I have to admit, this is a real favorite of mine in the graphic extreme bloody genre of semi-revenge thrillers. (is that even a genre?) Oh well, I saw this back in the day, and what I remember is the x-rating it got, and I don't believe it was ever edited to get any other rating. I watched it a 2nd time last night, and listened to the interesting commentary by director Roberta Findlay. She doesn't understand why it got an x-rating at all, but believe me, this was very strong stuff back in 1985. Basicially a gang of drugged out baddies get kicked out of their basement dwelling and arrested, and soon come back to kill everybody left in the tenement. This has some great stuff in it, some really zonked out homicidal gang members, and some residents that decide to put up a fight. And it is has some pretty decent production value, and the main goodies, extreme graphic violence and a high abundance of blood. This is a good eighties nasty, which deserves a place in your sleeze collection.

In a truly slummy area of NYC, a vicious street gang squats inside a dingy apartment building. One of the residents rats them out to the cops, but the revolving doors of justice being what they are, the scum are back out on the street later in the day. Guided by their cool-cat leader Chaco (Enrique Sandino), they spend one whole night and early morning terrorizing the residents, one floor at a time.

Considered by some to be exploitation legend Roberta Findlay's finest effort, "Tenement" (a.k.a. "Game of Survival") is gloriously trashy. It's got plenty of sex and violence to satisfy lovers of the genre, with decent action and great attention to grim and grubby detail. This is pretty much prime sleaze, although it does suffer from an over abundance of dummies. These protagonists just do not act sensible often enough. The only one of them who's got something resembling a brain is building tough guy Sam Washington (Joe Lynn). But it's still fun when, in the movies' final quarter, Washington leads his comrades in a concerted effort to thwart the bad guys.

And what magnificently nasty bastards they are. Sandino is an amusing head villain, with future Hollywood character actor Paul Calderon making an impressive film debut as one of his flunkies. Super sexy Karen Russell is easy to watch as Chacos' lady friend Chula. All in all, the acting IS better than you'd usually find in a Findlay movie. We've got Mina Bern as old lady Ruth, Walter Bryant as amiable Mr. Wesley, Corinne Château as Carol, the prostitute supporting a junkie boyfriend (Angel David of "The Crow"), Rhetta Hughes as the tough talking Leona, Larry Lara as the insufferable Rojas, Alfonso Manosalvas as lovable old blind man Mr. Gonzales, and Gy Mirano as the very pregnant Anita.

There are some lovely gore moments, and a very hip soundtrack. (That theme song is likely to be stuck in your head after the movie is over.) The single most depraved sequence involves a broomstick; it's also something the viewer will definitely remember.

Lively entertainment with a smashing climax that takes place as the night is at its darkest and stormiest.

Seven out of 10.

A motley assortment of people who all reside in a rundown apartment building find themselves being terrorized by a vicious street gang led by the ruthless Chaco (a nicely slimy portrayal by Enrique Sandino).

Director Roberta Findlay relates the gripping story at a steady pace, makes neat use of various seedy inner city locations, builds a good deal of tension, and maintains an unsparingly raw, gritty, and scuzzy take-no-prisoners tone throughout. The jolting moments of brutal and gruesome violence pack a savage punch; said ugly carnage includes a few bloody stabbings and throat slashings, a painful heroin overdose, an equally excruciating castration, and a particularly unpleasant scene involving the business end of a broomstick. Moreover, it's well acted by a capable no-name cast: Joe Lynn as the tough and resourceful Sam Washington, Mina Bern as feisty old lady Ruth, Walter Bryant as the kindly Mr. Wesley, Corinne Chateau as forlorn hooker Carol, Angel David as pathetic junkie Poppo, Rhetta Hughes as the brash Leona, Gy Mirano as the pregnant Anita, Alfonso Manosalvas as the blind Mr. Gonzoles, and Larry Lara as obnoxious blowhard Rojas. The folks who play the gang members have a field day with their despicable characters, with Paul Calderon as the blithely sadistic Hector and Karen Russell as foxy moll Chula rating as definite stand-outs. Findlay's competent no-frills cinematography and the funky synthesizer score by Walter E. Sear and William Fischer hit the spot, too. The proto-rap theme song is extremely catchy as well. Recommended viewing for fans of hardcore rough'n'ready grindhouse fare.