Wheels Of Fire (1985)

Wheels Of Fire (1985)- * * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Gary Watkins, Lynda Wiesmeier, Joe Mari Avellana, Steve Parvin, Laura Banks, Linda Grovenor, and Jack S. Daniels

In, you guessed it, a post-apocalyptic future, a man named Max…er, sorry, I mean Trace (Watkins) drives around in a souped-up car that drives fast. His sister Arlie (Wiesmeier, not to be confused with noted Army man-turned-actor R. Lee Ermey) is in a relationship with Scott Baio lookalike Bo (Parvin), and there’s not much to do for entertainment except watch tournament fights to the death and drive around aimlessly.

All that changes when Arlie is kidnapped by baddies Scourge (Avellana) and Scag (Daniels). Now with a renewed sense of purpose and a mission to carry out, Trace travels the badlands meeting and/or fighting both human and Morlock alike in his quest to rescue Arlie. Along the way he picks up some allies in the form of warrior woman Stinger (Banks) and more subdued woman Spike (Grovenor) but truly Trace’s best weapons are his flamethrower and his stellar jumping abilities. Best notify your next of kin, as this WHEELS OF FIRE shall contain things that explode!

The fact that Mad Max came out in 1979 was fortuitous for low-budget movie producers. The burgeoning home video market was just about to really take over and become ubiquitous. That gave filmmakers a few years to produce countless knockoffs, rip-offs, clones, and carbon copies. Of course, they range in quality. Some are good, others are mediocre, and some are just bad, like any other kind of movie. Thankfully, Wheels of Fire (AKA Desert Warrior, AKA Vindicator, not to be confused with the Canadian Vindicator that came out the following year) is one of the better ones. It’s still very hard to top the Italian ones, but our old buddy Cirio comes darn close.

Wheels of Fire is well-shot, with really good use made of the Philippine locations. Of course, it delivers everything else you expect of post-ap’s, including shooting, blow-ups, car chases, fights, rampant nudity, amusing dialogue, and cars with crazy crap glued to them. The fact that Trace’s main weapon is a flamethrower is also pretty cool and different. Sure, it’s all fairly brainless, but what did you expect? At least it’s from the 80’s and it’s all pretty redolent of that golden, magical time. 

This also completes our Jack S. Daniels collection. Upon the viewing of this movie, we’ve officially seen and reviewed all five of the films he’s appeared in. He’s a charismatic guy who is fun to watch on screen. He’s one of our favorite character actors, and he should have been in more stuff, but we’re happy with what he did do. 

As for our main star, Gary Watkins, he should have done more as well; he had a lot of potential as an action star but the market was pretty flooded at that time. Even though the filmmakers – from his clothing to his hair – tried to make him look like Mel Gibson, he still managed to put his own stamp on things.

While Cirio went back to the post-apocalyptic well with Dune Warriors (1990), Raiders of the Sun (1992) – which starred Richard Norton but contains footage from Wheels of Fire (including Jack S. Daniels and Henry Strzalkowski footage, among other Philippines-set movie regulars that was ported over into the new, interpolated material) – and a supposed abomination called Water Wars (2014), Cirio’s last credited work which Jim Wynorski took over and contains footage from all three of the above-mentioned post-ap’s, best to stick with Cirio’s first and best of the three, Wheels of Fire. 

While there isn’t a ton of substance on show here, on balance Wheels of Fire is not bad and is pretty entertaining. It retains that “VHS vibe” and manages to be a better and more worthwhile watch than a lot of its post-apocalyptic competitors.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Bloodfist 2050 (2005)

Bloodfist 2050 (2005)- *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Matt Mullins, Glen Meadows, Beverly Lynn, and Joe Mari Avellana

Plot: See Dragon Fire (1993). Or, better yet, see Bloodfist (1989).


Okay, okay, we won’t be as lazy as Roger Corman and we’ll do our job. Sometime in 2050, Los Angeles is still a hellhole. (It was a hellhole in 2032 in Dragon Fire). Alex Danko (Mullins) travels to L.A. to get to the truth about his murdered brother. In order to get closer to the underground Punchfighting circuit where his brother fought, he gets a trainer and begins fighting in “The Pit” himself. After many bouts, which honestly don’t have much to do with his slain brother, he finally figures out the nefarious plan. But will it be too late?

Despite what you might, understandably, be thinking, this is not the 2,050th sequel to Bloodfist. It’s only the ninth installment in the series. Noticeably, the great Don “The Dragon” Wilson is nowhere in sight. Perhaps he cottoned on to the fact that this is as junky as all get-out and has a downmarket and cheap look to it.

It all opens with some stock footage from Dune Warriors (1990) and there is some attempt at marrying this with the 2005-shot footage. Some of it looks sped-up, as do some of the fight scenes. It’s also highly likely that there are repeated and/or stock shots of crowds as they cheer on the fighters. Edited in to all of this are the Corman specialty, stripping scenes. Between the stock footage, recycled footage, sped-up footage, and stripping footage – and keep in mind this movie is (mercifully) only about 75 minutes, we as viewers aren’t left with a whole heck of a lot.

Plotwise, Bloodfist 2050 is the same movie as Dragon Fire. It is a lower-rent version of Dragon Fire. Think about that for a second. When you’re a lower-rent version of Dragon Fire, there is a definite problem. Yes, it’s post-apocalyptic for no discernible reason. Yes, it’s a Punchfighter. Yes, all the exact same plot points are covered. But the question is: why? Instead of Dominick LaBanca, now we have Matt Mullins in the lead role. It’s clear he can do Martial Arts – but the attempt to do Hong Kong-style heavily choreographed, heavily stylized, fast fight scenes come off as humorous because they’re unnecessarily acrobatic for the cheapjack overall vibe.

Also, Mullins looks like a skinnier Freddie Prinze, Jr. but with Obama-styled ears. To make matters worse, his buddy in the movie, Randy (Meadows) looks exactly like him. At least the buddy role in Dragon Fire was filled by a dude who looked nothing like the main dude. Here they’re practically twins. Philippines movie mainstay Joe Mari Avellana did his best as the ring announcer and he resembles Johnny Depp here, strangely enough. The elderly assistant from Dragon Fire is nowhere to be seen. Just another example of how Dragon Fire is better (we never thought we would ever say that…)

Honestly, this is not Cirio’s finest hour. He let us off the hook somewhat because the movie is so short, but the whole outing is amazingly dumb and unnecessary. Does Corman think so little of us as viewers that he can just regurgitate the same movie again and again, and we’ll just consume this stuff and thank him for it? It would have been nice if we, the loyal viewers of this type of material, were given a little more credit. But, oh well, they can’t all be Stick Fighter (1994), I suppose. 

