Don't Mess with My Sister! (1985)

User Rating:

2.9/10   

Director:

Meir Zarchi

Writer:

Meir Zarchi (writer)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Horror

Tagline:

He'd kill for them. He may have to die for them.

Plot:

Steven, a meek accountant-in-training, is living contentedly with his wife Clara and working for her brothers...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Revenge | Brooklyn New York | Payback

Cast

Joe Perce	...	Steven
Jeannine Lemay	...	Clara
Jack Gurci	...	Roberto
Peter Sapienza	...	Dino
Laura Lanfranchi	...	Annika
Kit Bard	...	Ann
Roy Miller	...	Jerry
Helen Perle	...	Mama Minote
Janice Derosa	...	Aunt Regina
Pam La Testa	...	Clara's Mother (as Pam LaTesta)
Norman Lars Bebell	...	Victor DeLarouche
Tamara Berman	...	Candy
Diane Hess	...	Roberto's Wife
Julia G. Hickman	...	Martha
Yiannie Foskolos	...	Car Thief Joe

Also Known As:

American Junkyard (USA) (festival title)
Family and Honour (UK) (video title)

Runtime:

Brazil:94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:15 (re-rating) (2002) | UK:18

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Trivia:

Filmed in 1985, not released until 1988.

I guess sometimes you have to learn it the hard way!

Steven is a scrap-yard bookkeeper who's working for his wife's brothers and attending night school to get his accounting degree. His life takes a turn for the worst when he falls for and finally hooks up for the night with the belly dancer that was hired for his birthday, which just happens to go the same school. This leads to trouble for Steven, as his wife and her brothers find out about it and trouble suddenly occurs.

Well, I was expecting way worse. I just don't know. Maybe because I knew what I was getting myself into, but I didn't think it was all that bad of a low-budget flick, as its made out to be. I guess people were expecting another ultra-relentless exploitation foray in the shape of "I Spit On Your Grave". But this follow up is far from it and on a totally different level. You could probably blame all of this on poor and ill-conceived advertising that treats it like one.

Instead "Don't Mess with My Sister" is playing for an oddball, if raw drama that deals with family values, infidelity and a working class trying to make ends meat. After the controversy of the begin all and end all "I Spit..", Zarchi was probably trying to gain some respectability here. I expect that killed it for most viewers, but still it's quite a competent display by director / writer Meir Zarchi who keeps it on cruise control and strings along many different spontaneous developments amongst his own vogue. The impulsively junky plot could have gone towards a sleazy and brutal revenge angle, but Zarchi skewed away from this and the results weren't awful, but modest. The sultry music score by Todd Rice was simply oozing and controlled photography by Phil Gries got down amongst the grit. Acting from the no-name cast was more than suitable and Joe Perce's performance as the straight-mannered Steven was adequate and believable. Sure, it's far from great, but was I kept interested and entertained for it short running time. It does lull about in spots and the (lack of an) ending isn't much, but it delivers on those fronts that count if you're not looking for too much.

Simply it's not all that bad, if you know what you're getting. Which is a kooky drama.