The Pack: Robert Clouse

Joe Don Baker really got a bum deal from Mystery Science Theater 3000. After starring in two of their most famous episodes with Mitchell (1975) and Final Justice (1984), Baker has developed a reputation as a greasy parody of 70s and 80s action stars. But anybody who has seen Walking Tall (1973) can tell you that Baker is the real deal. That's one of the reasons that Robert Clouse's The Pack angers me: it re-enforces the aforementioned negative stereotype surrounding Baker. The film surrounds the population of a small island that are terrorized by a pack of dogs who had been abandoned by their vacationing owners. Baker plays Jerry, a man who recently moved to the island with his family, who helps lead the islanders in their struggle against "the pack." Unfortunately, Baker's performance is so subdued that it seems like he was on quaaludes. It doesn't help that the plot jumps around too much for its own good. I could only properly follow what was going on because I had its Wikipedia page open while I watched it. The dogs, however, give the film's best performances. I don't even want to imagine how difficult it must have been to train and command all of the dogs used in this film. But the results were worth it: the pack is portrayed as appropriately terrifying. A major problem that a lot of killer animal movies face is that the actual animals used will seem uninterested and uninvolved during their scenes. But the dogs in The Pack seem like they genuinely want to kill anything, and anyone, that gets in their way. If only Clouse could have gotten Baker to act as enthusiastically... 

5/10