Bloodfist 2050 is a stain on the series as a whole, and only worthy if you are a completist of Punchfighters, a completist of the Bloodfist series, or you want to watch something short that’s so dumb it’s almost funny. Or you want to do an A-B comparison with Dragon Fire. Otherwise, it’s probably best to avoid this one, which shouldn’t be too tough.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty 

Live By The Fist (1993)

Live By The Fist (1993)- * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Jerry Trimble, George Takei, Laura Albert, Vic Diaz, and Nick Nicholson












 John Merill (Trimble) is a former Navy SEAL who winds up in the Philippines while looking for work. Impeding his job search is the fact that he is framed for the murder of a young girl by a gang of thugs. Sent to Bolera Island, sort of the Alcatraz of the Philippines, things take a downturn for the mighty Merill. The prison is ruled under the iron fist of corrupt warden Acosta (Diaz), but did you think it would be any other way? Acosta’s days may be numbered, because a pushy human rights crusader, Helen Ferris (Albert) is investigating the place. 

While Acosta cares not for human rights, Uncle (Takei) does, and he happens to be Merill’s cell mate. So Merill gets into various fights with various factions during his prison stay, and he must survive long enough to alert the world of his innocence. Will he die in prison, or LIVE BY THE FIST?

The presence of fan favorite Jerry Trimble is really the only noteworthy thing about the otherwise-mediocre Live By the Fist. It’s a typical Cirio movie, shot in the Philippines of course, and features every prison movie cliché there is. You’d think the fact that the movie is only 79 minutes would be enticing, but because it all feels like stuff you’ve seen a million times before, time actually goes by pretty slow here. And because it’s a Corman production, it’s all just a rehash of Bloodfist II (1990) and Bloodfist III (1992). Instead of Richard Roundtree, they got George Takei for the same part. Seems like a natural conclusion.

George “oh MY!” Takei (he doesn’t actually say his trademark line in this movie, but he does have some Oh My-esque moments) and Jerry Trimble truly are the ultimate cinematic team-up, Trimble of course resembling a more ripped cross between Sean Penn and Emilio Estevez. Vic Diaz, who has been in every Filipino movie ever made, is particularly hard to understand this time around, but Trimble makes up for it because he yells most of his lines. The “human rights chick” is basically a token character and does almost nothing.

Because it’s a prison slog with all the expected things that would entail, it’s hard to really get invested. It’s all very simplistic, and even a completely gratuitous exploding helicopter can’t save the day from the lackluster overall feel. But, as we said, Trimble is good, it’s not his fault. And the setups for the fight scenes are hilariously flimsy, which is a plus. 

There’s the sax on the soundtrack, when there’s not a squealing electric guitar riff (we were hoping for an end credit that read “Guitar riff played by Jerry Trimble”. Sadly it did not come. We’re assuming it’s out of modesty, not a more logical reason.)

Lest we forget Philippine-shot movie regular Nick Nicholson (as “Greasemonkey”), Live By the Fist is the weakest Jerry Trimble movie we’ve seen to date. Featuring the song (which was also uncredited but we’re assuming it’s called) “You’ve Got To Fight” (which we’re also hoping was sung by Trimble), the movie is typical Corman Crud, saved from utter worthlessness by Jerry’s Trimblings.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out a write-up by our buddy, DTVC!

Black Valor (1973)

Black Valor (1973)- * *

AKA: Savage!

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: James Iglehart, Lada Edmund Jr., and Carol Speed 


 “I don’t trust that black man.” - Evil White Guy








Savage (Iglehart) is a military man currently in the Philippines. His original mission was to capture the leader of a revolutionary rebel army that’s trying to brew an insurrection in the country. When things go wrong, as they often do, Savage goes on the run. Thankfully, before that happens, he meets two female circus performers who team up with him. Vicki (Edmund Jr.) is a knife-thrower, and Amanda (Speed) is a high-wire artist. 

The three come to realize that what the rebels are fighting for is a worthy cause, so they join up. That’s lucky for the rebels, as Savage probably knows more about gun-shooting and hut-exploding than anyone else in the country. And it wouldn’t be a Philippines-set/Cirio movie without the presence of Vic Diaz. Will Savage and his fellow rebels come out on top? Or will retaliation be SAVAGE?

While most people know this movie as Savage! (don’t forget the exclamation point), if they know the movie at all, we saw it as Black Valor, the VHS release on Scimitar/Bingo Video. It is in EP mode and the quality is poor. The colors are so washed out, you can’t even read the credits. 

Of course, there is a highly-obvious superimposed video title where the original title was supposed to be. And the models on the cover are not in the movie. It’s puzzling why they thought they had to do all that, as the Blaxploitation craze was long over by the 80’s VHS release, and Savage! is a perfectly fine and saleable title. But such was the video store era. You never know what you’re going to discover.

As for the movie itself, it’s probably one of Cirio’s weakest. Thankfully, it’s only 80 minutes, but it feels longer. You’d really think Savage’s travails in the jungle, which include plenty of gun-shooting, exploding huts, punch-ups (and even a few seconds of racquetball) would be enough to carry the movie, but there are many slow moments and the whole outing has a lack of urgency. It could have used more intensity, or - and this may be asking a bit much - character development. 

But that being said, there is some interesting camerawork at times, the Don Julian score is extremely funky and excellent, far better than the movie deserves, and the presences of Edmund Jr. (Can a woman be a Jr.?) and Speed liven things up. It would have been a total jungle slog without them.

Probably the most interesting idea (perhaps the only actual idea) in Black Valor is the fact that the two circus girls (who, let’s face it, work for the lowest budget circus of all time) use their circus skills to kill baddies. The knife thrower - who usually throws knives around a nervous participant, now uses her accuracy to throw them into the chests and stomachs of the goons around her. And the trapeze girl uses her agility to flip around stuff and kick bad guys. There’s even a Gymkata-esque moment where she - while outside during a chase, mind you - somehow finds what are essentially parallel bars that just happen to be there, so she can hang on and kick people from them. So that was enjoyable, but there should have been more of it. It’s almost enough of an idea to support a movie on its own. 

Also different was, instead of the Prerequisite Torture of the hero, there was the Prerequisite Torture of one of the circus ladies. You’d think it would have been Iglehart. But no.

In the end, Savage! AKA Black Valor is a pretty standard jungle/El Presidente outing. It just doesn’t have that magical “It” factor - it’s really just another movie that you see once and then it sits on a shelf.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty 

Stryker (1983)

Stryker (1983)- * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Steve Sandor












 In a post-apocalyptic world, water is scarce and is the most sought-after commodity in the new desert-like earth. When a woman appears who knows where to get a large supply of water, an evil, Sid Haig-like baddie kidnaps and tortures her for the information. However, only one man can rescue the girl and help spread the agua to the masses – Stryker (Sandor), of course. So because it’s post-apocalypse, everyone puts on their wackiest getup and gets in their junkiest car, and the battle is on. During the “Quest For Water”, which isn’t a sequel to Quest for Fire (1981), Stryker and his babes have to contend with many obstacles, including some Jawa-like pygmies. Will they live to hydrate again?

