Assault on Precinct 13

Introduction

Inspired by Rio Bravo, Assault on Precinct 13 was John Carpenter's first studio film, made in 1975 and released a year later.

In a slum area of South Central Los Angeles a little girl is killed by a gang when they shoot an ice cream man. Her father follows their car and shoots his daughter's murderer, before fleeing and taking refuge in the station house at Division 13, Precinct 9. Meanwhile, a prison transport bus moving prisoners across town is forced to make an emergency stop at the station when one of them becomes seriously ill.

Like Howard Hawk's western, Assault on Precinct 13 is a siege film, where a gang of criminals surround a police station and the authorities must join forces with prisoners in order to survive.

Video

Soft and a little grainy, but not too bad for a film now in its 4th decade and, considering the events take place largely at night, there are no major issues with definition.

Audio

The Dolby Digital stereo track is clear enough and the synthesizer soundtrack by John Carpenter perfectly conveys the dark mood.

Extra Features

John Carpenter provides a reasonable commentary, but it's a solo effort with dead air that would have been filled if he had been joined by another cast or crew member.

There is a Q&A session where Carpenter and Austin Stoker field questions from a screening audience and the moderator. The sound quality isn't great but there are some points of interest if you listen hard enough.

There is also some developmental material including production stills and storyboards, a couple of radio spots and a theatrical trailer.

Conclusion

Despite being low budget, amateurishly acted, made by an inexperienced filmmaker and a re-imagining of a classic western, Assault on Precinct 13 is a fantastically enjoyable B-movie. John Carpenter shows himself to be a master of controlling tension, with some moments of levity and some of real trepidation.

The performances by Austin Stoker and Darwin Joston who play Ethan Bishop, the cop overseeing the closing of the station and unrepentant killer Napoleon Wilson respectively, are very good and some of the scenes between Joston and Laurie Zimmer's character Leigh have some tangible sexual tension.

Carpenter would go on to make better films, but this one has stood the test of time and remains a classic siege film which was enjoyably remade in 2005 by Jean-François Richet.3

This is available to buy individually, or as part of John Carpenter: The Collection.