Extreme Prejudice

"An army of forgotten heroes, all officially dead. They live for combat. Now they've met the wrong man."

1987 1h 45m EN

😐

6.3

MID

★6.3TMDB · 206

ActionThrillerCrimeDramaWestern

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Lean, mean Texas Ranger Jack Benteen locks horns with a former friend, Cash Bailey, now a ruthless drug kingpin. Though they're on opposite sides of the law, they share a love interest in the sensual Sarita. When a crew of rogue soldiers descends upon the border town for an off-the-books mission, all roads lead to a bloody, to-the-death showdown, as loyalties shift and the lines between good and evil are blurred.

“An army of forgotten heroes, all officially dead. They live for combat. Now they've met the wrong man.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Nick Nolte
Jack Benteen
Powers Boothe
Cash Bailey
Michael Ironside
Major Paul Hackett
María Conchita Alonso
Sarita Cisneros
Rip Torn
Sheriff Hank Pearson
Clancy Brown
Sgt. Larry McRose
William Forsythe
Sgt. Buck Atwater
Matt Mulhern
Sgt. Declan Patrick Coker

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Walter Hill
Writers: John Milius, Harry Kleiner, Deric Washburn
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 51% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

39 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Walter Hill, shot by Matthew F. Leonetti. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Original score by Jerry Goldsmith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Freeman A. Davies shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Nick Nolte and Powers Boothe and Michael Ironside carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "An army of forgotten heroes, all officially dead. They live for combat. Now they've met the wrong man.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0092997 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Walter Hill directs. Matthew F. Leonetti behind the camera. Jerry Goldsmith scores. Freeman A. Davies cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 51% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
239 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Walter Hill, shot by Matthew F. Leonetti. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Jerry Goldsmith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Freeman A. Davies shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Nick Nolte and Powers Boothe and Michael Ironside carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "An army of forgotten heroes, all officially dead. They live for combat. Now they've met the wrong man.".
8IMDB entry: tt0092997 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "robbery", "texas", "mexican standoff", "texas ranger".

The technical file

Cinematography: Matthew F. Leonetti
Original score: Jerry Goldsmith
Editing: Freeman A. Davies
Production design: Albert Heschong
Costume design: Dan Moore
Makeup / hair: Michael Germain
Sound: Gregg Landaker
Stunt coordinator: Bennie E. Dobbins
Runtime: 105 min · 1h 45m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $22,000,000
Box office: $11,300,000
Return: 51% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Extreme Prejudice (1987)

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John Chard2014-09-23
★ 7.5/10
Extreme Prejudice (1987) The Zombie Unit. Extreme Prejudice is directed by Walter Hill and collectively written by John Milius, Fred Rexer, Deric Washburn and Harry Kleiner. It stars Nick Nolte, Powers Boothe, Maria Conchita Alonso, Michael Ironside, Rip Torn, Clancy Brown, William Forsythe and Matt Mulhern. Music is by Jerry Goldsmith and cinematography by Matthew F. Leonetti. Well it’s a good day for a killing. Walter Hill homages and parodies the splinter of action cinema that encompasses the grizzled law enforcer tracking the bad guy, who in this case, was once a friend. That’s the basic set up for Hill’s brooding and bloody Extreme Prejudice. Action takes place down on the US/Mexico border, Ranger Jack Benteen (Nolte) is hunting his one time pal - and the man he shares his woman’s love with – Cash Bailey (Boothe), who has taken up drug smuggling as his employment of choice. Complicating matters is that there is a gang of ex-forces specialists in the town ready to raid the bank for some funds and documents to nail Bailey. Loyalties are tested, twists, turns and bloody shocks do follow. Much of the film’s strength is gained from the casting, it’s a roll call of macho performers who combined make up a CV with enough beef to feed the third world. Even Alonso as the sole female of note fits the requisite toughness exam (she would do The Running Man this same year and go on to star in Predator 2). Much of the narrative involves brooding and tough talk, a slow burn approach from Hill who adds some meat to the bones of the main characters. Photography is pleasing, with actual locations shimmering on the screen, and Goldsmith’s score is a pulser that is a fore runner to his score for Total Recall 3 years later. At times it’s offbeat, at others it’s gripping in its sweaty intensity, and then there is the balletic violence which Hill has proven himself to be an astute purveyor of, crowned here by his homage to Peckinpah’s glorious finale in The Wild Bunch. Lean and tough with bodies and butchness everywhere. 7.5/10

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