Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Brilliant and touching

A Major Disappointment

Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

If nothing else - It was so plain to see that 1970's "Joe" (an all-American, redneck flag-waver?) was a clear blueprint for 1976's "Taxi Driver". Yep. With just a few variations on the theme, these 2 films were almost identical in the nature of their story-lines.And, just like Taxi Driver's Travis Bickle character, the character of Joe Curran in this production was hardly an interesting enough person for this twisted tale to base its entire plot-line on the likes of him and his blindly hateful actions.In one way "Joe" could, very likely, be looked upon as being a disgruntled viewer's step-by-step guide on how to deal with the annoyance of a generation gap, especially when it comes to dealing with hippies.Yeah. And what better way to get those despicable hippies to co-operate with you, than to aim a loaded rifle right at their heads. (Hey! Talk about "flower power", man!) Anyway - "Joe" (now 45 years old) was a very dated picture. And any relevance that it may seem to hold for today's audiences hangs very precariously by a single thread.*Note* - "Joe" was directed by film-maker John Avildsen who (six years later) would triumphantly go on to direct "Rocky" in 1976.

John G. Avildsen directed Norman Wexler's inflammatory script about a middle-aged "square," who, after accidentally killing his daughter's pusher/lover, teams up with a bigoted blue collar nitwit (the title character played with a lot of bravado by Peter Boyle) with tragic results. They commiserate and find common ground in their intolerance of ANYTHING they're not: liberals; blacks; the young. A time-capsule of the early 1970s, this plays like an R-rated version of ALL IN THE FAMILY with Boyle playing Archie Bunker with guns. The acting is all first rate...not only by Boyle, but by Dennis Patrick, Susan Sarandon and, at least briefly, Patrick McDermott as one of the most unlikeable victims in movie history. A violent, unforgiving film. It's certainly unsettling but what is it telling us? It's OK to have junkies & pushers running rampant as long as they're peace-loving? It's become a classic.

The story is simple. A racist blue collar guy recruits a wealthy white man to kill hippies, This is also the first motion picture for Susan Sarandon and the flick that made Peter Boyle an actor who worked a lot and made his name.This film I found greatly upsetting and I remember when it premiered at the Harvsrd Square theater in Cambridge, Mass. when I was still in high school. I never understood why such a movie would be popular with the very group it excoriates. Maybe it was a primer for those who wanted to avoid such psychotic baddies. When I first heard of the film, I had no idea that the composer of the music in it would become a close friend, supporter and benefactor. I also never envisioned being treated as something nasty on his shoe by the star, but these two things did occur.But back to the film. It seems all too real and the rich man turned killer by the protagonist/antagonist played a racist in an episode of All In The Family as well.I can't give away the finale of this movie except to say that it is rather abrupt and, unless you are a sociopath, unsettling to say the least.The N word is one of the most offensive things in this films the swear words are mild compared to some other films. This was, I believe, the film that introduced the future director of Rocky.But Bobby Scott's music as always is remarkable. Scott is a name that should be better known and I do hope people will try to find as much as they can about this Irish/Native American super talent, As for Peter Boyle, I wish I had told him of my friendship with Bobby and that he should not look at me as some sort of annoying gnat. After all, it is my friend's work that is the best thing in this film that gave Boyle his career. Talent is a wonderful thing, but humility should come along with it towards the people who made you a celebrity in the first place. Jerry Orbach thought that way. We could all learn from this.

I think this movie can be called the movie of misdirected rage.The characters of Joe and Bob were relics of the WWII generation who didn't quite understand their kids opposing the war, taking drugs and listening to rock and roll. But I think their real rage was at the fact that America was beginning her long decline from the heights the war left her at."Joe" himself is a low-rent Archie Bunker, ranting at all the things that have made him angry, living his life of quiet desperation, until he teams up with Compton, a guy who wants to avenge himself on the hippies who ruined his daughter.Honestly, most of the movie looks silly, the characters are worse than one dimensional, they're laughable. Peter Boyle was capable of better stuff.