Out of all the many post-apocalyptic movies that hit video store shelves in the 1980’s, our personal favorites tend to be the Italian ones, such as 1990: The Bronx Warriors (1982) and Escape From the Bronx (1983). Italian Post-Ap’s (as we call them) (not really) seem to, generally speaking, have the most verve and pizazz. This doesn’t leave a lot of room for snoozers like Stryker, which doesn’t bring a lot to the table. 

We’ve probably seen more Cirio movies than anyone, and this ranks towards the bottom as far as what we’ve seen of his to date. He even repeated the formula again with Raiders of the Sun (1992), another Post-Ap slog, but that one at least has Richard Norton (Norton also played Straker – pronounced “striker”- in Crossfire, so they have that in common). Though on the bright side, here we have Steve Sandor.

While Sandor was unforgettable as Ollie Hand in Trained To Kill, U.S.A. (1973), here the character of Stryker has no real definition. We really get no sense of Stryker as a man or as a hero. On a scale for character development that we just invented, for the entire cast, not just Stryker, on a scale of 0-10, the CD scale for Stryker, the movie, is -5. That’s right, negative character development. There’s such a deficit, you end up owing the movie by the time the end credits roll. So in this particular wasteland, Stryker is just a generic dude with a beard.

Or perhaps more accurately, he’s just another supposed action hero in the 80’s named Stryker. Let us remember the aforementioned Richard Norton, as well as Lance Henriksen and Wings Hauser, among others. So you don’t really rally behind Stryker, as much as you might do with, say, Steve Rally. 

So with the movie as a whole, we’ve really seen it all before, so it’s not very engaging. And that’s certainly true in this case, as Stryker the movie is especially Mad Max (1979)-y. The filmmakers really didn’t even try to hide the fact that it’s a blatant knockoff. But that’s the problem: the lack of window dressing in that sense really hurts, and then boredom sets in. But in the positives column we have a cool score, and some neat violent bits, but those two things aren’t enough to keep it all afloat, unfortunately. The movie is as dry as the climate it takes place in.

So pray the “nuc-u-lar” (as the narrator in the intro part clearly pronounces it) bomb never hits, if for no other reason than it would mean we would be LIVING inside the world of Stryker. And that would be the real catastrophe.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out a write-up from our buddies The Unknown Movies and The Video Vacuum!

TNT Jackson (1974)

TNT Jackson (1974)- * * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Jeannie Bell, Stan Shaw, Pat Anderson, and Ken Metcalfe







Diana “TNT” Jackson (Bell) is a fish out of water - a tough, foxy lady from Harlem now on the mean streets of Hong Kong looking for the drug dealers who killed her brother. When she arrives in HK, she wants to go to the section so dangerous, her cabbie won’t even take her there. It’s a good thing she’s a Martial Arts expert. During her quest, she ends up meeting the charming Charlie (Shaw), a cool brother with designs on TNT. Her rivals include Elaine (Anderson), who works for the criminal organization headed by Sid (Metcalfe) - the nefarious syndicate she’s trying to bust up. With only her wits and her fists and alone in a strange land, will TNT’s revenge be truly explosive? Find out today!

TNT Jackson is the earliest Cirio film we’ve seen to date, and one of the first we had seen by him, period. We would certainly end up seeing many more in the future from this prolific director. The movie is a Blaxploitation classic, and even has some of the themes Cirio would use throughout his career, well into the 90’s - namely, the show-stopping nude (or nearly so) fight scene. Hey, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. He stumbled upon a winner with that idea, and used it again in such films as Silk 2 (1989) and Angelfist (1993). The movie is certainly entertaining enough, and at a brief 72 minutes, you really can’t go wrong. It also features great, funky music by Tito Sotto and some great, pre-political correctness dialogue. For example, many characters refer to TNT Jackson as “that Black chick”, and the most dangerous section of Hong Kong is called the “Yellow District”. Add to that some amazing 70’s hair and fashions, and you have a mild winner.

Mild because there’s not exactly a lot of substance here, and the fight scenes are sped up, slowed down, and tinkered with in a lot of ways...but it’s all in good fun, and we realize Jeannie Bell isn’t supposed to be Donnie Yen. The fights are more like the ones seen on the old Batman TV show. Maybe this is all the concoction of J.Lo, a person we were frankly surprised to see credited as Martial Arts instructor. (In case the deadpan humor of that isn’t coming across, that’s supposed to be a joke. But there is a guy named J. Lo in the credits, which was fun to see).  While it’s unfair to compare Bell to someone like Pam Grier, who pretty much remains the queen of the Blaxploitation era, Bell can certainly hold her own, appearing in Trouble Man (1972), Black Gunn (1972), and Three the Hard Way (1974), among others.

When seeing this movie, make sure you see the DVD included as part of the Roger Corman Lethal Ladies collection, released in 2011. This version blows away any released before it. Throw away your old VHS or gas station DVD’s. It’s in widescreen, with crisp, clear colors. The movie has never looked better. If you’re going to see, or re-see this pleasant-enough entry in the Blaxploitation canon, there has never been a better time than now.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty 

Naked Vengeance (1985)

Naked Vengeance (1985)- * * *1\2

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Deborah Tranelli, Henry Strzalkowski, Kaz Garas, Steve Roderick, Nick Nicholson, Carmen Argenziano, and Bill McLaughlin








Carla Harris (Tranelli) is a woman who seemingly has it all: a rich and luxurious life as an actress with a successful lawyer for a husband. When her beloved hubby is killed by a common street thug, she travels back to her rural home town of Silver Lake, California, to live with her parents and re-evaluate her life. 

However, far from the serene environment she was hoping for, she has to deal with constant harassment from the local gang of good ol’ boys. Led by local butcher Fletch (Garas) and including gas station attendant Sparky (Nicholson), among others, their rude and lewd behavior eventually escalates into a full-on gang rape. When the disgusting thugs end up murdering her parents, as well as Timmy (Roderick), Carla has an emotional breakdown that leaves her in a near-catatonic state. While being observed for shock and other symptoms at the local hospital, Carla decides to bypass the seemingly ineffectual Sheriff, John Cates (McLaughlin) and dispense her own brand of justice. Violent vigilante justice, the only kind that gets results. But will she eliminate her attackers before it’s too late? Find out today!

While Naked Vengeance has a similar look, structure and feel to other Cirio movies, this ranks as one of his best, thanks to the intense, no-nonsense storyline and pace. It can proudly rank among other female-fronted revenge movies such as Ms. 45 (1981), Savage Streets (1984), Sudden Death (1985), and of course the movie it most closely models itself after, I Spit On Your Grave (1978). 

