Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at the neglected Doberman Gang series of movies.
THE DOBERMAN GANG (1972) – I’m a lifelong dog lover, so let me point out that this was the very first film to carry the American Humane Association’s guarantee that “No animals were harmed in the making of this film.” Despite spawning a franchise, The Doberman Gang flies by the proverbial seat of its pants, and while it’s good to know that no dogs were harmed this flick features a few Doberman attacks on humans that seem too gritty.
This movie bounces erratically between Family Friendly and low-budget gimmick production. Eddie (Byron Mabe) leads his bank robber accomplices Sammy and JoJo (Simmy Bow and JoJo D’Amore) who idiotically screw up heists that seem like sure things.
Fed up with the way that human error keeps messing up his carefully planned capers, Eddie strikes upon the idea of using trained dogs to rob banks for him. That may sound like the premise of a light-hearted Disney movie from the 1970s but The Doberman Gang retains a low-life criminal air that’s too grimy at times. Continue reading
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