Brutalization (1973)

aka: Because of the Cats

Studio: One 7 Movies

Theatrical Release: April 1st, 1973

DVD Release: January 7th, 2014

Rating: UnRated

Directed by Fons Rademakers

Review by Craig Sorensen

Don’t be fooled by One 7’s ‘gritty’ DVD cover and torture-porn laden title, Brutalization is not some modern styled sleaze fest, but a long, ‘70s cop film full of all the thorough crime investigating that the kids love these days.  This film has more in common with Kojak than Hostel.  I’m not complaining mind you, I put off watching this for a while because I just assumed that it was some dour, recent film; shot on video (and desaturated, naturally), lots of screaming and very little plot.  Rather than shock, these just tend to bore.  I’m not saying that Because of the Cats is an exciting romp, but it’s a far cry from modern bullshit.

 A group of affluent teens is terrorizing Amsterdam, stealing cars, smashing homes and brutally raping women.  This shocking rape scene is the closest you will get to the ‘Brutalization’ title so if you’re watching for that (you goddamn sick motherfucker) you can shut off the TV when it’s over.  That’s about as exploitive as it gets for quite a while.  The rest of the film follows Inspector van der Valk (Bryan Marshall of Quatermass and the Pit) as he investigates the crime.  He runs into the usual resistance from the establishment (these are all children of the rich) as he tightens the vice on his suspects.  Seems these kids are all members of a gang called The Ravens.  He also finds a female gang called The Cats.  They all hang out with a rich, charismatic club owner who seems to have a strange hold over the young hoodlums.

 Originally titled Because of the Cats (I guess One 7 doesn’t think you’ll buy a movie about cats), the film seems to have been sold (based on the trailer anyway) as an exploitation film.  And the film does have it’s fair share of nudity, from the opening sexual assault to a young man being murdered by a group of skinny dipping teenage girls.  But beyond that, Because of the Cats has more to do with your run-of-the-mill ‘70s cop film.  It is a well made cop film though, don’t get me wrong.  Director Fons Rademakers seems much more concerned with teenage disenfranchisement and the adults that take advantage of it.  Rademakers would go on to win an Oscar for his film The Assault.  Because of the Cats also features Sylvia Kristel in a small role, one year before her break-out role as Emmanuelle.  It’s a small role but, of course, she’s nude so there you go.

 The transfer here doesn’t look too bad.  There are some compression issues early on but things seem to get better after a rough looking beginning.  Colors are a bit muted but not too bad.  Sound is only available in it’s original mono, but it’s more than adequate.  The only extra is the original theatrical trailer, which of course, tries to make this look more exiting than it actually is.

[Rating: 2.5 Stars]