The Ultimate Warrior is on DVD as part of a 2-pack with a movie I couldn’t convince myself to watch. Buy The Brynner here.
The Action/Adventure Section — A regular column that will exclusively highlight and review action movies. The most likely suspects? Action cinema of the 1970s and 1980s. But no era will be spurned. As the column grows, the intent will be to re-capture the whimsy of perusing the aisles of your local video store with only ragingly kick ass cover art to aide you in your quest for sweaty action glory. Here we will celebrate the beefy. This is a safe place where we still believe that one lone hero can save humanity by sheer force of will and generous steroid usage.
Tag Line: A film of the future.
If you’ve been around Cinapse since the beginning, you may remember The Action/Adventure Section: my passion project within a passion project. If Cinapse is like my firstborn child, this column is perhaps like a first dog or a cat. A dream within a dream. But with the larger vision of Cinapse as a whole often taking precedence, it has been hard to set the internal deadlines needed to keep The Action/Adventure Section rolling out steadily. But we’re planning to change that. I’ll be partnering with Victor Pryor and some of the other Cinapse team to attempt to bring you this column bi-weekly from here on out. And what better place to re-ignite the passion than with a Robert Clouse film? That’s right, I kicked this column off with a double whammy of Clouse… first Gymkata, and then Jackie Chan’s first attempt at Western stardom, Battle Creek Brawl. And with the Scream Factory release of his giant killer rat movie Deadly Eyes just around the corner (look for a review from me this month), the time was JUST right to finally check out his Yul Brynner-starring tough guy post apocalypse film The Ultimate Warrior.
And you know… there’s just something special about future-set films whose supposed apocalypses have already passed. And any red-blooded American feels a stir of emotion seeing the twin towers depicted on screen in just about any capacity. So the opening of The Ultimate Warrior presents a triple threat from its first frames. You get those iconic twin towers nestled in the hulking ruin of the New York City skyline, you get that “2012” time stamp, and then… you get silence. Clouse opens The Ultimate Warrior with a montage of silent images of a broken down world, and it sets a bleak tone for what will be a pretty hardscrabble little movie.
If one had much more energy and passion than I do, they could generate a whole essay on how The Ultimate Warrior is an ahead-of-its-time, sci-fi argument for the merits of urban gardening. And it really is that. “If you have to choose… save the seeds”. But it is also about shirtless Yul Brynner killing a whole mess of fools with his iconic hip-holstered knife. Since I’m into either of those readings of The Ultimate Warrior, I’m counting myself as a major fan of this minor entry in the post-apocalypse sub-genre.
But that brings me around to my first problem. Why on earth isn’t this movie discussed among the best B-apocalypse films? This is a movie that brings ALL the goods. Yul Brynner is a stone cold hero, whose fists are for sale to whatever gang can convince him to their cause. Max Von Sydow is The Baron, a leader who has carved a safe commune from amongst the rubble of a collapsed world. Living in the commune are The Baron’s pregnant daughter Melinda (Joanna Miles), and a genius farmer named Cal (Richard Kelton) who has learned how to mutate seeds and allow them to grow in the harsh new plague-ridden climate. The lean and mean script from writer/director Clouse (Enter The Dragon!) brings us into this world just as The Baron’s commune is on the verge of collapse under increasing pressure from rival gang leader Carrot (the gloriously well-put-together character actor William Smith, Conan The Barbarian, Any Which Way You Can). So in classic action film form, Brynner’s titular warrior, named Carson, becomes our guide as he is introduced to the world this movie shows us just before that world collapses. And obviously, only Brynner can save it. Preferably shirtless.
So the set up is efficient, exciting, and gives way to a very traditional three act structure that eventually finds Carson alone with the very pregnant Melinda, and a stash of the precious seeds which represent a hope for the future if only they can be planted somewhere where they have a chance to flourish… far away from the villainous Carrot’s reach. I guess the movie doesn’t break a whole lot of rules, and hues closely to the action hero formula. But that formula is my jam. And there’re a lot of things a filmmaker can do within a pretty standard heroes journey to make the ride extremely enjoyable. Clouse covers a lot of those bases here.
Not only was I immediately drawn in by the cast, but Clouse’s script gives you all kinds of things to care about. Yes, the survival of the human race would be great and all, but the script ultimately laser focuses on the survival of Melinda and her baby… and those seeds. More than a macguffin, the seeds represent everything The Baron has ever worked for and dreamed about. Carson is entrusted with the seeds after great strife and sacrifice, and I was really invested in those little guys.
Also of crucial importance in an action movie is… you know… good action. And Clouse has repeatedly shown his aptitude for pulling back the camera and letting us see the fights unfold. I loved the final confrontation between Carrot and Carson, which ended on a perfect samurai note. Carrot has been given a proper sense of menace, and then things boil down to Carson’s iconic knife, and Carrot’s crazy ball-bearing-on-a-chain weapon that is used to perfect dramatic effect.
Look, this movie isn’t a masterpiece. There’s some layers of cheese. Brynner starts out as a mute, statuesque figure, and ends up becoming fairly chatty for my tastes in stoic heroes. There’s a very convenient piece of exposition early on concerning Brynner’s travel destination that feels unlikely at best. And yes, we’ve seen dozens of these kinds of post-apocalypse films before and since. It can feel dated at times, too.
But I’m not really concerned with those issues when Yul Effing Brynner is regularly dispatching dudes with that sick knife and Clouse is classing up the joint left and right with his stripped down script and ratcheting tensions. William Smith is a glorious specimen of man-flesh and poses a significant threat to Brynner’s Carson throughout, climaxing in a great fight in the middle of a strong set piece. And I just felt wholly satisfied by the full package. As far as I’m concerned, The Ultimate Warrior should be counted among the best of the B-apocalypse films! So next time you are Googling the former WWE wrestler of the same name who tragically passed away this past year, go ahead and click on that weird Yul Brynner movie that also pops up. There’s much joy to be found at the tip of Brynner’s blade.
And I’m Out.