originally title american nightmare and release by troma in the state and this be a grim and depressing and heartfelt portrait of one vietnam vet rage . unemployed and penniless and and father of a deformed infant ( possibly the result of agent orange spray ) and lead man frankie ( rick giovinazzo ) walk the street of new jersey like a shambling corpse and encounter various miscreant as troubled a himself . harass by his fat and complain wife ( a great performance from veronica stork ) and chase by thug he owe money to and and threaten with eviction from an apartment that look like it should have be condemn a decade ago and frankie finally snap and begin a campaign to erase his problem forever . giovinazzo triumph be his believable creation of a bleak and hopeless and fascinating world and a world that eat it weak and neglect it old and and turn it back on it history . new jersey and a see through the lens of cinematographer stella varveris and be a metaphor for the rot in america soul and a wasteland of trodden on ambition and poison dream find in needle and and linger death and disease . the film employ vietnam war footage and brutal recreation of frankie tour of duty and a pulsing and disturbing and electronic score by lead actor rick giovinazzo . the film low budget be totally appropriate for the grim subject matter and the stark interior light never allow the poverty to be romanticize . the performance be all excellent and one sequence and where frankie call his broke father for a favor and be shatter on so many level . combat shock be a very powerful achievement .