Director: Richard Pepin
Screenplay: Jacobsen Hart (Cyber Tracker), Richard Preston Jr. (Cyber Tracker 2)
Starring: Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson, Stacie Foster, Richard Norton, Joseph Ruskin, John Aprea, Jim Maniaci, Tony Burton, Anthony De Longis, Steve Burton
Country: USA
Running Time: 91 min & 95 min
Year: 1994 & 1995
* I’m reposting this review, as Fokus have now released Cyber Tracker 1 & 2 together in a double feature padded mediabook.
I’ve come to the end of my current batch of PM and related action gems kindly sent over to review from Fokus Media. Rounding off the titles is PM’s answer to the Robocop and Terminator franchises, Cyber Tracker and its sequel, Cyber Tracker 2. They’ve been released both individually and together by Fokus Media on Blu-ray and dual-format Blu-Ray & DVD.
Cyber Tracker is set in a dystopian near-future, where Eric Phillips (Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson) is a former Secret Service agent working as a bodyguard for Senator Robert Dilly (John Aprea), a powerful politician pushing a controversial new justice system where Cyber Trackers (all played by Jim Maniaci) – near-indestructible android enforcers – serve as judge, jury, and executioner.
When Phillips discovers the corrupt underpinnings of the program and Dilly’s ulterior motives, he turns against his employer and becomes a fugitive. Hunted by the very robotic assassins he once protected, Phillips teams up with Connie (Stacie Foster), a member of an underground resistance fighting against the oppressive regime. Together, they battle against time and machines in a high-octane race to expose the truth and take down the cyber-justice system.
In the sequel, Phillips has rejoined the Secret Service and is in a relationship with Connie. Peace seems within reach, but a rogue scientist named Paris Morgan (Anthony De Longis) has developed a more advanced version of the Cyber Tracker system, with the ability to replicate human appearance and memories, creating deadly impostors.
After Connie is replaced by a Cyber Tracker duplicate and both she and Eric are framed for murder, they must once again go on the run to clear their names. With the fate of society hanging in the balance, Phillips must not only face the chameleonic Cyber Tracker ‘clones’ but also a super-powerful Tracker programmed to destroy him.
Currently on the IMDB, there’s a review for Cyber Tracker at the top of the list entitled “When you order The Terminator from Wish”. Yes, it’s easy to scoff at Richard Pepin’s film and its sequel as cheap imitations of films with much higher budgets. The special effects look a decade older than those in Terminator 2, despite the Cyber Tracker films being released several years later. However, if you can respect what the filmmakers were working with and take the Cyber Tracker films on their own merits, you’ll find they’re a lot of fun.
The first Cyber Tracker doesn’t stand up quite as well as its sequel though, it must be said. There are some cool stunts, but the gunfights are often quite stiff, with the Tracker standing still and blasting away, whilst everyone else hides and tries to fire off a few shots. It’s not quite the dynamic PM setpiece magic we’re used to seeing.
I also found Wilson a little unlikeable in the first film. He has an attitude towards everyone, often for no reason. Granted, his character is put through the wringer, but it’s hard to root for him when he’s being a dick all the time.
It’s still an entertaining film though, even if the visual effects and sci-fi aspects date it somewhat. Saying that, the home AI system named ‘Agnes’ is remarkably similar to Alexa/Siri/etc, albeit with a few extra bells and whistles.
Richard Norton is the MVP in the first film. The sadly recently deceased actor was always reliable and makes a great villain here, even if he’s technically supposed to be playing second fiddle to John Aprea. Norton has a particularly cool fight with Wilson at the end. Supposedly, Pepin and Merhi ran out of money and time for the final fight, so action choreographer Art Camacho suggested they just fight full contact, to enable them to shoot it quickly, in just 10 minutes! It certainly makes for an intense duel.
Cyber Tracker 2 sadly doesn’t feature Norton, but I found it, otherwise, to be a notable improvement on the first film. In an interview on the disc, Wilson says that he was disappointed with the sequel, as it felt like a carbon copy of Cyber Tracker. However, while the setup and storyline are pretty similar, it felt like Pepin had looked back at the first, analysed its problems and fixed them the second time around.
