – lo and behold – yep … that’s what happened.
On the plus side, Bishop emerges as about as lovely a leading lady to come out of the exploitation scene as ever did. It was a reasonably short stay in the limelight, however, as her IMDB.com profile shows she only enjoyed fifteen screen roles. Granted, she wasn’t quite given much to do here but look swell and constantly challenge her spunky daughter, but who knows what could’ve been had she broken through the white noise of Drive-In theatrical stinkers and found Hollywood success.
Impulse (1974) was produced by Conquerer Films, Inc. DVD distribution (for this particular release) is being coordinated by Grindhouse Releasing. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I found the provided sights-and-sounds to this 4K restoration (from rare archival elements) to be consistently good but not all that great. Yes, yes, and yes: you can see everything clearly, but there are some sequences kinda/sorta generally dull in texture. (It is what it is.) Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? Purists will be able to spend hours with this 2-disc set, and – for clarity’s sake – I’m doing the old copy-and-paste from Bluray.com right from their product listing:
Special Features and Technical Specs:
Alas, only mildly recommended.
While I can appreciate a bit of grindhouse as much as the next person, Impulse (1974) just didn’t strike any chords or bells with me. True, it was pretty grand to see the epic Thespian William Shatner doing (I’m a diehard Trek enthusiast for over five decades, kids), but … well … that’s honestly all this one had going for it. The script relies heavily on convenience, and very little that happens in these 87 minutes felt all that organic. Also, considering that this one was reasonably light on what viewers authentically show up for in a grindhouse release (minimal violence, minimal tension, and no nudity to speak of), it just fails to light the usual vicarious fires. A creative misfire.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Grindhouse Releasing provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Impulse (1974) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- EXCLUSIVE NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
- Provocative, in-depth interviews with director William Grefé
- KINGDOM OF THE SHATNER - William Shatner Live in Santa Monica - Oct. 9, 2022
- Additional interviews with producer and make-up artist Doug Hobart (FLESH FEAST, SCREAM BABY SCREAM) and art director Roger Carlton Sherman
- Audio commentary by William Grefé
- Haunting alternate French soundtrack
- Hours of rare cinematic treasures from the vaults of William Grefé
- Two bonus features! - THE DEVIL'S SISTERS and THE GODMOTHERS
- Glossy illustrated booklet with liner notes by acclaimed underground filmmaker Jacques Boyreau
- Beautifully embossed slipcover with new art by esteemed painter Dave Lebow
- Still galleries, trailers
Alas, only mildly recommended.
While I can appreciate a bit of grindhouse as much as the next person, Impulse (1974) just didn’t strike any chords or bells with me. True, it was pretty grand to see the epic Thespian William Shatner doing (I’m a diehard Trek enthusiast for over five decades, kids), but … well … that’s honestly all this one had going for it. The script relies heavily on convenience, and very little that happens in these 87 minutes felt all that organic. Also, considering that this one was reasonably light on what viewers authentically show up for in a grindhouse release (minimal violence, minimal tension, and no nudity to speak of), it just fails to light the usual vicarious fires. A creative misfire.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Grindhouse Releasing provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Impulse (1974) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
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