A lot of Cirio regulars are on show as well, mainly as the lecherous townsfolk - his stock company of actors, as it were, such as Kaz Garas (who resembles Powers Boothe), fan favorite Nick Nicholson, and Henry Strzalkowski, among others.  Cirio was kicked into high gear for this one, and, especially compared to his more standard outings, here he was surely in a state of grace.

Naked Vengeance is the time when the “Cirio Formula”, if there is such a thing as one, finally clicks and everything totally works. His method of repeating the theme song numerous times throughout the movie is employed  here, and thankfully it’s the driving anthem “Still Got A Love”, by Michael Cruz and sung by the main star, Deborah Tranelli. 

The cameraderie of the baddies is interesting: they all bowl together (and have nifty personalized bowling shirts to boot), and they even work out together on the same schedule in a place that can only be described as a “Villain’s Gym”. The day after their atrocity, one of them even says to his buddies, “Eh, I don’t feel like working out today.” There were no other patrons in the gym, either. Maybe you get 10% off your membership if you’re an evil scumbag. One of their beefs against Carla is that she changed her name from Olson to Harris, which in their view is true diva behavior that they cannot abide. Why Harris is a more glamorous name than Olson is not explained. Also of note is a movie marquee which is playing Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984).

Important note: the version released on Vestron is cut. The version released on Lightning is uncut. So for anyone planning on collecting this movie, make sure you get the Lightning version.

We love revenge movies here - hence the name COMEUPPANCE reviews - and Naked Vengeance is a gem.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty 
 

Angelfist (1993)

Angelfist (1993)- * * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Cat Sassoon, Michael Shaner, Tony Carreon, Roland Dantes, Sheila Lintan, and Melissa Moore










Kat Lang (Sassoon) is a no-nonsense L.A. cop with an attitude. When her sister is murdered after taking clandestine photos of a political assassination in the Philippines, Kat travels to Manila to get answers. While there, she gets caught up in the female kickboxing circuit and meets the charismatic Alcatraz (Shaner) who helps her out and becomes her love interest. She also meets fellow fighters Lorda (Moore) and Sulu (Lintan - not George Takei in a wig) and decides if she wants to find who was responsible for her sister’s death, she’s going to have to enter the ring herself and fight in the popular tournament called The Kubate. This is clearly the female version of The Kumite devised by the same guy, who had a cold that day. 

So she hires Bayani (Dantes) to train her. When an underground terrorist group called The Black Brigade (made up of angry Filipinos) rears its ugly head, Kat truly snaps into action. Predating that band by many years, now we see the true meaning of Cat Power!

The prolific Cirio Santiago strikes again with this outing which is classic 90’s, an entertaining mixture of mindless shooting, Martial Arts fights, and shower scene-based nudity. Cat Sassoon, who we were familiar with because of Bloodfist IV (1992) and Bloodfist VI (1995), wears some amazing outfits, and it was nice to see her as the main hero. 

Melissa Moore, who we were also fans of, not least for appearing in the immortal classic Samurai Cop (1989), provides a worthy foil for Cat (or Kat, depending on which letter/person you prefer), and gets to do plenty of Melissa Moore-Fu. The movie as a whole is a pioneer in the genre of leotard-fighting, and there’s some diversions into “Arnis”, or stickfighting, and of course there’s the prerequisite torture scene.

Shaner was also no stranger to the Bloodfist series, having appeared as none other than the infamous Baby in the original 1989 installment. With his Mitt Romney/Matt Dillon/Robert Davi-style looks, he stands out among the Filipino cast, but their line deliveries are much more priceless. Even news reporters get noteworthy moments - Apparently in the Philippines big stories are known as “newsbreakers”. And we didn’t even mention the classic “Mr. Big”, the white-suited, bearded head of it all, named Carrion (Carreon - apparently Cirio isn’t big on more than one-letter name changes). 

Plus, the embassy protests and murders make this movie more relevant today than ever. That’s right, Angelfist is a relevant film! But of course, the showstopper is the nearly-naked fight scene where Cat fights off baddies wearing basically nothing. This scene is effective no matter how many times Cirio uses it (Silk 2 and Firecracker, anybody?).

While mindless, it’s nice to see beautiful women beating up baddies and looking good in the process, rather than be in the background as news reporters or nagging wives. For a non-Rothrock girl-power movie, Angelfist is a treat.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out write-ups from our buddies, Fist Of B-List and The Video Vacuum!

Kill Zone (1993)

Kill Zone (1993)- *1\2

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: David Carradine












In the thick of the Vietnam war, Col. Horace Wiggins (Carradine) is bent on the total annihilation of the enemy. He gets into disagreements with other military personnel about how to proceed executing the war. Wiggins is a hard man to deal with. When Wiggins disagrees with the soldiers on the ground, he goes into the firefight himself. Not only are there conflicts between the good guys and the enemy, but also the military brass and the soldiers. With all this conflict going on, will anyone ever escape the KILL ZONE?

Another day, another exploding hut. Amazingly, this is yet another jungle slog that brings nothing new to the table. It all feels very familiar, because the footage we’re watching actually IS familiar, as it’s edited from other Cirio jungle classics. Actually it’s a bit unfair to say there’s nothing new. The name “Horace Wiggins” is pretty awesome. And Carradine brings a new level of incomprehensibility to the role because he says most of his lines while trying to keep a cigar in his mouth. It’s hilarious to watch him try to multi-task like that. Despite his inspired name, his unintelligible mush-mouthiness detracts from what could have been a razor-sharp performance.

We kid the Carradine-ster, but this movie would be unthinkable without him. Take him out of the equation, and you would have, as I believe the saying goes, “bupkus”. He actually really comes alive towards the climax of the movie. He sports a (not the most flattering) tanktop, dons a doo-rag with a skull and crossbones on it (because now he means business, you see) and starts growling like an animal. It’s this type of energy that should have been going on the whole time in this movie. It seems they saved it all for the very end. Shame, really, as that would have lifted this particular guard-tower-fall/hut/jungle movie above the rest.

But the Corman/Cirio jungle slogs are the blandest. The best ones are the Italian ones. Yes, we’ve seen so many of them, we can actually define the subtle shades of the multifaceted jungle slog movie. It’s like a fine wine or cheese. The Corman/Cirio outings are all consistent but mediocre. The Italian ones are more vibrant and have more ideas. The problem here is, as an audience, you don’t CARE like you should. There’s absolute zero on the character development front. If we maybe knew who these people were or there was an iota of backstory, we might care, but no. Apparently that crucial element that would turn the tide in their favor was too much to ask from these filmmakers.

If you want a nice sense of  "jungle slog deja vu", check out Kill Zone (not to be confused with Kill Zone (2005) or the other Killzone (1985).

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out a review by our buddy, DTVC!

