On the surface, this film would be comparable to contained grindhouse thrillers such as Assault
On Precinct 13, contemporary thrillers like Panic Room, and Roger Corman biker films such as Dirty
Mary, Crazy Larry and the Australian biker film, Stone. Thematically however, the surface details are only a window dressing for a story that is ultimately about authenticity, and becomes a tug of war between those who are seeking it, and those who may possess too much of it. To the gangbangers and the bikers, authenticity is a badge of honor, and something they’d be willing to die for, something the filmmakers must understand in order to survive the situation. This story also presents a clash of warring ideologies, as the rest of the patrons in the bar are stuck in the middle of two diametrically opposed factions, an apt metaphor representing the current state of American politics.
Blast Furnace is an action filled, but also uncompromising thriller that doesn’t usually get made in the studio system anymore. Fans of gritty exploitation films will gravitate to its serious tone and controversial characters. If made into a feature, I believe the movie would stick with viewers long after they’ve watched it, and maybe even get people to re-examine long held beliefs that have stagnated the growth of our fervently divided nation.
