A group of skinheads, led by Hando, become concerned by the number of Vietnamese (or Gooks as they not so affectionately call them) in their neighbourhood, and, already having Nazi tendencies, they decide to nip the problem in the bud. The Vietnamese are not so easily scared though; in fact, ... Read review
The burning intensity of Russell Crowe (L.A. Confidential) first lit up screens as a ... more
hate-filled,Mein Kampf-spouting skinhead in this brutal Australian drama. Crowe glowers from under his deep-set eyes as Hando, the creepy but charismatic leader of a r...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Film critics have hailed Romper Stomper as one of the most brilliant, provocative and ... more
truly exciting motion pictures to appear on the screen. Violent but never gratuitous, emotionally powerful and never afraid to portray the ugly, destructive face of ignorance and prejudice, Romper Stomper excites, disturbs and boldly challenges the viewer. Its angry, raw story about a brutal, lawless group of skinheads is a savage kick in the guts. This is no simplistic street-gang film, but a riveting portrayal of the hopelessness and blind hatred of youth that is both controversial and profound. It is, quite simply, unlike any film you have ever seen before. Enjoy the difference...Experience Romper Stomper.
In this brutal film, a gang of hard-luck Australian skinheads takes its frustrations out ... more
on Vietnamese immigrants. Hatred pulled the skinheads together, but the love of a woman pulls them apart just as the foreigners they have been terrorising decide to fight back. Actor Russell Crowe shines in one of his first leading roles in this controversial hit from Australia.
Written and directed by Geoffrey Wright (Cherry Falls), RomperStomper is the critically ... more
acclaimed and highly controversial filmthat propelled Russell Crowe (A Beautiful Mind; Gladiator; TheInsider) into international stardom. The winner of three AustralianFilm Institute Awards, including a well-deserved Best Actor Awardfor Crowe, this powerful and violent film is being released as atwo-disc special edition DVD packed with extra features thatinclude a feature length audio commentary by the director and anexclusive interview with Russell Crowe. Special features: Audio commentary by director Geoffrey Wright Russell Crowe interview Cast and crew interview gallery Behind the scenes footage Original artwork gallery Original trailer Limited edition packaging
The burning intensity of Russell Crowe (L.A. Confidential) first lit up screens as a ... more
hate-filled,Mein Kampf-spouting skinhead in this brutal Australian drama. Crowe glowers from under his deep-set eyes as Hando, the creepy but charismatic leader of a racist gang who declares war on the Asian immigrants pouring into Melbourne. His rage erupts in violent attacks on the local Vietnamese community, but when his victims fight back his gang breaks up, and Hando flees the city with his best buddy Davey (Daniel Pollock) and redheaded hellion Gabe (Jacqueline McKenzie), a rich-girl runaway who turns the dynamic duo into a splintered love triangle. Writer-director Geoffrey Wright's matter-of-fact treatment of this subculture eschews social commentary for visceral immediacy. His portrait of white supremacist punks living like squatters on the fringes of Australian society is powered by coiled anger and simmering frustration, which finds its outlet in brutal fights and murderous rampages. The lack of moral position may bother some people, especially in light of Wright's sympathetic treatment of particular members of Hando's racist army, and the cold, hate-driven violence is sometimes hard to watch, but his vivid characters and richly drawn world create a compelling drama for adventurous filmgoers.--Sean Axmaker
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Production Year: 1977 - Action/Adventure - Director: Clint Eastwood - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring:Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince, Bill McKinney
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Advantages: Dramatic, some excellent performances Disadvantages: Not pleasant to watch
A group of skinheads, led by Hando, become concerned by the number of Vietnamese (or Gooks as they not so affectionately call them) in their neighbourhood, and, already having Nazi tendencies, they decide to nip the problem in the bud. The Vietnamese are not so easily scared though; in fact, they fight back and force the skinheads to go on the run. Hando's girlfriend, Gabe, who is prone to epileptic fits, decides to help them escape from both the ... ...herself any favours? And will justice eventually catch up with them or not?
This is a film that I have had in my collection for quite some time. Having read a review on this site, I knew that it was not going to be a pleasant watch, and found I really had to wait until I was in the right frame of mind before I could put it on. It is really deeply unpleasant - gang warfare, particularly when it has Nazi connotations, is never going ... more
A group of skinheads, led by Hando, become concerned by the number of Vietnamese (or Gooks as they not so affectionately call them) in their neighbourhood, and, already having Nazi tendencies, they decide to nip the problem in the bud. The Vietnamese are not so easily scared though; in fact, they fight back and force the skinheads to go on the run. Hando's girlfriend, Gabe, who is prone to epileptic fits, decides to help them escape from both the Vietnamese and the police. But is she doing them and herself any favours? And will justice eventually catch up with them or not?
This is a film that I have had in my collection for quite some time. Having read a review on this site, I knew that it was not going to be a pleasant watch, and found I really had to wait until I was in the right frame of mind before I could put it on. It is really deeply unpleasant - gang warfare, particularly when it has Nazi connotations, is never going to be a pleasant topic, but this is really something else. However, there are some glimmers of brilliance in some of the performances and the direction that make this film really fascinating to watch.
Russell Crowe is Hando, and gives a performance that was to make his name throughout Australia and the world. He has deeply unpleasant ideas about the world and is a very scary character, having a real hatred for the 'Gooks' - and this is where Crowe's performance really excels, because I had absolutely no doubt when I was watching him that he really did hate the Vietnamese and anyone who didn't share his beliefs. He scared me silly - I only hope he was really acting. To make the performance more believable, he does show the occasional bit of vulnerability, but it is generally his anger that comes to the fore.
The role of Gabe is played by Jacqueline McKenzie, an actress I am not familiar with, although she has had a number of roles in well-known films such as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Deep Blue Sea. She is really great as an angst-ridden teen, who initially seems to be little more than that, but eventually shows that there is much more beneath the surface than meets the eye. She is one of the few characters in the film that shows a tiny bit of compassion for the Vietnamese, although the majority of the time, she is just as heartless as the rest of them. Again, this is a really scarily good performance, so convincing that I forgot the actress wasn't really Gabe.
I have to admit that the rest of the characters kind of blended into the background, mainly because they were all skinheads. The Vietnamese weren't, of course, but they really didn't have much of a role in the film apart from the early fight scenes. Daniel Pollock as Davey, Hando's right hand man, is worth a mention - he shows real promise as an actor, but unfortunately committed suicide shortly after the film was made following a relationship with Jacqueline McKenzie . James McKenna as Bubs, the youngest of the group, also gives a good performance - unfortunately his screen-time was cut short by a bullet through the forehead.
This film is really heavy duty and doesn't make for easy viewing. The violence is no holds barred, and is all the more unpleasant because it is seems so unprovoked. I just find it so hard to accept that a group of people can have such strong beliefs and act upon them, yet the quality of the acting means that it is completely convincing, but very uncomfortable to watch. There is a rating of 18 for this film and I think it is more than justified. It is not so much the fighting, punching and kniving, although that is very nasty to watch; it is more the conviction of the characters that what they are doing is so right - I would certainly not recommend this film to the weak-stomached.
If I am being completely objective, I suppose that the film could be criticised for showing the bad side of the skinheads and their Nazi beliefs - I am sure that not all skinheads have such beliefs and it is perhaps unfair to portray them as such. I should add here that I don't know whether the film is based on fact or not. Having said all that, if this film acts as a warning against such a situation happening, then so be it. Of course, it is all the more ironic that this is happening in a country in which whites are not the natives. Obviously, if you find the subject matter offensive, or you think it will make you angry, then don't watch. Or listen. Some of the soundtrack is very white supremacist and not at all pleasant to listen to.
The film starts off very slowly, with most of the first half hour or so showing the war between the two gangs. I was beginning to wonder if that was it when the story slowly begins to take another direction and the Vietnamese are removed from the equation. This is when the film really begins to take off and develops the characters, particularly Hando, Davey and Gabe. I liked the fact that what happened was so unexpected; the ending, when it came, was a complete surprise, but rather cleverly done and does have quite a strong moral to it.
I think that this film is worth watching if you are broad-minded enough not to be influenced by what you are watching and can stomach some violence. If not, then stay well clear, because this film is so hard-hitting and gritty that it will have an impact on all who watch it. That it catapulted Russell Crowe into the limelight is of no surprise to me. Recommended - but don't watch it in front of the children. Seriously.
The DVD is available from play.com for £3.99, although I purchased it from Woolies for just £1.
Advantages: A film with everything in it (even if you don't want it to be there!!) Disadvantages: The character Gabe - was she specifically deigned to irritate??
I first saw Romper Stomper when it was screened on the Bravo channel. It fell into a series of never before screened and controversial movies, and I didn't have clue from the brief clips, what the hell it was about. I thought it was brilliant.
I later bought Romper Stomper on DVD, at a very reasonable price of £9.99. I knew that the extras were poor, but I really didn't care - it was the film I wanted.
Obviously, the budget was on the threadbare ... ...appeal of the film. The soundtrack, composed by the director of the film, contributes superbly to the ambience, and the psuedo-skinhead songs will make anyone laugh (if only a little).
What some people can not see is that the film is actually about what happens when a girl comes between two best friends. The side-story of the film is that the friends who the girl becomes involved with are skinheads. Another side plot is about the girl's incestuous ...
saucepanmum 29.01.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Romper Stomper (DVD)
With the initial controversy faded Romper Stomper now stands in most people's minds as the movie which introduced us to a certain Mr. Russell Crowe. However, those with slightly longer memories will remember the outrage and critical slaughtering this movie received on its initial release due to its ultra-violent content and dubious placement of sympathies. A lesser movie may well have caved under such attention and faded never to be seen again, but ... ...did not have a point. Romper Stomper is certainly a gut-wrenchingly violent movie which begins with the title words of this review being roared full into the camera by the movie's lead character and doesn't let up in intensity from that point onwards. Not too surprisingly it drew many parallels and comparisons to Kubrik's A Clockwork Orange although to mention these two movies in the same breath is to credit Romper Stomper with a little too much ...
wampyrii 19.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Romper Stomper (DVD)
Advantages: Good Story, Some Good Acting Disadvantages: Could Have Been Directed Slightly Better
Romper Stomper, is an Australian film showing the last days of a racist neo-Nazi skinhead gang in Melbourne, this movie exploits the frustration, anger and violence of a aggressive subculture.