Silk (1986)

Silk (1986)- * * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Cec Verrell, Bill McLaughlin, Joe Mari Avellana and Nick Nicholson












Jenny “Silk” Sleighton (Verrell) is a tough, fearless cop on the Honolulu, Hawaii police force. She stops at nothing to get her man. Whether it’s foiling drug deals, stopping smuggling operations or breaking up cockfights, baddies on every island from Niihau to Kaunakakai to Kahoolawe to the Alenuihaha channel are facing her wrath. When she’s kidnapped by arch super-villain Austin (Shilton), she’s going to need help from her compatriots...but who can she really trust? Find out today!

Silk gets off to a very silly start, with cop movie/TV show cliches galore (someone really needs to invent a word that means “a cliche but with no negative connotation; in fact, you want and even need to see this cliche”. No such word exists in English that we’re aware of. If you have any ideas, please leave a comment today). 

Cec Verrell as Silk is amazing. She’s a beautiful woman in that classically 80’s style, with a smoky bedroom voice, and she always has her hair slicked back and is wearing designer clothes. But no one ever questions why one of the models from behind Robert Palmer in the “Addicted To Love” video is now a cop. (Not literally as far as we know, but it very well could be). The fact that this absurdity is never once brought up makes watching Silk a delight.

The fact that Silk is a woman doesn’t change all the myriad cliches one bit. But we’re just happy this Cirio movie isn’t yet another jungle slog. Plus it has all the Philippines-based B-actors we know and love at this point: Nick Nicholson plays another heavy, Mike Monty is on board again, as is Willie Williams, Jose Mari Avellana, Henry Strzalkowski, and naturally, Vic Diaz. 

The extras in the movie are great too, and the dubbing ties it all together. The guitar-based soundtrack by Willie Cruz keeps the energy up, and there is a truly excellent title song which sounds like if Pat Benatar joined Jem and the Holograms. In a true travesty, we do not know who performs this memorable tune. If anyone out there knows, do tell.

Styles were so cool back then, even teddy bears had sunglasses and mustaches. But besides that, we’re always on the lookout for when video stores pop up in movies, and in Silk, we see one in a mall. There’s even a poster for Ark Of the Sun God (1984), the Margheriti movie, which can be clearly seen. 

In the end, Silk is an enjoyable (probably) one-time watch, because nothing in it really sticks to the ribs. We would like to see more Cec Verrell as Silk, but by the time of Silk 2 (1989) (yes, there’s a Silk two), apparently she’d had enough and was replaced by Monique Gabrielle. She never came back to reprise the role like Sean Connery. But for video-store action with a strong and interesting female presence, it’s certainly worth a view.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out write-ups from our buddies, Lost Video Archive and Cool Target!

Beyond The Call Of Duty (1992)

Beyond The Call Of Duty (1992)-* *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Jan-Michael Vincent, Eb Lottimer, Henry Strzalkowski, Nick Nicholson, and Jillian McWhirter












In South Vietnam, 1975, the war is winding down. However, ex-military man Len Jordan (Vincent) is “waging his own war in the Mekong Delta!” (to take a quote from the movie). Along with Lt. Henderson (Lottimer), and some other soldiers, Jordan heads a crew on a boat heading down the aforementioned Delta. To increase the danger and risk, the men are escorting a nun, a gaggle of orphans - including the precocious Mickey (Redillas) who warms the hearts of the hardened soldiers - and filmmaker Mary Jackson (McWhirter), who is making a documentary on Jordan. Will this boat trip dock successfully?

Cirio never seems to tire of the jungles of the Philippines, so here we are again with yet another shoot-fest with some exploding huts and helicopters on the side. We suppose this outing is a little different, because it involves a boat and is a little more aquatic than most other ‘Nam jungle epics, and the kid that plays Mickey is actually very good and steals the movie, but this doesn’t offer all that much new to the “jungle slog” genre.

The film features Philippines mainstays Henry Strzalkowski and fan favorite Nick Nicholson (in a criminally tiny part), as well as Jillian McWhirter, who’s no stranger to the DTV world, having starred the fellow Corman title Hard Way Out (1996) as well as PM’s Rage (1995) and the excellent Last Man Standing (1996). McWhirter puts in an especially P.J. Soles-like performance as the documentarian. What’s good about her role is that it’s not another stupid reporter, like so many of the token female roles we see. There’s actually a bit of substance to her character. So she was probably happy about that.

But the true star of the show is undoubtedly the one and only Jan-Michael Vincent. Here, he’s obviously the coolest and most badass 48 year old kid to ever brandish a machine gun. When he’s not rockin’ some awesome shades, he’s rockin’ some awesome eye-squints and some awesome hair. 

Even though he single-handedly takes on half the VC, and they all have machine guns, somehow NONE of them can hit the only dude out there with blonde hair and a blue tanktop. Sure, he wears the blue tanktop for 98% of the movie’s running time, but hey, once you’ve found perfection, why mess with it? Plus, JMV looks jaggedly - even randomly - cut into the footage of this movie. The fact that it was edited from Nam Angels (1989) might explain that.

Additionally, the sound quality of this movie is not good. Add to that a blurry-sounding VHS tape, and a drunken JMV slurring his speech, and most of what he says is not comprehendable. He’s about 10 times more unintelligible than Mako, but English is JMV’s first language, so what’s his excuse? And don’t say alcohol. But we don’t mean to beat up on the guy. We love seeing him, and we especially love his more besotted roles, which this one seems to be.  You cannot do today what JMV did. He truly is one of the last of the “man’s man” actors.

So while Beyond the Call of Duty lacks originality, a strong, central villain, or JMV parachuting out of an airplane on the box cover (couldn’t they at least have super-imposed his head on the cover model’s body?), there might be barely enough meat on the bone for fans of JMV or Cirio to check this one out, but don’t spend too much money doing so.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

One Man Army (1994)

One Man Army (1994)-* * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Jerry Trimble, Melissa Moore, Dennis Hayden, Rick Dean, and Yup The Dog as Hank













Jerry Pelt (Trimble) is a devoted Martial Arts instructor in the big city, who loves teaching tots how to punch and kick. When he receives word that his beloved grandfather has died, he travels to the country to go to his funeral. Once there, he finds the old town of Johnson City is rife with gambling, prostitution and corruption of every kind. There’s even illegal, underground Punchfighting taking place at the local watering hole. Jerry then teams up with lawyer Natalie Pierce (Moore), his old buddy Eddie (Hayden), and his trusty dog Hank (Yup) and he goes on a crusade to clean up the town. In order to do this, he must defeat Sheriff Boze (Dean), so Jerry runs for Sheriff himself. But it’s going to take all that Jerry Pelt has to save the town, his friends, his dog, and himself from the evil forces in Johnson City. Can he do it?

