Assault on Preceint 13(1976) is a classic low budget feature film of the 1970s which paved the way for John Carpenter's status as a cult action/horror/SCIFI film director. Originally, the director had planned to do The Eyes of Laura Mars which was later filmed by someone else and instead did Assault on Preceint 13. Out of many film directors who have been influenced by Howard Hawks, John Carpenter is one of two people of which it is majorly apparent. Mixes a lot of elements from Night of the Living Dead(1968) with Rio Bravo(1959). One element from the former which appears here is the notion of faceless emotionless killers attacking an isolated and nearly abandoned building. An element from the latter is the hard-boiled behavoir and the odds against them approach. One of three excellent motion pictures by John Carpenter besides The Thing(1982) and Halloween(1978). The scene involving Kim Richards and ice cream is one of the most chilling moments from 1970s low budget films. The acting is good and the action scenes are well done. Sadly, two of the main actors have passed away within the last five years, and the main female actress hasn't been in a film since. A charismatic and humorous performance is given by the late Darwin Joston.
Review of Assault on Precinct 13
