Frederick Forsythe's thriller - Avenger

The film version of 'Avenger ' is based on a novel written by Frederick Forsythe, who had written some of the best Political thrillers like 'The Odessa File' , 'The Day of the Jackal' , Devil's Alternative , The Fourth protocol ,The Negotiator,' Avenger ' ..

It is the heart wrenching tale of a young American aid volunteer Billy Colenso, who is brutally murdered in the former Yugoslovia in 1995. Billy , full of youthful enthusiasm and a passion for serving the needy ends up at Serbia, hoping to do his bit for the starving and suffering masses, but , sadly he is targeted by the terrorist groups who are trying to create more instability in the region. His Grandfather the Canadian Billionaire Steven Edmond, is bent on revenge and he begins an investigation into the matter. The quest to find Billy's murder leads Edmond to Cal Dexter, an ex- Vietnam Special Forces, probably ,the only man who can bring the killer to justice. But what starts as a personal , domestic tragedy soon explodes into a terrifying drama on the centre stage of world terrorism and Cal gets to unearth more than he had bargained for..

My views

The story is an extremely moving account of Carl dexter's efforts to go back 6 years in time and find out about Billy. The story is shown in flashbacks and the present intermingling.
We get to see Carl's own experiences in Vietnam, his days as a Tunnel Rat which is the most difficult task that a special force personnel undertakes as it is full of danger - Army special forces soldiers who climbed down into the tunnels of Cu Chi, Vietnam to stalk enemy forces. And then his chase through Serbia and the Jungles of Central America ..
It is full of action and suspense and very violent. I hate to see too much physical violence, and this one is very violent. I have read the book and the action is quite graphic in the book too, but it is another matter when you have to watch it. It is extremely disturbing to say the least!

Sam Elliott who has acted in films like The Legacy, Mask, Fatal Beauty, Prancer, Tombstone, Gettysburg, The Big Lebowski, , stars as Carl Dexter who is Hunting for justice and being Hunted at the same time ,in the film. Sam Elliot is a terrific actor and here he is in his element, the role is tailor made for him. Timothy Hutton portrays the CIA handler ordered to make Dexter disappear.
The film has been shot on location at Panama, Washington DC, Bosnia-Herzgovina and South Africa providing the settings for this gripping tale of justice with a vengeance.;

This is a tale of violence through and through, but it has a moving tale about young Billy as a backdrop.The film makes one think, as to what is the point of any humanity or kindness? .I can well believe that there must be hundreds of young people like Billy, who want to do social work , help the needy in a war torn zone. But the reality is far too harsh, where there is no value for life and people can be butchered for the silliest of reasons and for no reasons. After going through many such accounts i personally feel that it is best to let people fight their own battles. When political terrorists are involved , they do not care for any human values except furthering their own interests..

Except for the violence , the film has been well directed , is very gripping and moving with some good performances..

Film Details

Cast : Calvin Dexter,Frank Mcbride,Zoran zilic,Stephen Edmonds,Van Rensburg

Runtime: 1h 40min

Color: Color