By: Joseph Perry (Twitter/X)

Writer: When It Was Cool

Also Featured At: Gruesome Magazine, The Scariest Things, Horror Fuel, B&S About Movies, The Good, the Bad, and the Verdict, and Diabolique Magazine, and film magazines Phantom of the Movies’ VideoScope and Drive-In Asylum.

Film Review: Night of the Juggler (Fantasia 2025)

Official synopsis: The grit and intensity of late-1970s New York City are depicted in stark detail in this relentlessly action-packed cult classic. Twenty-four hours of nerve-jangling tension and suspense begin when a twisted psychotic (Cliff Gorman) kidnaps a teenage girl (Abby Bluestone), mistaking her for the daughter of a wealthy real estate developer. Her determined father (James Brolin), a hard-hitting ex-cop, doggedly pursues them through New York’s seamy streets, decaying, burned-out Bronx tenements, and the grimy subterranean corridors beneath the city itself.

Night of the Juggler (1980) is a vintage thriller that never lets up, and it is the recipient of a beautiful new 4K restoration from Kino Lorber. Director Robert Butler, who replaced original director Sidney J. Furie a few weeks into production, captures a grimy New York City that can only be seen in rare films like this.

Once ex-cop and now truck driver and single father Sean Boyd (Brolin) goes on both foot chases and car chases when he sees his daughter abducted, and after that, he punches and bullies his way through police stations and gangs of street toughs in his mission to rescue her. It’s all action, pretty much all the time, with side trips into the ruins of an apartment building for racist pseudo-philosophical musings from the baddie, and even a Times Square sex joint. 

And what a group of characters are on hand — true characters who have back stories. No matter their amount of screen time, you know what these characters are like. From a disgruntled police lieutenant (Richard Castellano) who has seen it all and has financial concerns about his daughter’s upcoming wedding weighing on his mind, to a cop (Dan Hedaya) who Boyd got into hot water when they worked together who is now so bent on revenge that he is blasting a shotgun on the crowded streets of New York in pursuit of Our Hero, a Puerto Rican cabbie (Mandy Patinkin) whose dialogue is not very kind toward Puerto Rican people, and more, plenty more. 

Kidnapper Gus Soltic (Gorman) spits out racist diatribes aplenty, and the minorities depicted in the film are almost totally limited to negative stereotypes. That material is not for the easily offended. A Puerto Rican woman named Maria (Julie Carmen) who helps out Boyd is the most positively presented minority character in the film, and she is given a high status role.

If you’re in the mood for an old-school pulse pounder that boasts solid performances and no shortage of action, Night of the Juggler has you covered. 

Night of the Juggler screens as part of Fantasia 2025, which takes place from July 16–August 3 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. 

Night of the Juggler will open in theaters in NYC in a new 4K restoration on August 1st at the IFC Center, and September 4th in L.A. at the American Cinematheque, with James Brolin in attendance for Q&As after select screenings.

Joseph Perry also writes for the websites Gruesome Magazine (gruesomemagazine.com), The Scariest Things (scariesthings.com), Horror Fuel (horrorfuel.com), B&S About Movies (bandsaboutmovies.com), The Good, the Bad, and the Verdict (gbvreviews.com), and Diabolique Magazine (diaboliquemagazine.com), and film magazines Phantom of the Movies’ VideoScope (videoscopemag.com) and Drive-In Asylum (etsy.com/shop/GroovyDoom). 

If you found this article interesting, consider becoming a Patreon supporter.  That is how When It Was Cool keeps our website and podcasts online, plus you get lots of bonus content including extra podcasts, articles, ebooks, and much more.  Check out our Patreon Page to see what's up!