Announcement
Collapse
No announcement yet.
Stryker
Collapse
-
- Published: 02-13-2017, 09:39 AM
- 4 comments
X
Collapse
-
Stryker
Released by: Kino Studio Classics
Released on: January 3rd, 2017.
Director: Cirio Santiago
Cast: Steve Sandor, Andrea Savio, William Ostrander, Julie Gray, Monique St. Pierre
Year: 1983
Purchase From Amazon
The Movie:
Of all the mutts that populated the exploitation film dog kennel in the 1980's, none were mangier than the post-apocalyptic/ROAD WARRIOR ripoffs. Usually featuring tons of explosions, dudes dressed in various types of pirate and biker leather gear driving dune buggies or monster trucks and girls looking like extras from Pat Benatar's "Love Is A Battlefield" video, this is the genre that defines "cheese."
Which leads us to 1983's STRYKER.
Lensed by Filipino B-movie legend Cirio Santiago who had a long and fruitful association with the one and only Roger Corman, this film is extremely weak sauce even by the lowly standards of this genre. After kicking off with a ropy voice-over that fills us in on the situation (there's been an atomic war and all that's left is desert and everybody is fighting for the only commodity that matters - water), we dive right into the so-called narrative. Which is, kind of nothing. There's a sexy woman being chased by bad guys because she's carrying some water. Once they catch up to her, their attempt to find out where she obtained it is thwarted by an attack from a roving gang headed by Stryker (Steve Sandor) - who starts shooting and the woman escapes in the confusion.
There's a badly conceived plot of sorts here but the editing and story-line are so poorly constructed that it's hard to follow. Essentially this is a film about rival gangs fighting each other for control of the world's water supply. Stryker is the lone wolf hero (okay, he does have a sidekick named Bandit played by William Ostrander) who wanders in and out of the two to three opposing camps. The first woman we saw is from a female gang that are encamped at a place referred to as The Colony - which surrounds a spring. This is, naturally, of great interest to main bad guy Kardis (Mike Lane) who heads the gang that we saw at the start of the film. He wants control of all the water and a spring is a great start. The women have a plan to unite with a third group run by a man named Trun (Ken Metcalfe) who are ensconced close by under the assumption that if their two groups can unite, they can repel the evil Kardis. In a further twists, Trun is Stryker's brother and Kardis murdered Stryker's wife. So... revenge!
This movie is as dumb as a paper bag filled with wet, steel hammers. That wouldn't necessarily kill it as entertainment if it had something to alleviate the repetition. Films like this need the kind of shot in the arm that a great character actor like Henry Silva or a genial presence like Al Cliver can provide. But here all we've got is Sandor's boring performance, some competently lensed action sequences and a whole lot of repetition. In fact, the competency level of the many crashes, explosions and fights ends up hurting the film. I found myself praying for some hilariously poorly conceived fight choreography to numb the ennui. Santiago had a long and busy career but this is far from his best. I'd recommend NAKED VENGEANCE if you actually want to have a good time.
Pluses? Well, the women are attractive. And I kind of like the utterly bizarre musical score. Lane has a cool Anton Szandor LaVey/Sig Haig look for his Fu Manchu-esque villain. The Filipino locations look realistic for a post-nuke world and the cars are rad. If you are a huge MAD MAX junkie this one can satisfy your jones I suppose.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Kino's 1.78.1 framed 1080p AVC encoded transfer does a good job of presenting the film in HD. Unlike most Kino titles, there were a few moments that looked slightly DNR'd but these were negligible enough that few but the most eagle-eyed would notice. There is also some minor but nevertheless noticeable print damage. Otherwise we've got solid black levels and good color reproduction with plenty of fine detail on display in faces, landscapes and clothing. This title was previously only available in a shoddy full frame DVD multi-pack so fans should be pleased.
The audio is a passable DTS-HD 2.0 mono track that occasionally gets shrill on the high end but is clear and centered. There are subtitles provided in English but I never needed them. The usual caveats apply to period mono audio tracks - don't be expecting anything immersive. That said, bottom end here was surprisingly decent for the car crashes and explosions,
The only significant extra is a commentary track featuring filmmaker and Cirio pal Jim Wynorski (who worked on a few films with the man) and Code Red's Bill Olsen with third wheel film historian Damon Packard along for the ride. This is a fun chat where Wynorski really takes the lead. The three cover a wide range of topics including Wynorski's remake of the film WATER WARS and some of the filmmaker's experiences on Cirio's sets. Bill Olsen addresses the absurdity of the plot's water conceit and the gang have a chuckle at some of the other shenanigans on display. Well worth a listen.
Beyond the commentary, the film's trailer and a few other Code Red trailers are here.
The Final Word:
Dull and repetitive, I can't really recommend this one to anyone other than the hardest of hardcore MAD MAX ripoff post-apocalyptic aficionados. I will say, however, that the commentary is strong and for anyone with a previously pleasant experience with this film that this is a serious upgrade worth picking up. Everybody else? Tread with extreme caution.