The storytelling is immaculate, it's maybe the directing that lets it down. By trying to mix the obvious violence that's involved, with portraying the characters in a way so you may relate, you get a film where you can have no moral standing.
Violence appears ... ...smaller group of Vietnamese youth in a subway station. The gang, led by the coldly charismatic Hando (Russell Crowe), is obsessed with Asians, particularly south eastern ones, who have taken over sections of Melbourne and are taking over business after business, including the gang's home bar. Their response: a good kicking, accomplished with fists, Doc Martens boots, bats, chains and the occasional knife.
Typically, his gang members are squatters ...
Sid76 07.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Romper Stomper (DVD)
Advantages: Alternative, Australian film, interesting controversial theme/plot Disadvantages: Violent, offensive, neo-nazi/skinhead themes. NOT suitable for the impressionable
...and his bic-razor! :-)
Romper Stomper. Well the name kinda gives an impression that this film is not going to be about something warm and fuzzy!!
Looking for a nice romantic film? - don't watch this!
Looking for a family film? - don't watch this!
Easily offended by bad language? - don't watch this!
Easily offended by adult themes? - don't watch this!
Not a fan of violence? - go rent out the little mermaid instead!
Ok, so those of you still ... ...It really centres on the character of Hando (played by a young-ish russel crowe) and his "group" of skinhead mates/followers. The film starts with some quite brutal, racist beatings, so anyone easily offended by such things would be wise NOT to watch this film.
Basic plot....Ok so the film starts with skinheads beating up some Vietnamese Australian teenagers in a train station subway. Hando (played by a young russel crowe), plays the leader of the ...
kirk_lanckmans 16.02.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Romper Stomper (DVD)
Advantages: Strong and powerful message, well directed and acted in the most part Disadvantages: Too violent for many, some wooden parts and a slightly amateurish feel
This 1992 film is a very violent look at gangs in Australia, with a tough view on racism and punishment and the mental attitudes of the young and the old in relation to it.
The Plot
The film follows a group of skinheads who dish out brutal and vicious beatings to members of other gangs of race because they believe their inclusion in society is polluting their home city of Melbourne. Their main target is a Vietnamese gang, and the fighting is relentless ... ...at heart for gang member Hando, who finds himself falling for his best friend's girlfriend.
The Cast and Performances
This is a harrowing Australian drama, and the acting is as brutal as the plot. Russell Crowe takes the lead in this film, and it is here that he made his mark on the world, and was launched to Hollywood. This is not a high budget film, and there is no parade of household names, but the acting talent is very good, and the feeling ...
pmcds 23.03.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Romper Stomper (DVD)
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Advantages: 3 classics in one Disadvantages: Excessive violence and brutality may be too much to handle for some
of scraps and brawls between inmates really and they are done in a way that show the audience how life must have been for these offenders.
The acting is nothing special from most characters, however a young Ray Winestone does a very effective job as playing the main character Carlin. He captures the aggression and pain that is inside this young man perfectly.
A great film to watch with not much of a storyline, certainly not one for those who are weak at heart.
ROMPERSTOMPER - Russel Crowe's first ever movie. An intruging storyline about a gang of skinheads who try to psychically stop of family of rich Thai's purchasing their local public house.
Despite the first half of this picture beying totally from a skinhead perspective, this film definately carries an anti racist message. The detirieration of the neo nazi gang becomes ...
In this brutal film, a gang of hard-luck Australian skinheads takes its frustrations out on Vietnamese immigrants. Hatred pulled the skinheads together, but the love of a woman pulls them apart just as the foreigners they have been terrorising decide to fight back. Actor Russell Crowe shines in one of his first leading roles in this controversial hit from Australia.
...Viscerally supercharged.... Crowe's portrayal exudes an antiheroic charisma... (New York Times, )
...Few movies have shoved an audience so brutally into battle.... Crowe makes a mesmerizing monster... (Rolling Stone, )
Technical information
Dubbing Sound
Dolby Digital English
Sound
Dolby Digital
Special Features
Trailer, Picture Gallery, 16 Chapter Points, Index Inside
Aspect Ratio
4:3 Full Frame
DVD Description
In this brutal film, a gang of hard-luck Australian skinheads takes its frustrations out on Vietnamese immigrants. Hatred pulled the skinheads together, but the love of a woman pulls them apart just as the foreigners they have been terrorising decide to fight back. Actor Russell Crowe shines in one of his first leading roles in this controversial hit from Australia.
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