Protector by Larry Niven (1973) classic hard science fiction with knobby aliens

Cover by Dean Ellis

I read just about all of Larry Niven's novels published in the 1970s, including the ones written with Jerry Pournelle. I  enjoyed them all immensely and this was one of my favorites. Protector (1973) is part of his Known Space series of short stories and novels.  It's an imaginative tale, complete with fascinating aliens and much hard science which were Niven's trademarks. His ideas are quite large, in a literal big picture kind of way, making time and the incomprehensible size of universe central to many of his plots. This one is no exception, dealing largely with travel through the vastness of space. Prose style and characterization were not Niven's strong suit, but there are many mind-bending ideas, and it's written well enough so it's an enjoyable read, or in my case reread. 

Fists of Fury (aka The Big Boss) - Bruce Lee kicks some ass,1971

Fantastic karate & kung-fu action film from the great Bruce Lee. Lee plays a young man who leaves his home town, promising his mother that he will no longer get into fights. We know that won't last long, and by the end of the movie he has maimed and killed many foes (all villains who had it coming of course). The sound effects are wonderfully over-the-top. The dubbed version (which I watched) adds to the insanity. Not as great as Enter the Dragon, but an excellent precursor to that masterpiece.

When the shirt comes off you know it's about to get serious.

       

Busting (1974)

Pretty decent cop flick with Elliott Gould and Robert Blake. Director Peter Hyams first movie. It's rather dark and gritty, with some humor supplied by the two stars. Plot-wise it's pretty standard fair. There's a lot of crime and corruption in L.A. and vice cops Keneely and Farrel decide to do something about it. There's some shooting, good chase scenes, strippers and more, everything you'd expect in a 1970s cop movie. But overall it's pretty downbeat and cynical. Very nice camera work with a lot of long takes and interesting angles. Good supporting cast, especially Allen Garfield as crime boss Carl Rizzo. And Elliott Gould wears a funny hat.

Elliott Gould with mustache and hat, having a brew.

Death Race 2000 (1975)

Car racing mayhem from 1975. Often hilarious (intentionally so) campy cult science fiction classic set in (obviously) the year 2000. It's all for television ratings as five racing teams try to run down citizens for points on the "Transcontinental Road Race". David Carradine, in his first post-Kung Fu role plays "Frankenstein", a supposedly disfigured two-time winner of the  race. The lovely Simone Griffeth plays his navigator. Sylvester Stallone, in a pre-Rocky role, plays his chief rival Machine Gun Jo Viterbo. There are also several attractive ladies who don't mind taking their tops off now and then (it's the 70s after all). While there is a good bit of violent death, the special effects are such that it never gets too disturbing (the blood just doesn't look like blood). Produced by B-movie master Roger Corman and directed by Paul Bartel (who also takes a humorous turn as Frankenstein's doctor). Nice cinematography by Tak Fujimoto. Overall a great little movie (it's fairly short), and one of my all-time faves.

It's the future!

David Carradine and Simone Griffeth.

There were a couple of sequels (or prequels as the case may), imaginatively title Death Race and Death Race 2, made in 2008 and 2010. They were both set in (and confined to) the notorious prison Terminal Island and were pretty much the same movie. The first one with Jason Statham and Joan Allen is the better of the two. The second (which is actually the prequel to the 2008, both being confusingly the prequel to the 1975 movie which was set in 2000) shows how the Frankenstein character comes to be. Up-to-date with much more realistic gory special effects, and grittier, with rap music and such, they are fun enough but lack charm and have very little to do with the original Death Race 2000.