Atlantis Interceptors (1983) User Reviews

The name's Mohammed and I really like spinach !!

[CelluloidRehab · 5/10 · 12 July 2006]

From the director of Cannibal Holocaust and the Barbarian Brothers, Ruggero Deodato, comes this Italian action rip-off. These types of movies have a nostalgic feel for me, especially this one. It reminds me of the old mom & pop video stores, before Blockbuster. The action movie section would be filled with row upon row of movies like this one. These would be all the movies I'd love to see but couldn't. C grade movies with B grade video cases. The video cases always looked like some fantasy artist just did the movie poster. The covers would rarely live up to the actual movie, but we could hope. Nowadays, the same type of movies have horrible covers to boot. I am not sure when this developed, but I think it has to do with the ready availability of Photoshop and computers. Now on to the movie.

Miami, Florida 1994.

It actually looks more like Miami, Florida 1984, but who's counting. Over a Super Fuzz like disco theme song, we get the Circle Line tour of Miami via water and air. Two guys (we later find out these are our "heroes") break in through the front door of a house, commit several acts of murder, assault and one act of kidnapping. They escape through the front of the house. We never get any real background on the two men other than the following : Mike (played by a leathery-looking Christopher Connelly) and Washington (but please call him by his new name, Mohammed) are ex-military privateers/mercenaries. The initial mission they were on was for someone called the "Colonel". After getting paid for their services, they are off to Trinidad on a boat for R&R.

At the same time, an attractive Dr. Rollins (Gioia Scola - another veteran of Lucio Fulci's Conquest) is forcibly transported via helicopter to a military research platform at 68 N - 28 W (middle of the ocean) to investigate a crazy artifact that was found when a Russian sub crashed. The artifact is reportedly 12,000 years old. She deduces that the artifact is a "Rosetta stone" for Atlantis, using a pair of tweezers, a small magnifying glass and a slide show. As they attempt to bring the submarine to surface, a giant storm breaks loose which sinks the platform. Also a "model of an island in a plastic bubble" apparently rises from the ocean. Mike and Washington (I mean Mohammed) rescue the survivors of the platform, including the attractive Dr. Rollins. At this point the cabin boy, Manuel, has a minor freak out and jumps ship.

The crew end up back on land and they discover a city that has been totally devastated. It was caused by a group of rejects from the Auto and Gun shows that dress like an offshoot of the Village People's leather guy, with lots of shimmery golden makeup and crazy haircuts. Their leader wears a transparent skull mask, leather vest and neck guard and carries a riding crop (even though he rides in a 50's Ford with the Ben-Hur modification to the wheels). At first he just attacks, but later he reveals the plot.

Apparently they are Atlanteans and they're back. These xenophobic Atanteans are on a Greenpeace mission to kill everyone (except 1 person) and reclaim all that was theirs. It took 52 minutes to find out what this movie was about, but better late than never. We then get Assault on Drug Store 13. Somehow the Atlanteans kidnap Dr. Rollins and it's up to our wrinkly hero to rescue her. How do we do this ??

Step 1 : Commandeer a bus.

Step 2 : Blow up a helicopter from the bus.

Step 3 : Run over the bad guys.

Step 4 : Commandeer a military helicopter.

Step 5 : Fly to Atlantis.

Step 6 : Rescue (involving lots of killing and puzzle solving)

This movie is predictable, once you figure out what's going on. That is only a matter of time since the plot is quite simple. You can expect the typical B/C grade movie pyrotechnics (feels like we're watching the A-Team or something), point and click gun fights (noone aims), models of vehicles and buildings, and the gratuitous dummy kill (a.k.a. close up kill shot).

All the things I've said should not distract you from this laugh-fest. It is quite enjoyable, when not taken seriously. This is never a problem because everyone involved seems to know what kinda of bucket everyone is standing in and its not full of bananas.

-Celluloid Rehab

Trash at it's best!

