Edgar Wright once remarked on Twitter that "it is never too late to see a film" and this week at the Belmont, 25 years after release, I finally saw The Warriors come out to play.
From the moment that Barry De Vorzon's electro-funk score kicks in during the opening scene which sees scores of New York City gangs assemble and make their way towards a big meet in the Bronx, I was completely on board this train and ready for the ride.
The plot is simple but effective. A gang called The Warriors are framed for the murder of a gang chief and must try to make it all the way from the Bronx back to their home in Coney Island in one piece.
Kickstarted by a DJ sounding out a call to arms with the song "Nowhere To Run", it sets the scene for a number of showdowns between the various "boppers" including the iconic looking Baseball Furies and a bathroom stall fight that must have served as inspiration for one of the battles in Wright's The World's End.
It might not have the same visceral impact when compared to modern day cinematic violence but what it does have in spades is a real sense of machismo, swagger, cool and James Remar spouting lines like "I'm gonna shove that bat up your ass and turn you into a Popsicle".
It took 25 years to see The Warriors but it won't be another 25 before I see it again as I'm already sourcing my leather waistcoat and moving to Coney Island.
4 stars
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