The man with Sean Penn’s face and Reb Brown’s voice returns for One Man Army, a movie with a storyline that will seem familiar if you’ve seen China O’Brien (1990), or even fellow Cirio outing The Devastator (1985) (among many other possible influences). Because this is a Corman-produced Cirio movie, the running time is only about 75 minutes - and in that time a lot of pleasantly dumb and very silly action is crammed in. 

We really like Jerry Trimble, and we felt this movie was better than his Die Hard knockoff Stranglehold (1994). We felt his character, Jerry Pelt (is he like Tony Danza, who contractually can only play characters named Tony because he cannot respond to any other name?) was put in an interesting position: He’s forced to Punchfight, and then wants to shut down the Punchfighting ring once invested with the legal authority to do so.  We don’t think we have ever seen that before.

A dog named Yup plays Jerry’s devoted sidekick (sadly it’s his only credited movie role to date) - and he’s listed proudly among the other actors in the opening credits. At first when you see “And Yup as Hank”, you feel confused, but Yup has a surprisingly big role, and has to do a lot of stuff to help Jerry. His dog acting was impressive, we have to say. Fan favorite Nick Nicholson is on board, pretty much guaranteeing that this movie was shot in the Philippines (not California as we’re led to believe). Melissa Moore is always nice to see - her batting average is pretty high, having appeared in Samurai Cop (1989) and The Killing Zone (1991).

One Man Army is brief, derivative fun from start to finish. It won’t tax your brain or your schedule. Trimble fans need to come out of the woodwork, so here we are talking about one of his mini-classics.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

Also check out reviews from our buddies, DTVC , Fist Of B-List and The Video Vacuum! 

Silk 2 (1989)

Silk 2 (1989)-* * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Monique Gabrielle, Peter Nelson, Jan Merlin, and Maria Claire 












Jenny “Silk” Sleighton (this time, Gabrielle) is back for this second and final installment. For this outing, the beautiful and tough Hawaii cop is out to bring down criminal mastermind Hancock Gish (Merlin), the interestingly-named art enthusiast whose goal is to steal precious, ancient Japanese scrolls. Silk ends up meeting a spunky tourist, Holly (Claire) and a guy who really hates art forgery, Tony (Nelson) and the three unlikely allies end up working together to stop Gish. In the meantime, Silk does what she does best, take down baddies in her own inimitable way. Will they succeed?

It was a surprise to us too, but, yes, there is, in fact, a Silk 2. Apparently the first one was enough of a success to spawn a sequel, but not successful enough for Cec Verrell, the original Silk. Why they didn’t make it a trilogy remains unknown. 

The by-now-well-known Monique Gabrielle steps in, and does a fine job. Her completely wooden, flat affect is a lot of fun to watch, and her outfits, such as an acid-washed jean jacket and matching skirt (or is it stone wash? Not really sure...) complement her beauty nicely and firmly place this movie in the 80’s. It came out in the video store golden year of 1989 - as if to prove the fact that the video store was booming then, Silk 2 is the first of FIVE movies that star Peter Nelson appeared in just that year.

 Once again, none of the other characters comment on the seeming misplacement of Jenny Sleighton on the police force, which is good, and the combination shower scene/fight scene is without a doubt a movie highlight.

There are plenty of classic cliches that we now know and love, such as the time-honored Wacky Taxi Driver, among many others. It all adds to the sense of fun. Like we’re always talking about, the word “cliche” need not have a negative connotation. 

And since this is a Corman production, there are plenty of connections to be made, such as: Sally Mattison is credited as Associate Producer, and she was the director of Slumber Party Massacre III (1990), which featured Silk 2’s Maria Claire. Claire only had a small handful of roles, which is sad, because she has a very winning look and personality. She also chose interesting roles, because besides the two already mentioned, she was in Society (1989), once again a 1989 classic. As far as other cast members go, Avellana plays a guy named Kashi, and based on this we assumed his last name was “Go Lean Crunch”. I think we were wrong.

The movie has a great opening...in fact, it’s the same opening sequence as Silk 1. (This time it’s Arab terrorists, and Monique Gabrielle is fighting them, but still, it’s the same). We still need to see that Silk is a woman of action who takes no prisoners, so...here we go again! Silk 2 is filled with dumb, seemingly random scenes, but it has a lot of blow-ups, stunts, and shooting, with the classic Cirio touch. Whether that’s a good thing or not is only for you to decide. But there are some cool keyboards on the soundtrack, and with an impressively accessible running time of 75 minutes (and that includes credits!), there’s really no reason to avoid Silk 2.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

The Expendables (1988)

The Expendables (1988)-* *1\2

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Anthony Finetti, Peter Nelson, Vic Diaz and Nick Nicholson


 “I’m a cool dude because nothing rests on me.”










Back in ‘Nam, Captain Rosello (Finetti) is assigned a rag-tag bunch of misfits to take under his command. Under Rosello’s leadership, they become “The Expendables”, soldiers specifically meant to take on dirty and extremely dangerous missions. These include capturing a V.C. Colonel (Diaz) and saving nurses that have been taken hostage. Will these men accomplish their difficult missions - and will they be able to get along with each other long enough to survive? Find out today!

Man, look at the cast for this one...Stallone, Statham, Dolph, Gary Daniels, the list goes on and on! Wait a minute...you mean in 1988 there was a movie called The Expendables...and it’s a CIRIO SANTIAGO movie? Wow, who knew Cirio was so ahead of his time? Well, this Expendables may not have the starpower of the newer one, but it does have Anthony Finetti. So take that. It also has Nick Nicholson in a tiny cameo role and the ever-present Vic Diaz. So this outing can obviously hold its own. Well, maybe not.

What we have here is your typical jungle/exploding hut/helicopter/machine gun fire movie. Cirio has made more of these than most other directors, and this does have all the standard cliches, such as the barfight, the religious soldier, and of course the ragtag team. This is a standard-issue movie. It’s not great, it’s not bad, it just kind of floats somewhere in the middle.

The movie has enough little moments to keep it afloat, but it doesn’t really distinguish itself in any significant way. It doesn’t have a forceful drive and energy moving it forward. Special mention should go to Peter Nelson, the actor who played Sterling. He did a good job and managed to stand out a bit. He obviously couldn’t get enough of the jungles of the Philippines so he returned for Cirio’s Eye of the Eagle III (1989). Anthony Finetti could have had a long career making movies like this, but it seems he did not. It’s a shame, he could have been the next Tony Marsina.

If we were to rate this on a scale from one to ten, it would be a five. This is what you might call a “neutral” movie, something that’s not one thing or another. Hence, while we can’t wholeheartedly recommend it, we shouldn’t say to totally avoid it either. Cirio has done both better and worse movies, so The Expendables will have to be something of a midway point in his career.

 Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Nam Angels (1989)

Nam Angels (1989)-* * *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Brad Johnson, Rick Dean, and Vernon G. Wells 











During the Vietnam war, Lt. Calhoun’s (Johnson) men are taken prisoner by a tribal group run by “A mysterious white man” who is also a “round-eye”, named, oddly, Chard (Wells). The top brass considers the trapped men “expendable” but Johnson does the only logical thing: he recruits four Hell’s Angels for a five-day mission and bribes them with millions of dollars of gold dust hidden in the hills of ‘Nam. All they have to do is help Calhoun rescue his men. The ‘Angels reluctantly agree, and there is some trouble and strife along the way, but a badass from West Texas who fights with a lasso and sawed-off shotgun (that would be Calhoun), teaming up with some tough biker dudes is going to be a double-team that will prove tough to beat. Will Calhoun’s gamble work?

At first, this Cirio movie seems to be yet another Vietnam/jungle slog that seems very familiar. But once the bikers come into the equation, things change for the better and you realize that you should be giving the filmmakers points for originality. It was only natural: take two exploitation genres - the (Vietnam) War movie and the Biker movie, and simply find a way to mash them together and make it work. Thankfully, it does, and Roger Corman can put this one in his win column.

Brad Johnson looks like a young Tom Berenger, but this isn’t exactly Platoon (1986). Vernon G. Wells is properly evil, especially with his ponytail. Amidst the classic barfights and “pew-pew!” shooting scenes, at least on the Corman-released DVD we saw, we noticed some odd editing. It looked like the opening credits and perhaps some other scenes were re-edited for this DVD release. We can’t confirm this, and it’s doubtful they cut out anything good, but it would be interesting to see a different print.

If you read our Operation Warzone (1988) review, you’ll remember how we discussed that movie’s highly inappropriate soundtrack, with 80’s synthesizers blaring in ‘Nam. Well, Nam Angels falls into that same trap. But if you’re looking for logic, why are you watching this movie in the first place?  There are a lot of nonsensical things going on here, from the plot itself to the John Milton quote at the end. But bikers poppin’ wheelies in the jungles of ‘Nam is cool enough to make up for it.

Nam Angels is worth checking out.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Raiders Of The Sun (1992)

Raiders Of The Sun (1992)-* *

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Richard Norton, Ned Hourani, Nick Nicholson, Brigitta Stenberg and Rick Dean



"They Don't Take Prisoners....THEY TAKE LIVES."









Brodie (Norton) is a warrior in a post-apocalyptic world. He works for the Alpha League, a democratic society trying to keep the madness and the roving bands of scavengers at bay. The leader of the bad guys, Clay (William Steis), is a traitor to the Alpha League cause. Since there is constant shooting between the factions, it is discovered that there is a shortage of gunpowder in this barren world, and whoever finds any will rule the wastelands. So the Alpha League sends Brodie in search of the now-precious material. Along the way, he falls in love with a native, mountain girl named Sierra (Lani Lobangco). The primitive society she comes from, of course, has a mine full of gunpowder. They use it for religious ceremonies. Oh, and most of the people in the mountain village are midgets. The baddies just want to plunder it all but now Brodie and his midget army must defend the mine. Meanwhile, the warrior Talbot (Blake Boyd) wants to get back to his wife Vera (Stenberg), but she's kidnapped by the baddies and jailed. Will they reunite? Will the good guys get the gunpowder? Why is this all happening...again?

I'm not sure if it should be applauded or condemned that they were still making Mad Max (1979) knockoffs in the 90's. This Corman production left it in the capable hands of mainstay Cirio Santiago, and I suppose that's the wisest possible decision under the circumstances. He does a competent job, nothing great. If Richard Norton wasn't involved, this would be a real slog. He doesn't do a ton of martial arts in the film. It's different to see him with a beard. That's obviously a character choice, as you can't really shave after the apocalypse and you must protect your face.

The baddies, like in Karate Cop (1991), wear football equipment. There are some interesting antagonists this time around, such as Nick Nicholson from No Dead Heroes (1986), and characters such as Hog Head, Meat Ball and of course the duel between Talbot and Gonzo Gonzales (Hourani) where they swing back and forth on ropes swiping at each other is, well, not memorable, but...something.

Yes, there is the constant shooting and blow-ups, and the standard post-apocalyptic stuff like wacky costumes and cars with weird things attached to them. And yes, it is pretty dumb. It doesn't add much to any of its post-nuke forbears. It holds your interest, only just barely. But it's not really meant as anything other than cheap entertainment, so you can't judge it that harshly.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Field Of Fire (1991)

Field Of Fire (1991)-* *

AKA: Battle Gear

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: David Carradine, Joe Mari Avellana, Henry Strzalkowski, and Eb Lottimer









It seems our friend (at least he seems like our friend after spending this much time with him) Cirio H. Santiago can't leave the jungles of Vietnam. So many of his movies are romps in the jungle. Here we go again.

When Wilson (Jim Moss) AKA Ironhand, is stranded in the dense jungles of 'Nam, General Simmons (Carradine) (NOT "General Corman" as he is listed in some sources...remember Counter Measures (1999) and "Zach Silver"?) and his aide Willy send in yet another elite team to rescue the lost and nervous soldier. Meanwhile, the VC is closing in and they lose their radio communication. They have to get to the Laos border to a special meet point. Will they make it?

Unfortunately, Field of Fire AKA Battle Gear retreads a lot of the same ground we've seen before. It's not BAD per se, but it's pretty mediocre. For most of the movie, Carradine barks orders in one room. He does leave that room eventually, and it's a great moment. He also wears a funny Hawaiian shirt. Interesting.

There's also a lot of Vietnam slang. Characters mainly talk about LURPS and their Sandy's while Jolly Greens chase their Ironhand. I know, I'm confused too.

The leader of the jungle group is Duncan (Lottimer), or "Dunc" for short. I believe he was cast because he resembles Bruce Springsteen. Plus he has an interesting name. Then there's Jefe, a token man who speaks Spanish. He uses his language to confuse the enemy. Senator is played by Scott Utley. It's not one of the better 'Nam handles we've heard. Jimmy T is Don Barnes, the African-American who yells loudly while shooting his machine gun. Hawk is Henry Strzalkowski (a man who has been in a lot of DTV action movies but isn't a prominent name). Captain Phat (Avellana) is the evil baddie. Avellana also has a long and storied history as an actor/director in the DTV world.

Also, when the VC talks, there are WAY too many subtitles on the screen. We're pretty sure they're not saying all that stuff. Someone grunts and there's a paragraph.

You'd think a movie with this pedigree would be better. Field of Fire is generic Vietnam stuff with all the standard moments and no surprises and nothing memorable.

You could do worse, but this is pretty bland. For better Cirio, check out Final Mission (1984) or The Devastator (1985).

