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Walking Tall (1973)

Rate: 7
Viewed: 11/23

WTall
11/23: Walking Tall is what Joe Don Baker is famous for.

Budgeted for $500,000 before going on to gross over $40 million, the gritty B film is as redneck as it can be in the rural setting of Tennessee. It's sometimes hard-hitting with an ugly side of violence. Buford Pusser can be labeled a hero because he took on a dangerous job when he didn't have to. Even his wife knew what's to come.

However, the story is partly fictional. It's true that there were assassination attempts on Pusser's life and that he was shot multiple times. His wife was killed exactly as how it happened in the film. Walking Tall came out in 1973, and the guy himself died a year later. Nobody is sure whether he drove drunk or was assassinated.

Many acts by Buford Pusser are apparently illegal as they seem to smack more of vigilantism than law enforcement. Sure, what he did strike a chord that grabs the people by the lapels which is fine by me. The ending is silly because the burning question to ask is: where were these people for support the whole time?

All in all, Walking Tall highlights the best of 70's gritty realism when it comes to dishing out rural justice.