Scott LeBrun Rod Steiger typically ratchets up the intensity in this interesting revenge thriller from director Burt Kennedy, a filmmaker who mostly made Westerns. Kennedy also wrote this one, about a quartet of WWII veterans who gather for an outing at a hunting lodge. Soon after they arrive, they learn that the regular caretaker is away, and taking his place is a young man (David Huffman), who turns out to be a Vietnam War deserter. Naturally, this doesn't sit well with group leader Charlie (Steiger), a former Marine who lost his son Danny in Vietnam. Things get very ugly before long.I think it's way too bad that some viewers will feel put off by an admittedly slow first half. It's good that Kennedy and company take their time to allow us to get to know these characters, and to not paint them in only broad strokes. Even David, a character whom some in the audience will feel inclined to despise, is not rendered merely one dimensional. You do, however, feel the incredible tension in the environment slowly getting worse and worse, and know that there's going to be Hell to pay as Steiger gives Huffman more than just a piece of his mind. In a sense, the film is largely predictable, but it's compelling nevertheless, and in the end there is not just murder in the cards, but rape as well. David has a sweet, sexy girlfriend named Linda (played by Robin Mattson, who did her share of exploitation features in the 70s and went on to become a soap opera regular).It's all very sobering and very sad, with a grim feeling of inevitability hanging over the entire proceedings.Steiger is great, and gets some opportunities to really sink his teeth into his material and dialogue. Huffman is fine as well. A trio of top character actors - Jerry Hardin ('The X-Files') as worry wart Wilbur, Paul Mantee ("Robinson Crusoe on Mars") as the macho Sweeney, and Richard Herd ("Trancers") as the amiable George - round out the minimal acting ensemble.Although set in Canada, it may surprise some to learn that the film was actually shot in Mexico!Eight out of 10.

Space_Lord Don't you just hate those peace loving, bleeding heart liberals that aren't fit to live in that great land America, let alone serve in her army just to desert? Why, that's like wiping your @$$ with the American flag!!!! Or so thinks Charlie, a patriotic, war-hardened, mysogynistic bully who was a sergeant in WWII and Vietnam (a completely over the top performance from Rod Steiger).Charlie doesn't have much time for David, the minder of the hunting lodge Charlie and his army buddies (cronies) are staying at. David happens to be a deserter and that makes Charlie mad. Mad enough to KILL! This movie is pretty much given away in the first scene, and confusing cut away scenes throughout it also detract from an otherwise OK tale about a guy who just wants to be left alone vs a psychotic old army guy.

Wizard-8 Given that the movie takes place in Canada, and with producer Melvin Simon having dabbled with the Canadian tax shelter system, you might have reason to believe WOLF LAKE is one of the outputs Canada made during its tax shelter period. Especially since it happens to be a thriller taking place in the backwoods. Surprisingly, though, the credits reveal that the movie was in fact shot in Mexico!While the premise of the movie may seem somewhat familiar, even though I can't think of any movie with a plot that's *exactly* like this one, it does have some exceptional elements, part due to writer/director Kennedy, a veteran western director. (In fact, some parts of the movie do resemble a western.) The production values are really strong, boosted no doubt by the ability to squeeze more value out of a dollar in Mexico, and the camera placing and other directional touches are very professional. Kennedy manages to give this lakeside setting an unsettling feeling, a sense of the threats to come.Kennedy also handles the cast pretty well, though all the actors seem well prepared and up to the challenge. The acting is really good, due in part that Kennedy gives the actors dialogue that fleshes out their characters. Steiger, no surprise, towers over everyone. Though his character is a villain whose eventual behavior can't be excused, you really sense the grief his character has been suffering for years - a grief that has eaten him up and filled him with poison. He's a frightening character even before crossing the line, because his behavior is so believable.The movie is not perfect, though. The biggest flaw is that (at least in the version I saw) there are flashforwards in the first half of the movie that manage to spoil almost *every* major happening in the second half. (The second half has a flashBACK to a previously unseen event, which makes as much sense as those flashforwards!) Also, it takes over half of the running time before the crisis actually starts! Incidently, the movie runs only 87 minutes, which is a pretty short running time. Given that short running time and those confusing edits, there's a chance the movie's slow (though not boring) first half panicked the investors and resulted in some drastic changes. Apparently the movie was re-released a few years later in its original form as THE HIGHEST HONOR, which I would like to see and compare. Maybe some enterprising DVD company could re-release the movie on that format, with each version on a separate side of the DVD. It's not as if the rights for such an obscurity would cost that much.

William Melvin Simon tried to release this film as WOLF LAKE (with bad ending), but that version kept having flashback and flash forward scenes, and kind of made the film confusing. Later, re-edited and fixed in 1980 as HONOR GUARDS(with a good ending). The film has Steiger and his WW2 buddies going on a trip up in the cabin, which is run by a Vietnam draft dodger (Huffman, who was real life murdered by a 16 year old mugger in 1980, who got off real easy for murder) and his girlfriend (Matteson). Steiger's son was killed in Nam and blames it on Huffman. Violence and rape occurs in end in this suspenseful film. I don't know what ending Burt Kennedy, and even Steiger had wanted for the film. Steiger, who really gets into his character, gives one of the best performance of his career.