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

The Devastator (1985)

The Devastator (1985)-* * *

AKA: The Destroyers

Directed by: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Rick Hill, Katt Shea, Crofton Hardesterm and Jack S. Daniels








One of the best things about The Devastator is that it is no-nonsense, no-frills action fun that packs a good punch at 79 minutes.

Deacon "Deke" Porter (Hill) is a Vietnam Vet, who heads into the sleepy little town of King's Ransom, California. He's there to investigate the death of his 'Nam buddy Marcus Dearing. Unfortunately, the town is run by a coterie of redneck pot growers, the ringleader being the nefarious John Carey (Hardesterm). They even have Sheriff Clay Marsh (Kaz Garas) in their pocket. They don't cotton to outsiders, so when Deke comes sniffing around their turf, a war ensues. Luckily, Deke has an ace in the hole: his old army buddies Spence (the electronics expert) and Ox (The goofy, loud punchfighter) (Daniels) to help him out.

Who will be victorious? The smarmy bastard John Carey or will the mighty hero Ox reign supreme?

Hill as Deke is bit bland to be an action hero and he has an unflattering overbite. This doesn't stop him from being a slickster with the ladies and wearing his Member's Only jacket while sitting on a chair backwards so he can "rap" with people. Thankfully Jack S. Daniels (great name) is an American treasure to be discovered again and again! We need more men like him in the movies and in real life.




While most films of this era were concentrating on evil cocaine-related baddies, The Devastator goes the opposite direction and shows evil pot growers. John Carey is a hilarious name for the main villain. When they say his name in the film, you think of the failed presidential candidate windsurfing, and throwing HIS Vietnam medals over a fence. Where are the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth when you need them?

Directed by prolific fan-favorite Cirio (we are on a first name basis), this bears a similarity to the classic Final Mission (1984), it even has the same gratuitous fan-favorite death, decapitation. One of the strongest aspects of the movie is that it has a double-revenge plot. Deke has to get revenge for his fallen buddy and for himself.

In the U.S., The Devastator was released on VHS in one of those great MGM\UA big boxes. You gotta love 'em. If you don't like VHS big boxes, you are a traitor to our great country.

Ox it up tonight with this classic!



Comeuppance Review by: Ty & Brett

Firehawk (1993)

Firehawk (1993)-* *1\2

Directed By: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Martin Kove, Matt Salinger, and Terrence "TC" Carson












In the vein of other Cirio H. Santiago movies such as Final Mission (1984) and Eye Of The Eagle 3 (1989), here we have another Vietnam escapade in the jungle.

Martin Kove of Shootfighter (1992) fame stars as Stewart, a rescue 'copter pilot with an attitude who chomps down on his cigar. He may have a rough n' tumble demeanor but he seems to know the score. His crew is comprised of Tex (Salinger), who loves nothing more than to shoot VC with his machine gun. At odds with him is the moral medic Davis (Carson). Li is a former VC working with them. There's also Hobbs and Bates. Another member of the team, Jimmy, who closely resembles comedian Nick Dipaolo, is injured. While he is recuperating at the army hospital, he gets closer and closer to the truth about "Firehawk".

When their Heli is grounded in the middle of the jungle, The team must overcome their internal squabbling whilst fighting the enemy. Is there a traitor in their midst? And what is the secret of the term "Firehawk"?

Kove gets to do his best Hannibal impression while he leads his own "A-Team". This includes "helicopter flying faces". Just imagine "guitar face" but with a Heli instead. The poor audio mixed with the constant helicopter sounds, mixed with constant shooting, mixed with the fact that Kove always has a cigar in his mouth, means much of his dialogue is unintelligible. One disappointing aspect of the movie is that Kove's name isn't "Firehawk".



During one of their many gun battles, purple smoke starts billowing from the ground and someone says "it is a purple smoke trap!" Later, Carson gets to bellow fan favorite yell: "Nooooo!"

This 'Nam shoot-em-up reminds the viewer of classic NES shooters such as "Operation Wolf" and "Cabal".

Firehawk is a decent addition to the 'Nam movie boom of the late eighties and early nineties. It has more character development than most of its ilk. Yes, an endless amount of baddies get shot but an attempt is made at intelligence and plot twists.

Find out the secret of "Firehawk" tonight!


Comeuppance Review by: Brett & Ty

Final Mission (1984)

 Final Mission (1984)-* * *

Directed By: Cirio H. Santiago

Starring: Richard Young, Jason Ross, John Dresden, Willie Williams, and Jack S. Daniels












"Armed with an MG-82---It will take an Army to stop him!"


Who can resist another story about a guy who comes back from Vietnam and gets revenge on some bad guys? NOT US!

Final Mission is trying to ride the coattails of the contemporary classic First Blood (1982). There are many similarities but 'Mission has its own charm.

Vince Deacon (Young) is fighting in the jungle of Laos. It turns out his former buddy Slater (Dresden) is a traitor working with the VC. After an unnecessary but surprisingly welcome decapitation, we are brought into present day L.A., where Deacon is a tough guy working for the LAPD SWAT team. He breaks up a kidnapping, dispatching the baddie with ease. He gets suspended for excessive force by classic Irish Captain, Captain O'Riley.

Deacon goes on a vacation with his wife and son (who has a bowl haircut) to Pinesville, a rural fishing area. The family is cavorting around and having a grand ole time, then tragedy strikes. A boat explosion kills Deacon's wife and son. Now Deacon is roaring through the small town and trying to get answers and bloody revenge. The sheriff in Pinesville, who resembles Bocephus-era Hank Williams Jr., is a corrupt yokel and his deputy "Moose" is no better. Slater lives on a ranch in town and the local police which may or may not include his brother are all against Vince. But Vince has two tricks up his sleeve, one is his partner Isaac (Ross) who comes to his aid, and the other trick is to break into a weapons store and steal a gigantic machine gun. Which is apparently called an MG-82. Most small town gun stores have an MG-82 and unlimited ammo right behind the glass.

What ensues is a barrage of gun-shooting, grenade-throwing violent assault and it goes so out of hand the Army has to step in to stop one man. It's the actual army vs. the steadily-going-insane one man army. Luckily, Vince is the woods just like in First Blood. Will the war ever be over for Deacon? Find out today!

One of the best parts of the movie is the theme song to Final Mission called "Always On My Mind" by Steve Butler. Not to be confused with the Willie Nelson song of the same name. This is a rockin' tune in the A.O.R. vein of Foreigner and Rainbow. The filmmakers know they have a hit song on their hands because they play it at least four times.

Accept this "Mission" and watch this classic tonight!

Extra Note: Some writing credits go to Anthony Maharaj, the co-conspirator of Richard Norton and writer/director of his classic film Kick Fighter (1987) and director of his film Cross Fire (1988), as well as Joe Mari Avellana of Field of Fire (1991) fame. Who could forget Captain Phat?

Comeuppance Review by: Ty & Brett