For one, the action is much stronger in Cyber Tracker 2. The set-pieces are spread liberally throughout and made more varied and exciting, including an impressive double car-flip with explosion. Having a few different Trackers helps mix things up a bit too, with an ‘evil Phillip’ model, for instance, and even a ‘good-guy’ Tracker that allows for a little humour.
Speaking of which, I found Wilson much more likeable here. He can still be gruff but there are moments of humour and affection amongst the tough-guy attitude. Anthony De Longis is an enjoyably over-the-top villain too.
On top of this, I think Pepin might have realised that it was pointless trying to compete with the big-budget competition when it came to VFX, as I felt like there was less of that here. In the first film, for instance, the Trackers had the ability to merge their weapons and badges into their bodies, which was basically an excuse to include some morphing effects, which were all the rage back in the early ’90s. In Cyber Tracker 2, the standard Trackers just carry around massive machine guns instead. This makes for added carnage, on top of less cheesy VFX.
So, Cyber Tracker 2 was definitely my favourite of the pair, though both are fun to watch. Granted, they’re not a patch on the films they’re mimicking (well, not as good as Robocop and the first two Terminators, at least), but for ambitious, action-packed B-movies they’re just what the doctor ordered.
Cyber Tracker: 
Cyber Tracker 2:
Cyber Tracker and Cyber Tracker 2 are out now in a 2-disc Blu-ray Padded Mediabook ‘double feature’ edition, as well as individual 2-Disc Blu-Ray/DVD Collector’s Mediabook Editions and standard Blu-ray editions, released by Fokus Media (you can order them on the Fokus Media website or you might be able to find them on various import sites). The transfers, both presented in the 1.78:1 ratio, are strong. Cyber Tracker has a few sequences lit with strong blanket colours, which can cause slight issues in places, but this is usually handled well. I noticed some slight colour inconsistencies in one or two scenes too, but these are barely noticeable and are likely as originally presented. Cyber Tracker 2 looks fantastic throughout though. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how the films look, though these have been compressed.
You get a choice of German or English language audio options (both 2.0 stereo). I opted for English, and it sounded good. German or English subtitles are also available on the disc.
SPECIAL FEATURES – CYBER TRACKER:
– Interview Don Wilson
– Interview Art Camacho
– Don Wilson – Fight with Richard Norton
– Art Camacho biography
– Richard Norton biography
SPECIAL FEATURES – CYBER TRACKER 2:
– Interview Don Wilson
– Interview Art Camacho
– Art Camacho Live your Dream
– Making of Sci-Fighter
– Outtakes from The Art Camacho Experiment
There’s a 50-minute biography of Norton on the Cyber Tracker disc. I think I might have seen this before, as it seemed familiar but, regardless, this is a wonderful piece. Norton, may he rest in peace, always seemed to be one of the nicest guys in action movies. He lived an amazing life, but is humble about it, and it’s a pleasure to hear his story. He has some inspiring words to say too.
There’s also a lengthy, near-40-minute biography of fight choreographer Art Camacho. This is similarly heartfelt, with Camacho telling his story and describing his personal ethos. This latter point means the interview gets quite ‘self-help’ in the second half, but he talks with sincerity and passion.
There’s a similar inspirational interview with Camacho on Cyber Tracker 2, though this one is much shorter. He provides some other interviews across the discs, and they’re all worth watching.
Wilson is interviewed on both discs too. He’s cheerful and surprisingly honest about the films. He didn’t think the second was as strong as the first, believing it was just more of the same. I can see where he’s coming from, even if, personally, I’d disagree.
Weirdly, one of the extras on Cyber Tracker 2 is a relatively lengthy making of another film, Sci-Fighter. Yes, there is a little crossover of talent and theme, but it’s still an unusual inclusion. It’s a fun documentary though, and one that gives a glimpse of how these types of films are made.
Similarly, there are some outtakes from The Art Camacho Experience TV show. Again, these don’t have much to do with Cyber Tracker other than some of the cast, but they’re enjoyable enough.
Overall, this is a great pair of releases. Cyber Tracker has its flaws as a film, but it’s still fun and the extras on the disc make it worth a purchase. The second film is spot on though.
Discs/packages: