| The Devil's 8 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Burt Topper |
| Written by | John Milius Willard Huyck James Gordon White |
| Based on | story byLarry Gordon |
| Produced by | Burt Topper |
| Starring | Christopher George Fabian Tom Nardini Leslie Parrish |
| Cinematography | Richard C. Glouner |
| Edited by | Fred Feitshans Jnr |
| Music by | Jerry Styner Michael Lloyd |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | AIP |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Devil's 8 is a 1969 film directed byBurt Topper and starringChristopher George,Fabian,Tom Nardini andLeslie Parrish. It was produced and distributed byAmerican International Pictures.
Federal agent Ray Faulkner poses as a road gang convict and arranges the escape of a group of hardenedchain-gang criminals. He forces them at gunpoint into a helicopter. In a flashback, Faulkner wants to take on local crime boss Burl, who runs a moonshine ring and has a great deal of political power in the state. Faulkner persuades the convicts to work on the side of the law by promising them paroles. He heads a team of eight men composed of himself, six prisoners and a fellow agent. The team includes:
Faulkner trains the men in high-speed driving and hurling lighted bombs at pinpoint targets.
The team starts intercepting the moonshiners' delivery cars until Burl is forced to give Faulkner and his men a share of the illegal whiskey operation and allow them to make the deliveries. Burl arranges for Faulkner and Martin to be ambushed by crooked police while making a moonshine run, and Martin is shot down from a police helicopter. Sonny has learned the location of Burl's stills and the team attacks with their specially equipped cars and carefully timed explosives. During the battle, Burl tries to escape by using his mistress Cissy as a hostage, but Faulkner captures him. Cissy is reunited with Davis, and Burl is taken to prison.
Bishop is the son ofJoey Bishop and had signed a five-year contract with AIP.
Fabian had signed a seven-picture contract with AIP and this was his sixth film for the studio. (The others had beenFireball 500,Thunder Alley,Dr Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs,Maryjane andThe Wild Racers.A Bullet for Pretty Boy would be his last for AIP.)[2] This was his last film billed as simply Fabian; he was later billed as Fabian Forte.[3]
The film was based on a story by Larry Gordon, a story editor atAIP. The first draft was written byJames Gordon White, who had written several films for AIP,[4] but White was then assigned toKillers Three. White says the original version was meant to starJack Palance but he pulled out of the film to makeChe! so AIP decided to rewrite it for younger actors.[5] The script was rewritten by Gordon's assistantsJohn Milius andWillard Huyck, both working summer jobs in AIP's story department after studying atUSC.
According to Milius, he and Huyck were given two weeks to rewrite the script but they completed it in ten days. He said: "I don't think we ever thought it was our best work. It was pretty good; it was funny... a lot of noise but not very good action."[6] Milius says that the film was a deliberate attempt to copyThe Dirty Dozen: "It was calledThe Devil's 8 because they didn't have enough money for a full dozen."[7]
White said that Milius and Hyuck were assigned "to get their experience and screen credit"[4] but that he disliked the final film: "They took the Southern flavor out of it and I'm from the south, so I know from whereof I talk." White did not visit the set because of personal differences with directorBurt Topper.[4]
During production, the film was titledInferno Road.[8] Filming began on October 15, 1968, and occurred primarily at Pinecrest Camp in theSan Bernardino Mountains outside Los Angeles.[9][10]
Mike Curb was credited as the film's musical director and wrote the title song withGuy Hemric.
The film opened in Los Angeles on April 9, 1969[1] in 15 theatres and grossed $67,000 in its first week.[11]
In a contemporary review for theLos Angeles Times, critic Kevin Thomas calledThe Devil's 8 "an amiably preposterous, rambunctious picture ... As silly as it is,The Devil's 8 at least moves mercifully fast, has a sense of humor and packs plenty of action."[12]
Variety wrote "a weak screenplay, trite dialog and names with little saleable marquee value make this a dubious entry for anything other than the drive-in and lesser grind house trade. Appeal should be to the hot rod and action market."[13]
InThe New York Times, criticA. H. Weiler reviewed the film together withKillers Three and wrote: "The hillbillies and other hard types who crashed on to local screens yesterday expend enough muscle and firepower to takeOmaha Beach in a pair of elementary adventures as flimsy as cartoons." Of the film's protagonists, Weiler wrote: "Their training would be worthy of commandos versed in brawling, breakneck car handling, grenade throwing, machine gunning, and sundry diversions. It's enough to make a man forget about booze and movie making."[14]