Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- bleak
- gruesome
- cynical
- cult movie night
- exploitation double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly regarded the film as a poorly made, disjointed exploitation thriller whose grotesque violence and vigilante ethics overwhelmed its cinematic merits.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
John Eastland is a Vietnam veteran who uses old Army gear to punish the criminals who crippled his friend.
The film centers on grotesque executions, torture, gore, and an aggressively distasteful revenge spectacle.
Eastland takes justice into his own hands after his friend is permanently crippled and the streets remain dangerous.
The story moves through New York crime networks involving gangsters, prostitution, pimps, and vulnerable victims.
Films like The Exterminator, and why
Death Wish
urban vigilante revenge, graphic punishment, and morally corrosive crime drama
Rolling Thunder
bleak 1970s-style vigilantism, traumatized protagonists, and grim urban violence
Taxi Driver
Vietnam veteran trauma redirected into brutal, uncompromising revenge violence
The New York Ripper
low-budget exploitation action, criminal underworld targets, and sadistic revenge set pieces
Movie Details
- Director
- James Glickenhaus
- Release Date
- 1980-09-10
- Runtime
- 98 min
- Rating
- 5.5 / 10 (156)
Cast
- Robert Ginty
- Christopher George
- Samantha Eggar
- Steve James
- Tony DiBenedetto
- Dick Boccelli
- Patrick Farrelly
- Michele Harrell
- David Lipman
- Tom Everett
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Screambox Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Troma NOW, Midnight Pulp Amazon Channel, Cineverse Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Exterminator about?
- A traumatized Vietnam veteran wages a savage one-man war on New York criminals after his best friend is left permanently crippled.
- What is The Exterminator like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Exterminator as brisk, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Exterminator violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Exterminator as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Exterminator?
- Critics broadly regarded the film as a poorly made, disjointed exploitation thriller whose grotesque violence and vigilante ethics overwhelmed its cinematic merits.
- Which films are like The Exterminator?
- Films with a similar feel include Death Wish, Rolling Thunder, Taxi Driver, and The New York Ripper.
- How long is The Exterminator?
- The Exterminator runs 98 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Exterminator?
- In United States, The Exterminator streams on Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Screambox Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Troma NOW, Midnight Pulp Amazon Channel, Cineverse Amazon Channel.
