The Exterminator (1980) on Netflix
John Eastland and Michael Jefferson, veterans of Vietnam, work the docks of a New York warehouse. When the Ghetto Ghouls leave Michael paralyzed, John takes up his old Army gear.
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- Netflix1.7/5
- IMDb5.7/107,424 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes38%
Trailer
Plot summary
During the Vietnam War, John Eastland and Michael Jefferson are captured, and Michael kills their captors to free them both. In New York, the two friends work at a warehouse on the docks, where John catches members of the Ghetto Ghouls stealing beer. The gang comes back and leaves Michael paralyzed. Maria, Michael's wife, learns what happened from John. John seizes one of the Ghouls and threatens him with a flamethrower until he gives up the location of the gang's clubhouse. Detective James Dalton takes the case, and the press nicknames the unknown avenger the Exterminator. At the warehouse, mob boss Gino Pontivini collects protection money and taxes the wages of the men who work there.
Cast
- Dick Boccellias Gino Pontivini
- Patrick Farrellyas CIA Agent Shaw
- Michele Harrellas Maria Jefferson
- Cindy Wilksas Candy
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Exterminator (1980)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Joseph Bottoms was originally cast as John Eastland, but when he landed a role in Disney's The Black Hole his camp asked for an extra $10,000 one week before filming, fearing The Exterminator would damage his image. Director James Glickenhaus refused out of principle and delayed shooting a week to recast.
- Steve James applied for the bit part of a bartender, but James Glickenhaus liked him so much that he rewrote Eastland's best friend, originally Puerto Rican, as African-American to accommodate him, giving James his first featured role.
- The decapitation in the Vietnam prologue used a full animatronic made by Stan Winston for $25,000 rather than a simple dummy, and Glickenhaus believes it was so realistic it was used in all shots.
- The Vietnam prologue was filmed at Indian Dunes in Valencia, California, with pyrotechnics coordinator Paul Stewart. The same location and coordinator were used for the Twilight Zone Vietnam segment in 1982, and at the trial it was alleged that foreshadowing incidents, including a helicopter mishap, happened on The Exterminator.
- After a man was stabbed following a September 22, 1980 screening at the Summit Drive-In in Coventry Township, Ohio, and later died, his mother sued the theater and distributor AVCO Embassy for $1.6 million, claiming the film's violence contributed; the lawsuit was dismissed three years later and the case remains unsolved.
- The MPAA demanded 42 seconds be cut to avoid an X rating, heavily trimming the beheading and meat grinder scenes plus a shot of the burnt pimp for the domestic run; the U.K. cut separately but left a similar 44 seconds on the editing table, and most major markets got a cut version except Japan.
- Glickenhaus spent $150,000 on trade magazine ads before the Cannes Film Market and gave away tickets on the streets of Cannes rather than limiting previews to industry members; the common folk's reaction sold the picture, with all non-domestic rights gone within four hours.
- Glickenhaus was offered $25,000 to add the film to AVCO Embassy's video deal with Fox's Magnetic Video, asked for $30,000, and was turned down; he kept the rights and later made more than $1 million from them.
