By 1982, Chuck Norris had made several very successful martial arts films. So, it wasn't any surprise that the powers that be wanted to try something different...and "Silent Rage" certainly is different! Try to imagine the studio merging two of the hottest genres of that time....a Chuck Norris martial arts flick AND a slasher horror film! Yes, in many ways, the film is like Chuck Norris versus Jason from "Friday the 13th"....with a little bit of "Frankenstein" tossed in as well! Hmmm...perhaps not "Frankenstein" since it's the 1980s...let's just say "Reanimator" instead.
When the film begins, a severely mentally ill guy loses it and goes on a killing rampage...killing a husband and wife with an axe before law enforcement arrives. Naturally, the Sheriff is played by Chuck Norris and this maniac taxes his considerable skills. After FINALLY subduing the man and cuffing him, this guy then breaks the cuffs and tries to start up the killing once again!! This time, cops shoot the suspect many, many times.
In the next scene, doctors are working frantically to try to save the killer's life. When that fails, the doctor in charge decides to play god...administering a drug on the guy which somehow has amazing curative powers. It cures everything very quickly...except for his brain, which is still bent on murder. Soon, he's even able to sneak out of the hospital and his murder spree begins all over again...with one exception. This time, wounds heal almost instantly....making the killer practically invincible. Is Chuck up for the rematch??
Overall, this is among the least intellectually taxing of Chuck Norris' films. This isn't necessarily a complaint...more an observation that it's pretty much non-stop killing and action and the plot isn't exactly deep or believable. In other words, it's a film you best enjoy by turning off your brain....which isn't surprising since it's really mostly a slasher flick. It's no dumber than a typical slasher film...but really no better either. One bad cliche I hated in the film was when the killer was trying to kill a deputy...and the lady seeing there just stood there and did nothing...even though the cop's gun fell on the floor right near her! If this wasn't bad enough, later when Sheriff Chuck was fighting the maniac, she stood by and did nothing to help other than to tell him to 'watch out'!
By the way, if you do watch this film, after the second killing spree, there are two bodies in the house...one of which is pinned to a door. Later, when the door is opened, watch carefully....you can see the man's eyes move as the door swings open!!
Also by the way, I watched this on the Roku channel, Tubi...and Tubi unintentionally did something very funny. Whenever commercials are about to start, a message in the top left corner of the screen says 'break coming in 5'....and at that exact moment, the serial killer snapped a guy's neck. Talk about interesting timing.
When the film begins, a severely mentally ill guy loses it and goes on a killing rampage...killing a husband and wife with an axe before law enforcement arrives. Naturally, the Sheriff is played by Chuck Norris and this maniac taxes his considerable skills. After FINALLY subduing the man and cuffing him, this guy then breaks the cuffs and tries to start up the killing once again!! This time, cops shoot the suspect many, many times.
In the next scene, doctors are working frantically to try to save the killer's life. When that fails, the doctor in charge decides to play god...administering a drug on the guy which somehow has amazing curative powers. It cures everything very quickly...except for his brain, which is still bent on murder. Soon, he's even able to sneak out of the hospital and his murder spree begins all over again...with one exception. This time, wounds heal almost instantly....making the killer practically invincible. Is Chuck up for the rematch??
Overall, this is among the least intellectually taxing of Chuck Norris' films. This isn't necessarily a complaint...more an observation that it's pretty much non-stop killing and action and the plot isn't exactly deep or believable. In other words, it's a film you best enjoy by turning off your brain....which isn't surprising since it's really mostly a slasher flick. It's no dumber than a typical slasher film...but really no better either. One bad cliche I hated in the film was when the killer was trying to kill a deputy...and the lady seeing there just stood there and did nothing...even though the cop's gun fell on the floor right near her! If this wasn't bad enough, later when Sheriff Chuck was fighting the maniac, she stood by and did nothing to help other than to tell him to 'watch out'!
By the way, if you do watch this film, after the second killing spree, there are two bodies in the house...one of which is pinned to a door. Later, when the door is opened, watch carefully....you can see the man's eyes move as the door swings open!!
Also by the way, I watched this on the Roku channel, Tubi...and Tubi unintentionally did something very funny. Whenever commercials are about to start, a message in the top left corner of the screen says 'break coming in 5'....and at that exact moment, the serial killer snapped a guy's neck. Talk about interesting timing.