Angel Unchained (1970)

Boring

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Angel unchained is a movie about a biker (named angel) who leaves his gang to get his head together, he ends up in a hippie commune that is being harassed by the locals. when things get ugly Agel is asked to recruit his old gang to help fend of harassing rednecks.The movie is tame for what you see today, no nudity, language, or extreme violence. There are a few implied rape and drug use but the drugs are early seen and aren't named. i don't mind the lack of violence and sex, but the movie could have changed a few things that would have made the movie a little better. This part is a spoiler but no names are given: near the end the biker say there leaving before the rednecks come to attack the commune but wont leave without some drugs, but they stay when the locals show up and decide to fight anyway. the fight is more like a backyard brawl then a real fight but could be worse. The part i hated was how weak the ending was, once the fight gets heated and somebody gets killed (im not saying who) the fight stops and everybody goes home without even giving an idea on whats going to happen to the hippies, bikers, or rednecks, The movie just ends...just like that. its a watchable movie but that's as far as it goes.

Jack said the rednecks are on "Go-Carts". I own the movie and watch it every few years or so. They are driving dune buggies. A far cry from go carts. I think the movie is great! Very unrealistic which helps make it great. I collect cheap biker movies and this well qualifies. Unrealistic is letting a fellow club member leave so he can get his head together. You gotta have a better reason for leaving any outlaw club. Usually it's prison or death. Just taking off don't cut it. Having a tripping Indian with trippy cookies is a first. Usually outlaws will do some things for cash. These "Bros" go for "cookies"! God bless 'em! Next they will be killing for apple pie. Yes, you could find better things to do with your time than watching this. Usually crushing your fingers in a vise or sticking your face in a fan is more entertaining. If you love cheap biker movies (and vintage dune buggies) you will LOVE this pile.

The title of this biker flick seems to suggest that the character of Angel (Stroud) will at some point cut loose and split open some heads, but that never really happens. It refers more to the fact that he breaks free of the commitment he once had to a bike gang (or club, as it is referred to here.) The film opens with a bizarre scuffle that takes place in an otherwise deserted amusement park as rival bikers pound each other senseless ON the rides (including, hilariously, a small roller-coaster!) Stroud, having had his fill of the leather and chain lifestyle, then departs to find himself. Eventually, he comes to the aid of two hippies and winds up living on their dilapidated commune. Unfortunately for all of them, the local townsfolk don't take to hippies and repeatedly try to intimidate them and force them off the land. So Stroud calls upon his old biker buddies to come to the aid of the flower children. In this case, the solution may be more of a danger than the original problem since the bikers are depicted as the most repellent, foul, destructive pigs imaginable. Between the rather clueless hippies, the redneck townspeople and the nasty bikers, there are few people in the film to root for. Stroud is a reasonably appealing presence and Daly (as his newfound love) manages to inject a bit of pleasantness and heart into the film. Askew, as the hippie's leader, does an okay job. Bishop somehow manages to remain attractive despite the company he keeps and the careless character he portrays here. Among the remaining cast is McKinney as a savage, mildly deranged biker punk who thinks of women as property to be used and defaced upon his whim. McKinney is best known for his heart-stopping role as a violent, inbred, mountain man in "Deliverance". Ray has a cameo as the town's lackadaisical sheriff, who can scarcely bother to lift a finger in the midst of conflict. The cast of the film is diverse enough to warrant a look, but most fans of the genre will be disappointed in the finished product. There are a few extended fight scenes, but nothing too spectacular and the movie cops out by having people escape their vehicles just before they crash, giving the film a less exploitive and less severe flavor. It's almost cartoonish at times, though there is one chicken that gets treated pretty badly. The only nude scene is a demure one with Daly mostly obscured behind the wood slats of an old pick up truck. A few decent moments of acting creep in, but it tends to be a pretty lackluster affair. Fans of the stars will likely enjoy it more than the casual viewer.

This cheapo "biker" flick featuring bikers, hippies, and cowboy rednecks is pretty tame stuff with TERRIBLE music throughout. The opening theme song is especially annoying. Don Stroud has presence as usual, but the script never goes anywhere. Tyne Daly is young and attractive and believable. Bill McKinney (a few years before Deliverance) is appropriately scummy and loud. Luke Askew is surprisingly ineffective as commune leader.By 1970 these flicks were practically a dead issue after Easy Rider opened up new territory. A 3 out of 10. Best performance = Larry Bishop (as Pilot). One of the worst "biker" films. Hell's Angels on Wheels is still the best of this genre, although I haven't seen Devil's Angels with John Cassavetes and Mimsy Farmer.