1976: Death Cheaters (12th)

What else happened this year? Frampton Came Alive!

What is the plot - in one sentence? Two world-famous Australian stuntmen go on an action-packed trip to the Philippines to help get some blueprints or some other Macguffin for the government.

I don't have time, just spoil it for me? They do it. We also discover that the movie they are working on at the beginning, an epic, described as a 'decades long labour of love', is actually an ad for deodorant. 

What is the meaning of the title? They are stuntmen, and so they cheat death. There's als a 'cheetah' logo on on of their hats, so it's kind of a cool pun.

I couldn't work out if this top was meant as a joke. You'd assume so but he wears crazier outfits later on, and he's wearing it for a date - but she's dressed like some kid in a school play.

Anything that's not aged well? Does a woman get slapped around? It's set in 1970s Sydney, which itself hasn't aged well. There's an abseiling scene off the Sydney Hilton, which may have been the ugliest building of all time, and was so ugly it was knocked down. There is also a car chase scene around a mall, which is a mall that I know well from childhood, but was unrecognisable in this movie. As for the gender politics? Surprisingly refreshing: the girlfriend of the stunt guy is an equal partner in their relationship, and the fat government guy treats her very politely, when I'm sure a molestation joke would have been easier to fit in to the story. I'm as surprised as you are.

Any thoughts? Have I ever said no to this? The Sydney movie scene in the 1970s was evidently pretty rough and ready, but pretty awesome too. Sydney itself then was yet to be the glamorous city it is today. There's a chase scene at the beginning which shows a sandstone bridge, a mall and the beach, all of which are probably not within 50km of each other in real life. They're also shown riding horses at the beach, purely to make the city look better, and also to get a horse reaction shot in a later scene. For the record, a horse reaction shot is better than a dog reaction shot, so fair play there. Also for the record, there's also a basset hound who gives reaction shots later.

The story follows two famous stuntmen around the world with the 'plot' giving them a chance to muck around and showcase their stunts. One of the men, I recognised as the bloke who fights in the kitchen of 'The Man FromHong Kong,' and he's a very charismatic bloke, despite dressing like a pirate. The other is a thinner bloke with a moustache, who has a pretty girlfriend.

We're told that the two met in the Vietnam War, but other than that the serious stuff is left to a minimum. They wonder about taking the job, decide to take the job, spend far too long planning the job, then do it, and alls' well that ends well.In between are a  few jokes, some scenery, and some nonsensical action. There's even time for some lawn bowls. It is what it is.

Despite that, it's a 1 hour 30 movie, and they haven't left Australia by 1:07. There's still a submarine voyage, some hang-gliding, and a very low stakes-siege of a building staffed by hired goons to undertake. What is weird, is that most of the extras are white guys who just happen to be dark haired, posing as extras. It's very strange in 2021, that in 1970s Australia it was hard to find Asian people to be extras in a movie. Also, for the final siege, one of them has to go around the factory, setting off bombs and shoulder-barging through armed guards, the other spends time setting up a hang-glider to make their escape with. I know which would be easier to do.

It's also weird to think that before CCTV arrived, you just had to staff your factories with shlubby henchmen who can't shoot their guns well. CCTV: the real killer of henchmen.

Would you recommend this? I would. It's not high art, but it's funny and has some impressive stunt work. Let's look at a training montage that happens quite late in the movie. It gives us a chance to laugh at a strange little man who puts them through their paces, shows the guys running around a quarry with explosions going on around them, and tells us that their stunt company is called 'cunning stunts.' It ends with a horse reaction shot. It's pointless, stupid, and nonsensical, and doesn't enhance the plot at all, but it would be a shame if it wasn't there.

Final thoughts? This is dumb, but it takes effort to make something that is sheer dumb entertainment. They're world famous stuntmen? I'm willing to believe it. They're the only ones talented enough to steal documents from some unseen Bond villain type? Sure, show me the action. To top it off, the whole thing ends on a shit joke. Nice.

In conclusion. Pretty funny, pretty stupid. Pretty enjoyable.

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