Lars Jacobsson
This sword and sorcery flick is a mess. Judging from the confused narrative and editing plus constant namedropping of characters we haven't been introduced to, I would guess that it's a failed TV-pilot or something that somebody squeezed together to feature length and released to an unsuspecting world. If you have a high tolerance level for bad sword and sorcery flicks there's some fun to be had: there's some monsters, like the cool snake-men, magic, a lot of silly fantasy nonsense dialogue ("you must recover the runestone from Brakus the Destroyer in order to save the kingdom of Harmonia from the evil... blah blah blah...") and some weird color filters that the creators use from now and then for no apparent reason. Also, it should be noted that this film takes itself 100% serious, which makes the pretentious overacting from an aged George Kennedy in fake-beard and a silly wig all the funnier. And everybody's favorite boy's-own hero Kabir "Sandokan" Bedi plays the hero's sidekick! But all in all I think it's safe to say that this movie is only for real sword and sorcery nerds like me. Hawk the Slayer come back, all is forgiven!
Tempest Frost
When this movie appeared in 1981, I was a young boy filled with dreams of one day becoming a great warrior. Silly as these dreams may seem now, at the time they helped fill what were otherwise boring afternoons in a time when we were all waiting for the 80's to fully materialize. Looking back on this film now after twenty-five years, I still feel young and strong and full of magical powers every time I see it as it gave us the feel of otherworldly power and secrets that may have existed long ago, before movies like THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy put that idea into the minds of young and old alike. The acting was weak and character development was pushed aside in favor of time constraints but all-in-all I liked the way the film made me feel. And, after all, isn't that why we give up two hours of our precious time anyway?
grendelkhan
I remember seeing this film when it was first broadcast on tv. If memory serves, it was the first of what was supposed to be a series of specials, which would advance the story. Unfortunately, it didn't do well and became the only installment.I thoroughly enjoyed it initially. It had a great villain and unique concepts. The acting was bad in certain cases (oh, George Kennedy, what were you doing?) but for the most part, it was watchable.I later found it at a video store and rented it. I was less impressed the second time around, but still found it entertaining. It was vastly superior to most of the other attempts at sword & sorcery films from that era, with the exception of the first Conan.It was a shame that the series didn't continue, as I always wondered what the intended conclusion was supposed to be. If you enjoy fantasy, give it a try.
spidymac
As with certain films of the filmed noir genre, there are unheralded fantasy films that also fall in to the category of "sleepers" i.e., very entertaining but not widely reviewed/seen. To name a few: Forbidden Planet, The Forbidden Street, I'll Never Forget You (Berkely Square), The Sword & the Sorcerer, Sinbad the Sailor, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Sinbad & the Eye of the Tiger, Demon Seed, Five Million Years to Earth, Omar Khayyam, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (now a classic), as well as The Dam Busters, (if you are not offended by the name of the dog) and the exceptional, Curse of the Demon.These are but a few examples of some lesser credited "sleepers", yet they are thoroughly entertaining films. I would handily rate it **** out of ***** stars.