-
#2Jason CSenior MemberFind all postsView Profile02-13-2017, 12:11 PMEditing a commentNice review. It sums up my experience with the VHS a few years ago. The lead is dull and there's not enough exploitation to keep me interested. I picked the blu-ray to support Cirio Santiago releases and I'm willing to give it another shot. WHEELS OF FIRE is one of my favorite Cirio Santiago flicks.
-
#3SaxAndViolinsJunior MemberFind all postsView Profile03-11-2017, 07:08 PMEditing a commentI thought I was a hardcore post-apocalypse fan until I bought this blind and watched it. It's pretty darn terrible and just boring. Thinking of mailing it to the "Best of the Worst" guys.
-
#4Jason CSenior MemberFind all postsView Profile03-13-2017, 02:03 PMEditing a commentMy second go didn't improve my opinion. Steve Sandor looks the part but adds no excitement. It lacks the characters and sleaze that my favorite Cirio rip-offs deliver on.
Posting comments is disabled. -
Categories
Collapse
article_tags
Collapse
- album review (218)
- album reviews (274)
- arrow video (272)
- blu-ray (3225)
- blu-ray review (4162)
- comic books (1392)
- comic reviews (872)
- comics (988)
- dark horse comics (484)
- dvd and blu-ray reviews a-f (1969)
- DVD And Blu-ray Reviews G-M (1711)
- DVD And Blu-ray Reviews N-S (1757)
- DVD And Blu-ray Reviews T-Z (878)
- dvd review (2513)
- idw publishing (216)
- image comics (207)
- kino lorber (391)
- movie news (260)
- review (318)
- scream factory (279)
- severin films (300)
- shout! factory (537)
- twilight time (269)
- twilight time releasing (231)
- vinegar syndrome (497)
Latest Articles
Collapse
-
Released by: Kino Lorber
Released on: February 22nd, 2022.
Director: Gianfranco Parolini
Cast: Lee Van Cleef, Jack Palance
Year: 1976
Purchase From Amazon
God’s Gun – Movie Review:
Directed by Gianfranco Parolini in 1976, quite late in the spaghetti western boom years, God's Gun (Diamante Lobo in Italy) introduces us to a bad, bad man named Sam Clayton (Jack Palance) who, along with his gang of equally bad, bad men, start wreaking...-
Channel: Movies
04-17-2024, 12:10 PM -
-
Released by: Kino Lorber
Released on: October 8th, 2019.
Director: Mario Bava
Cast: Christopher Lee, Reg Park, Leonora Ruffo, Gaia Germani
Year: 1968
Purchase From Amazon
Hercules In The Haunted World – Movie Review:
Directed by Mario Bava in 1961 and featuring a screenplay by Bava (and Sandro Continenza, Francesco Prosperi and Duccio Tessari), Hercules In The Haunted World (also known as Hercules At The Center Of The Earth and...-
Channel: Movies
04-17-2024, 12:08 PM -
-
Released by: Cinématographe
Released on: March 26th, 2024.
Director: Jack Nicholson
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Mary Steenburgen, Christopher Lloyd, John Belushi
Year: 1978
Purchase From Amazon
Goin’ South – Movie Review:
Made at the height of his career as an actor, 1978’s ‘Goin’ South’ sees Jack Nicholson once again in the director’s chair, seven years after his directorial debut, ‘Drive, He Said,’ failed to set the...-
Channel: Movies
04-17-2024, 10:29 AM -
-
Released by: Radiance Films
Released on: April 20th, 2024.
Director: Noburo Nakamura
Cast: Miyuki Kuwano, Mikijiro Hira
Year: 1964
Purchase From Amazon
The Shape Of Night – Movie Review:
Directed by Noburo Nakamura for Shochiko in 1964, ‘The Shape Of Night’ follows a young woman named Yoshie Nomoto (Miyuki Kuwano). In the opening scene, she’s working as a streetwalker on the outskirts of town and soon enough, she’s picked...-
Channel: Movies
04-17-2024, 10:26 AM -
-
Released by: Film Masters
Released on: April 23rd, 2024.
Director: Bert I. Gordon
Cast: Richard Carlson, Juli Reding, Lugene Sanders, Susan Gordon
Year: 1963
Purchase From Amazon
Tormented – Movie Review:
The late Bert I. Gordon’s 1963 horror film, ‘Tormented,’ is an effectively spooky ghost story made with an obviously low budget but no less effective for it.
The story revolves around a professional piano player...-
Channel: Movies
04-17-2024, 10:19 AM -
-
Released by: Grindhouse Releasing
Released on: March 12th, 2024.
Director: William Grefé
Cast: William Shatner, Jennifer Bishop, Ruth Roman, Harold Sakata
Year: 1974
Purchase From Amazon
Impulse – Movie Review:
Directed by the one and only William Grefé, 1974’s Impulse is one of those rare films that allows you to witness what it would be like if a really sweaty William Shatner got mad at a lady carrying balloons. Before that...-
Channel: Movies
04-15-2024, 01:20 PM -