The film maintains a convincing realism: It's acted out by little-known but expert talents and shot, cleverly, as though the camera were a fly on the wall.
Pariah (1998)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:15
Fresh:7
Rotten:8
Average Rating:5.9/10
Rated: R [See Full Rating] Rated R for brutal violence including rape, sexual content, language and drug material.
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Feb 18, 2000 Limited
Synopsis: Inspired by real events close to the director, "Pariah" tells the story of Steve (Damon Jones) and Sam, an interracial couple attacked by Neo-Nazi Skinheads one unexpected night. The brutal attack... Inspired by real events close to the director, "Pariah" tells the story of Steve (Damon Jones) and Sam, an interracial couple attacked by Neo-Nazi Skinheads one unexpected night. The brutal attack has a scarring effect on their lives...although Steve's physical bruises heal, Sam's rape leads to her subsequent suicide, leaving Steve without direction and bent on revenge. He decides to go undercover as a skinhead to learn about these people whose lives have become so entrenched in hate and violence. Steve must learn to act like them, think like them and eventually, to become one of them. With this accomplished, he can then kill them. Steve abandons his former life to realize this goal of revenge. His enemies include Crew(Dave Oren Ward), the leader of the pugnacious pack, who is fresh out of jail and a loyal student of Nazi rhetoric. Crew takes what he wants in a belligerent and manipulating manner. At his side is his girlfriend Sissy(Aimee Chaffin), full of self-hate only enflamed with Crew's put downs, she is torn between leaving for a normal life and the security she feels from being part of the pack. Crew's right hand man is David Lee(David Lee Wilson), an attack dog whose uncontrollable rage feeds the pack and can explode in bursts of violence at the drop of a hat. Rounding out the gang is the overweight and insecure Babe(Ann Zupa), Sissy's retarded brother Doughboy(Brandon Slater), the flighty and heroine addicted Angela(Angela Jones), as well as nameless other terrorizing accomplices. Babe is just the hook Steve needs to infiltrate the pack. Her desire for friends is what brought her into the gang and Steve's eagerness to help fill that void is what attracts her to help him gain entrance. As Steve plunges into the depths of the skinhead world, he must prove his loyalty, his commitment and ultimately, his hate, to garner their acceptance and carry out his plan. In doing so, Steve discovers what personal histories have caused these people to go over the edge, finds himself committing unspeakable crimes and slowly turning into what he intended to destroy. At the pivotal moment he must decide whether a blast to the head is the only form of revenge or if there is another way to combat racism. Poor Boy Productions in association with Nichol Moon Entertainment, presents "PARIAH", written and directed by Randolph Kret. Starring Angela Jones, Damon Jones, Dave Oren Ward, Anna Padgett, David Lee Wilson, Ann Zupa, Brandon Slater, Dan Weene, Jason Posey & Chris Jarecki. -- © 2000 Indican Pictures [More]
Starring: Orlando Estrada, Damon Jones, David Oren Ward, Angela Jones
Starring: Orlando Estrada, Damon Jones, David Oren Ward, Angela Jones, Jason Posey, Anna Padgett, Aimee Chaffin, Dan Weene, David Lee Wilson, Chris Jarecki, Elexa Wilson
Director: Randolph Kret
Director: Randolph Kret
Studio: Indican Pictures
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Reviews for Pariah
As hard as it is to watch, Director/Writer Randolph Kret's film does exactly what it's supposed to do...
Take a tip from the title: Shun this well-meaning but ridiculous revenge drama about a vicious gang of bone-headed, California neo-Nazis and the man hell-bent on destroying them.
There are plenty jolting episodes of rage and violence, but in the end this pulpy potboiler is wrapped up in an unsatisfyingly tidy, coincidence-heavy bow.
[T]his [...] film by Randolph Kret mistakes the study of a particularly virulent set of symptoms for a diagnosis... Nuance is not something Mr. Kret has much use for.
Pariah is [...] a brave, in-your-face attempt to handle a very tough, highly unattractive subject. The result is a commendable, if unpleasant, near miss.
Randolph Kret['s ...] direction forcefully shows how the raw hatred of the skinheads regularly explodes into shocking brutality.
Randolph Kret's movie is thrown together helter-skelter, scenes popping up before our eyes without rhyme or reason, but the picture is so visceral, has no much damn frenetic energy, that it compels our attention.
For all its chutzpah and idealism, Pariah remains a muddled mess, a far cry from Australian director Geoffrey Wright's seminal Romper Stomper, which this film clearly strives to emulate...
[I]n no time flat you get a clear idea of how broadly painted and platitudinous Randolph Kret's Pariah is [...] If only being right were all you needed.
There's no doubting the ability of [director Randolph] Kret [...] in working up an audience and drawing persuasive performances from a sizable cast.
Pariah, like a through-the-looking-glass version of American History X, is brutally raw and often difficult to watch, but this low-budget indie is an important film that deserves to be seen by a large audience.
Pariah, a raw and unblinking look at the skinhead subculture, is a movie I'd like to show to those admirers of Fight Club who have assured me of their movie's greatness. This is the real thing...
Though Kret does a poor job of telling it, there is a story struggling to be heard amid the chaos
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 45% 45% | Ice Age: Dawn of the D… |
| 19% 19% | Transformers: Revenge … |
| 55% 55% | Orphan |
| 43% 43% | The Proposal |
| 26% 26% | Land of the Lost |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 98% 98% | Up |
| 88% 88% | Ballast |
| 67% 67% | The Merry Gentleman |
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