Back in the 1970's it seemed haunted houses, evil marauding cars, or in this case, Doberman pincher's were always trying to take a bite out of the frequently cast James Brolin. As previous comments have already stated, Brolin is "Trapped" after hours in a Macey's-type department store and must evade attack dogs left to guard the premises. What makes this such a great setting is the way he cleverly employs items among the wares inside to try and get himself out of trouble. For example, a fishing rod from the sporting goods section becomes (if memory serves) a means of reaching a set of keys dangling between him and the snarling animals. What doesn't work all that well however is a subplot in which Brolin's ex-wife (Susan Clark) and daughter are set to leave his life with Clark's new husband (Earl Holliman), a real third wheel of a character who simply complicates the dynamic of the tale. It should have just been concerned with Brolin's attempts to survive so he can return to his worried family. Despite that plot intrusion it's still a very entertaining suspense melodrama, energetically directed by 70's best selling author, Frank De Felitta, ("Audrey Rose") who shows a real flare for this material. While he did undertake a few additional directing assignments, (most notably "Dark Night Of The Scarecrow" in 1981), De Felitta worked very infrequently in the director's chair. A shame really as he shows such promise here he might well have become as famous a movie director as he is an author.
Review of Doberman Patrol
