The 1980s saw a glut of ‘sword and sorcery’ films hit screens around the world following the success of Conan the Barbarian in 1982. A number of the initial imitators came from Italy, with canny producers banking on the fact that these films could be made relatively cheaply and quickly. Never one to turn up the chance to make a quick buck, Roger Corman got in on the action too, making Deathstalker in 1983 as the first of ten international co-productions between the US and Argentina.
Deathstalker was reasonably successful too, making $11.9 million in theatres. Not bad for a film with a $450,000 budget. It later continued to make money on VHS in the early days of rentals, helping pave the way for another three Deathstalker films.
The series has gone on to have a minor cult following and 101 Films are releasing the first two films, Deathstalker and Deathstalker II, together on Blu-ray in the UK.
I was feeling nostalgic and quite enjoy a good sword and sorcery flick, so got hold of a copy of the set. My thoughts follow.
Deathstalker
Director: James Sbardellati
Screenplay: Howard R. Cohen
Starring: Rick Hill, Barbi Benton, Richard Brooker, Lana Clarkson, Victor Bo, Bernard Erhard, Augusto Larreta
Country: USA, Argentina
Running Time: 80 min
Year: 1983
The first Deathstalker film sees beefcake Rick Hill take on the title role. After dispatching some ugly-looking guys who were trying to sexually assault a young woman (and then arguably accosting her himself), Deathstalker comes across a witch who sends him on a quest to find three items of power – a chalice, an amulet and a sword.
He gets the sword soon after, by defeating an ogre and releasing the thief Salmaron (Augusto Larreta) from the witch’s spell. The other two items, however, are held by the evil sorcerer Munkar (Bernard Erhard), so Deathstalker and Salmaron head off to his castle.
Along the way, they befriend the warrior Oghris (Richard Brooker), who tells them Munkar is putting on a tournament to find his next heir. Seeing this as a chance to get into the castle and close to the sorcerer, Deathstalker enters the tournament himself.
I had low expectations for Deathstalker, to be honest. It was the trailer and reviews for its sequel that sold me on the set, whereas the first film looked like it took itself too seriously and showed its low budget too clearly. However, I should learn not to judge a film on its trailer, as Deathstalker turned out to be a lot of fun.
For one, it’s not as serious as I expected, with a lot of quipping keeping the tone light and vaguely tongue-in-cheek. More importantly though, it’s very well-paced. Corman and director James Sbardellati know what the audience came for and give it to them at regular intervals. Barely 5 minutes ever go by without either a fight, nudity or some gore.
The fights aren’t too bad either. They’re hardly what you’d call well-choreographed, but they’re just about convincing enough and have plenty of energy. The production design is also pretty good for a film of its budget and era. Some of the makeup effects in particular are surprisingly effective.
With the ‘give them what they want’ approach, the story does suffer though. It’s rushed, messy and a little confusing in places. On the commentary, Sbardellati claims the shoot went well and he was very pleased with the team and their work but the post-production process was less successful. Most notably, quite a bit of material was reportedly cut out, which might explain the choppy, confusing nature of it all.
The film is pretty sleazy too, with boobs regularly on display and a nude mud wrestling scene shoehorned in for the hell of it. This is all par for the course when it comes to sword and sorcery films of the era, and I can’t say I was offended by the flesh on display, though the Deathstalker character’s treatment of women verges a little too close to rape for modern sensibilities (even 80s sensibilities, to be honest).
If you’re reading a Deathstalker review though, you’re likely not too bothered by any dated, bad taste factors. You’re just wanting to know if it’s still a fun time at the movies. The answer to that is yes. I went in with low expectations but came out pleasantly surprised. Yes, it’s dumb, often rushed and muddled and is hardly original, but it knows what it is and delivers what the audience wants with little-to-no filler, making for a fast-paced cheesy treat. Your mileage will of course depend on your tastes, but if you grew up in the 80s and have fond memories of He-Man and the various Conan clones that littered cinemas and video shops, you’ll have a lot of fun with Deathstalker.
