Post-nuke "Road Warrior" and "Escape from New York" knockoffs are a dime a dozen, but the Italians sure mastered the art of making sleazy & cheesy low rent versions of familiar stories. In this case, it's 20 years after the nuclear holocaust, and factions are divided into good guys: the rebel "Federation", and the bad guys: the "Euraks", the result of the amalgamation of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Michael Sopkiw plays Parsifal, a mercenary hired by the President (Edmund Purdom, "Pieces") to go into NYC and retrieve the young lady believed to be the only uncontaminated, fertile female left on Earth.
Among the companions that Parsifal acquires on his journey are muscle man Ratchet (Romano Puppo), navigator Bronx (Paolo Maria Scalondro), a young lady named Giara (Valentine Monnier), and helpful dwarf "Shorty" (Louis Ecclesia). They make for a colorful and enjoyable bunch, and they're opposed by a mostly faceless bunch of goons. Prominent among the villains is the sexy Anna Kanakis as Ania, whose character is unceremoniously dropped from the story. The cast also includes the legendary George Eastman ("Rabid Dogs", "Anthropophagus") as the appropriately named "Big Ape", who falls in love with the quarry once he lays eyes on her.
Director Sergio Martino ("Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key", "Torso") guides everything with style, even if there's not really anything here that we haven't seen before. There are amusingly designed cars, some enjoyably gross makeup effects, and a sometimes mean spirited approach. Much praise has to go towards use of locations, as this little movie does look like it's taking place on an apocalypse-ravaged Earth.
Beginning on a mournful, atmospheric note, this flick is able to sustain itself for a well paced 96 minutes.
Seven out of 10.
Among the companions that Parsifal acquires on his journey are muscle man Ratchet (Romano Puppo), navigator Bronx (Paolo Maria Scalondro), a young lady named Giara (Valentine Monnier), and helpful dwarf "Shorty" (Louis Ecclesia). They make for a colorful and enjoyable bunch, and they're opposed by a mostly faceless bunch of goons. Prominent among the villains is the sexy Anna Kanakis as Ania, whose character is unceremoniously dropped from the story. The cast also includes the legendary George Eastman ("Rabid Dogs", "Anthropophagus") as the appropriately named "Big Ape", who falls in love with the quarry once he lays eyes on her.
Director Sergio Martino ("Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key", "Torso") guides everything with style, even if there's not really anything here that we haven't seen before. There are amusingly designed cars, some enjoyably gross makeup effects, and a sometimes mean spirited approach. Much praise has to go towards use of locations, as this little movie does look like it's taking place on an apocalypse-ravaged Earth.
Beginning on a mournful, atmospheric note, this flick is able to sustain itself for a well paced 96 minutes.
Seven out of 10.