hwg1957-102-265704 There seems to be a lot of confusion between this film from 1976 and another made later in 1987 as both films get called 'The Zebra Force' or 'Code Name-Zebra'. On IMDb itself the wrong poster is given to this film. Both films were directed by Joe Tornatore. The 1987 film is the sequel to the 1976 film with the character Carmine Longo appearing in both. The version I saw called itself 'Code Name-Zebra'.This film is about war veterans donning disguises and taking on the Mafia and breaking up their operations, mainly by killing people. The mob boss with an impressive mustache brings in an enforcer from Detroit, Carmine Longo with an even more impressive mustache, to deal with the situation. So there is talk followed by action followed by talk etc. You could probably write the script yourself though the final scene did surprise me. The film stock is grainy and the action uses slow motion too much and the acting itself is stilted and amateur but for some reason I found it rather charming. A good print in the original format would be worth seeing even if only to enjoy/cringe at those 1970's fashions.

Chase_Witherspoon A group of Vietnam veterans, fiercely loyal to their lieutenant (horribly disfigured as a result of a land mine explosion) agree to perform a series of audacious hits on mob-controlled gambling operations to ostensibly rid the town of their influence and protect society's youth from the spectre of drugs. But their raids also net hundreds of thousands of dollars in tainted cash, leading Mafia Don (Caruso) to enlist the aid of his Mr Fix-it Carmine Longo (Lane) to rectify the problem. You've probably read that the vets disguise themselves and while it's certainly a novelty, the "transformations" are unintentionally comedic (watch for the interrogation scene near the end of the movie). Puerile dialogue and atrocious cinematography (or perhaps the editing) don't do any favours, but I enjoyed the characterisations, and the cast has some talent. Lanky Mike Lane from "The Harder They Fall" is imposing, Stafford Morgan as the crooked cop, and Rockne Tarkington as the tough-talking downtown pusher, all make an impression in spite of the script they deliver.A jazzy soul soundtrack, slow-motion stunts, car chases and a twist ending keep things entertaining and overall, while it's routinely panned by the armchair critics, you could do a lot worse than this gangster flick dressed in a blaxploitation wardrobe. Often confused with its sequel "Codename Zebra" starring James Mitchum made in 1987, while the latter is more technically proficient, the sheer quirkiness and 70's infused texture of "Zebra Force" is superior in entertainment value.

shark-43 This film was a nice surprise - we were gathering DVDs for our usual bad cinema night and I rented a DVD that had Frank Sinatra, Jr. and one of Robert Mitchum's offspring in it as commandos or whatnot but even though the disc read CODE NAME: ZEBRA and had the same director - the movie ZEBRA FORCE came on - obviously NOT filmed in 1984 like CODE NAME but looking so 70's and grainy and waaaay low budget but get this - the plot actually has clever things in it and a nice twist at the end. The acting goes from hilariously bad (we called two actors Gestures & Point cuz that is what these two hacks did with every line reading - one would gesture and the other would point) to a couple of good performances. The violence and action was either staged horribly or shockingly good. In fact there is one stunt where a guy goes out a high window and he falls, lands on his back in a swimming pool - impressive and dangerous. Lots of great 70's "jive" dialogue and mobsters v.s. black activists v.s. viet nam vets (and yes, one of the crazed vet leaders is horribly scarred and crazy). We enjoyed mocking the film's faults and enjoying many of it's merits. ZEBRA ROCKS!!!

Hitchcoc This is nothing more that an excuse for a bunch of scenes of slaughter. It has virtually no plot or motivation. The characters are stereotypical and really questionable actors. Their reason for doing what they do wouldn't stand up under any scrutiny. It's the Zebra force against the Mafia. I don't know why because it's never clear. If they are both basically evil, why don't the just stay away from each other. There's virtually no conversation and when it happens it is senseless and pointless. The old running back, Timmy Brown, is in it. So is the Sinatra kid. It's a monumental waste of time. There isn't even the "bad movie" syndrome at work here.