Film: 
Deathstalker II
Director: Jim Wynorski
Screenplay: Neil Ruttenberg, R.J. Robertson (additional dialogue)
Based on a Story by: Jim Wynorski
Starring: John Terlesky, Monique Gabrielle, John Lazar, Toni Naples, MarÃa Socas
Country: USA, Argentina
Running Time: 77 min
Year: 1987
The sword and sorcery genre peaked in the middle of the 80s and was on the wane by 1987 but Roger Corman still thought there was money to be made in it, so commissioned another Deathstalker film. Wisely, Jim Wynorski, who was hired to direct it, threw the drearily serious Conan rip-ff script he was given in the bin and started from scratch, creating what is ostensibly a parody of sword and sorcery movies.
In Deathstalker II, our hero, now played by John Terlesky, keeps bumping into Reena the Seer (Monique Gabrielle) and getting her out of trouble. He soon grows tired of her getting in his way. However, she later reveals that she is in fact Princess Evie and needs his help. It turns out the evil sorcerer Jarek (John Lazar) has cloned her and kicked her out of the castle so that he can rule Jzafir for himself, alongside the tough but sexy Sultana (Toni Naples).
Believing he’ll be paid handsomely if he saves the princess, Deathstalker agrees to help her and the pair set off on a perilous quest.
I enjoyed Deathstalker quite a lot, as my review will attest, but Deathstalker II takes it up a notch. By not taking itself seriously at all and adding a post-modern edge to things, sending up its predecessor and other contemporary genre movies, it’s a whole heap of fun.
Yes, the humour can be pretty goofy and low-brow but I dug it. It helps that Terlesky is a charismatic lead. I honestly think he could have been a big star on the back of this, if it were a bigger film, as he’s charming, handsome and funny. Looking at IMDB though, he became a director. After helming a few low budget movies he’s enjoyed a successful career directing TV shows, including Castle and The Blacklist.
Gabrielle annoyed me to begin with but when I realised she was in a dual role, playing the trashy villainess as well as the wholesome plucky heroine, I had a lot more respect for her. Lazar and Naples are fun as the main villains too.
The film is also pretty bonkers, throwing all sorts of crazy scenes into the mix. Zombies show up at one point, a guy gets stabbed through some kind of mystical phone call and there’s a lengthy pro-wrestling spoof between Deathstalker and a huge Amazonian woman!
There’s not as much gore and the production design has taken a bit of a step down (though a lot of the old sets from the first film were re-used) but, overall, by taking a tongue-in-cheek approach to the character and genre, it works a treat. Mad as a bag of hammers and still fast-moving with little filler, it’s an immensely entertaining film.
Film:
Deathstalker & Deathstalker II is out on 22nd August on 2-disc Blu-Ray in the UK, released by 101 Films. You can order it here. The picture quality is great. Both films look sharp and clean with pleasing colours. Deathstalker II has a couple of soft shots but this is likely a source issue. Audio is decent too.
There are a few special features included too:
DEATHSTALKER
– Commentary with director James Sbardellati, special makeup effects artist John Carl Buechler, and actor Richard Brooker
– Theatrical trailer
– Photo gallery
– English subtitles
DEATHSTALKER II
– Commentary with director Jim Wynorski, and actors John Terlesky and Toni Naples
– Theatrical trailer
– English subtitles
It’s not a lot of supplemental material, but the commentaries add a lot of value. The Deathstalker track isn’t hugely insightful but it’s fun to listen to the guys as they laugh along whilst watching the film. It was reportedly quite an enjoyable shoot.
Like the film itself, the commentary for Deathstalker II is even more light-hearted than its predecessor. It’s a pleasure to listen to the team joke about the low-budget production and point out the cheesy gags they stole from other films.
So, if, like me, you’re a fan of cheesy sword and sorcery movies and enjoy listening to commentaries about low-budget filmmaking, you’re in for a treat and owe it to yourself to buy 101 Films’ new set. Can we get the Beastmaster films next please?
Disc/Features: