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Set in the late 1960's, the movie Billy Jack is about a man who's half white and half Cherokee Indian, is an ex-Green Beret Viet Nam Vet and an expert at the Korean martial art, Hapkido( which combines Tae Kwon Do and Aikido), who returns from the war to take solitary residence in the nearby Indian Reservation due to becoming more in touch with his Native American roots, and quickly becomes the protector for the wild Mustang horses, the Freedom School nearby, which is directed by Jean Roberts, the woman that Billy Jack loves, and the Native Americans on the reservation.
Meanwhile, during the movie, Billy Jack, Jean Roberts and the Freedom School members end up having lots of trouble with local town bigots, especially Sheriff Stuart Posner, as well as the Deputy Sheriff, Mike, whose 15-year-old daughter, Barbara is being hidden at the school, pregnant and sick after being found in S. F.'s Haight-Ashbury district, after running away from home due to physical abuse by her father. Once more, when Barbara is flown home and is in her father's house, she experiences yet another beating after telling her father what's going on, runs away from home once more, and is found sleeping in an open field by Billy Jack, who helps hide her out at the school.
At first, Posner's son, Bernard, seems like a person to be sympathized with after refusing to shoot any of the wild horses for dog food meat, the way his father wants him too, but after helping cause much trouble for the Freedom School in the hopes making his father proud of him, such as trying to hit on a couple of female students at the school with no success, harassing and physically abusing the Freedom School students when they go into town, raping Jean Roberts, the Freedom School's director, and then ultimately shooting and killing Martin, a gentle Native American boy who's befriended Barbara and taught her that there are other ways to obtain love than through easy sex, Bernard's character is obviously that of a person who deserves little to no sympathy, although he does admit to wanting to make his father proud of him, despite his hatred for him.
Mike, the Deputy Sheriff, the Posners (father and son), and most of the townspeople, are quite bigoted against nonwhites, and the hatred emerges more and more as it becomes known that the Freedom School is not only open to kids of all races with problems of some sort or other, but is also a very unconventional school, with few rules.
Meanwhile, in the wake of Martin's killing, Billy Jack ultimately gets his revenge, despite Jean's warnings. Billy then hunts down Bernard Posner, finds him making out with an underage 13-yar-old girl in a shabby hotel room on the edge of town, and warns the girl to get out, which she does.
Bernard then tries to kill Billy Jack by shooting at him, and Billy Jack, in turn, kills Bernard with a karate chop across the throat.
Billy Jack then hides himself and Barbara from the law in the old church on the edge of town. A shoot-out between Billy Jack and the law ensues, in which Barbara's father is shot dead by Billy Jack and Barbara is slightly wounded by gunfire. Despite a gunshot wound to the stomach, Billy and Barbara hide out in the church all night, before Billy Jack finally surrrenders to the law and gives himself up, under several conditions:
A) That the Freedom School be allowed to run for the next ten years with no interference, with Jean beginning a ten-year contract as the school's director.
B) That Jean Roberts have custody of Barbara and become Barbara's Legal Guardian.
C) That an annual press conference be held by someone from the governor's office to report on the school's progress.
The conditions are met, with Washington's OK, and, after afew minutes of tearful hugs and good-byes, Billy Jack allows himself to be handcuffed and taken out to be tried for the killings of Bernard and Barbara's father. Meanwhile, the kids at the Freedom School gather outside, and wave Billy Jack goodbye, with the Black Power raised fist signs, and many tears, to boot.
I believe that the movie Billy Jack sends out a mixed message: that fighting back for survival in the face of lawless is necessary, and, yet, when lawlessness prevails, it begets more lawlessness, violence and corruption, and things go too far. Racism against the Indians is prevalent, and that, too, has led to tragedy and bloodshed.
Tom Laughlin, who has written and directed this film, does a wonderful job of playing Billy Jack, the hero, while Delores Taylor (Tom Laughlin's wife), does an equally good job of playing the more pacific Jean Roberts, the director of the Freedom School. David Roya does a cool job of playing the cowardly but vengeful Bernard, who's the son of the town commissioner, Stuart Posner, who illegally advocates shooting wild horses to sell as dog-food at six cents a pound, and Julie Webb also does a good job playing 15-year-old Barbara, who turns out to be quite messed up, instead of growing and maturing. Nobody knows what happens to her in the end, however. The movie leaves it that way.
The best scenes in the movie are when Billy Jack takes on a bunch of local toughs in the city park and uses his martial art skills on them in self-defense. The slowest and dullest scenes are at the Freedom School, where the kids either sing campy folk songs, or indulge in campy drama in the hopes of trying to make some sort of rapport with the townspeople, which, unfortunately, doesn't work, on the long run.
I believe that the film Billy Jack sends a message that, while it's necessary to fight back for survival in the face of lawless, violence, racism and corruption, things can ultimately end up going too far, as the killings indicate.
Meanwhile, during the movie, Billy Jack, Jean Roberts and the Freedom School members end up having lots of trouble with local town bigots, especially Sheriff Stuart Posner, as well as the Deputy Sheriff, Mike, whose 15-year-old daughter, Barbara is being hidden at the school, pregnant and sick after being found in S. F.'s Haight-Ashbury district, after running away from home due to physical abuse by her father. Once more, when Barbara is flown home and is in her father's house, she experiences yet another beating after telling her father what's going on, runs away from home once more, and is found sleeping in an open field by Billy Jack, who helps hide her out at the school.
At first, Posner's son, Bernard, seems like a person to be sympathized with after refusing to shoot any of the wild horses for dog food meat, the way his father wants him too, but after helping cause much trouble for the Freedom School in the hopes making his father proud of him, such as trying to hit on a couple of female students at the school with no success, harassing and physically abusing the Freedom School students when they go into town, raping Jean Roberts, the Freedom School's director, and then ultimately shooting and killing Martin, a gentle Native American boy who's befriended Barbara and taught her that there are other ways to obtain love than through easy sex, Bernard's character is obviously that of a person who deserves little to no sympathy, although he does admit to wanting to make his father proud of him, despite his hatred for him.
Mike, the Deputy Sheriff, the Posners (father and son), and most of the townspeople, are quite bigoted against nonwhites, and the hatred emerges more and more as it becomes known that the Freedom School is not only open to kids of all races with problems of some sort or other, but is also a very unconventional school, with few rules.
Meanwhile, in the wake of Martin's killing, Billy Jack ultimately gets his revenge, despite Jean's warnings. Billy then hunts down Bernard Posner, finds him making out with an underage 13-yar-old girl in a shabby hotel room on the edge of town, and warns the girl to get out, which she does.
Bernard then tries to kill Billy Jack by shooting at him, and Billy Jack, in turn, kills Bernard with a karate chop across the throat.
Billy Jack then hides himself and Barbara from the law in the old church on the edge of town. A shoot-out between Billy Jack and the law ensues, in which Barbara's father is shot dead by Billy Jack and Barbara is slightly wounded by gunfire. Despite a gunshot wound to the stomach, Billy and Barbara hide out in the church all night, before Billy Jack finally surrrenders to the law and gives himself up, under several conditions:
A) That the Freedom School be allowed to run for the next ten years with no interference, with Jean beginning a ten-year contract as the school's director.
B) That Jean Roberts have custody of Barbara and become Barbara's Legal Guardian.
C) That an annual press conference be held by someone from the governor's office to report on the school's progress.
The conditions are met, with Washington's OK, and, after afew minutes of tearful hugs and good-byes, Billy Jack allows himself to be handcuffed and taken out to be tried for the killings of Bernard and Barbara's father. Meanwhile, the kids at the Freedom School gather outside, and wave Billy Jack goodbye, with the Black Power raised fist signs, and many tears, to boot.
I believe that the movie Billy Jack sends out a mixed message: that fighting back for survival in the face of lawless is necessary, and, yet, when lawlessness prevails, it begets more lawlessness, violence and corruption, and things go too far. Racism against the Indians is prevalent, and that, too, has led to tragedy and bloodshed.
Tom Laughlin, who has written and directed this film, does a wonderful job of playing Billy Jack, the hero, while Delores Taylor (Tom Laughlin's wife), does an equally good job of playing the more pacific Jean Roberts, the director of the Freedom School. David Roya does a cool job of playing the cowardly but vengeful Bernard, who's the son of the town commissioner, Stuart Posner, who illegally advocates shooting wild horses to sell as dog-food at six cents a pound, and Julie Webb also does a good job playing 15-year-old Barbara, who turns out to be quite messed up, instead of growing and maturing. Nobody knows what happens to her in the end, however. The movie leaves it that way.
The best scenes in the movie are when Billy Jack takes on a bunch of local toughs in the city park and uses his martial art skills on them in self-defense. The slowest and dullest scenes are at the Freedom School, where the kids either sing campy folk songs, or indulge in campy drama in the hopes of trying to make some sort of rapport with the townspeople, which, unfortunately, doesn't work, on the long run.
I believe that the film Billy Jack sends a message that, while it's necessary to fight back for survival in the face of lawless, violence, racism and corruption, things can ultimately end up going too far, as the killings indicate.
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"It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brush fires of freedom in the minds of men." -- Samuel Adams (1722-1803)
"It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brush fires of freedom in the minds of men." -- Samuel Adams (1722-1803)
Last edited by WSSlover; 04-14-09 at 08:55 AM.