[CrackerJack30 · 5/10 · 18 February 2006]

WARNING: MAY INCLUDE SPOILERS

Can you imagine a movie including a Russian submarine, the ancient continent Atlantis, a evil Punk-Rock-Gang trying to capture the world and some Vietnam veterans fighting against them? No? Nor do I, till I saw "Atlantis Inferno" yesterday - This is trash at it's best! The story is so funny, you can't believe anyone took this crap serious – not even the director of "Atlantis Inferno". Some American Scientists try to get a sunk Russian submarine from the ground, without the UdSSR recognizing it. I can't believe this was possible in the years of the cold war. Also, I don't understand why they use a oil platform to lift the submarine – But, whatever. Unfortunately, the atomic rockets inside the submarine somehow (??) wakes the continent Atlantis, which rises from the ground. Why? Well, who cares? At the same moment, Punk-Rockers from Atlantis (please, imagine it! Punk-Rockers from Atlantis! Who ever thought that a Punk-Rock-Gang lived in Atlantis and their Leader is a weirdo with a Glass skull as Face??) arrive in the USA and start killing every human they find. A massive storm destroy the platform, and some of the soldiers, the scientists and a pilot get saved by two retired Vietnam-Fighters, now working as soldiers-of-fortune. These bunch of survivors now fight against Mr. Glass skull and his none-human (but look like humans) army of rockers. I don't wanna spoil everything, so watch the movie and enjoy the Indiana-Jones-meets-Alien End by yourself.

The Action is bloody, real bloody, sometimes even disgusting. The Special effects don't deserve the word "special", they were made with models from a toy-steam-train, maybe in the bathroom of the director (e.g. the storm scene). The Acting is standard for a B-Movie.

If you really love trash movies with a REALLY strange story, this is a must-seen! All others should avoid "Atlantis Inferno" at all costs.

Action packed but nonsensical

[HaemovoreRex · 5/10 · 17 June 2006]

From Ruggero Deodato, the director who gave us the incredibly powerful and disturbing Cannibal Holocaust comes this lighter weight action yarn from 1983.

It utilises the intriguing central premise of the resurfacing of Atlantis as a catalyst for mass violence when the descendants of the aforementioned long lost continent, who are now living amongst us, take to the streets in heavily armed gangs and set about annihilating the rest of mankind.

The future of the human race appears to rest in the hands of a small group of people who escape the initial wave of urban anarchy whilst they are out at sea.

But returning to dry land how can so few defeat so many? The above plot provides the basis for scene after scene of urban shoot outs and ferocious pitched battles against the marauding hordes of leather clad, painted faced bikers as our heroes fight for survival in a world that has descended into chaos.

A great assembled cast of B-movie favourites including Christopher Connelly, Tony King and Ivan Rassimov head this fairly enjoyable effort that is certainly never dull and boasts some admittedly very exciting scenes ala. Assault On Precinct 13.

Added to this some great stunt work, with some very noteworthy scenes involving a mini bus and you have a solid 90 mins or so of action entertainment.

However……it has to be said that the film makes virtually no sense at all! It appears to have been cobbled hurriedly together sans any logic which sadly serves to seriously undermine it.

It's almost as if, in a desperate attempt to cramp in as many action scenes (copied from other movies) into one picture, the makers forgot to provide a plot that links the said scenes together.

The end result is a decidedly disjointed affair to put it mildly.

However, I don't wish to be too hard on the film for viewed as an action movie it certainly delivers the goods by the bucket load.

As a final note, fans of those lovable cut and splice ninja movies from the 1980's as produced en masse by Godfrey Ho and Joseph Lai will delight to see non other than Bruce Baron as the head villain in this, although he spends most of his screen time beneath a 'crystal' mask.

Entertainment with a capital E!

[Mazzarini · 5 August 2001]

Ruggero Deodato's 1983 classic is one of the most entertaining B movies I have ever seen, the story might be out there, but this is one film where the actors and action drive the narrative. Christopher Connelly and Tony King make a great double act and director Deodato was obviously having a good time directing something more entertaining than his previous film THE HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK. Find this film and enjoy, because they don't make them like this anymore!

A big fat melting pot of anything popular at the time

[Sic Coyote · 3/10 · 16 February 2006]

This is a terrible movie.

If you take the Sea Devils episode of Doctor Who, The Road Warrior, Rambo, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, The A-Team and various other popular stuff and mix it together into a total mess, you have this film.

This movie has: Paper-thin characters, Huge plot holes and leaps of logic, Dodgy special effects etc etc The only reason to watch this again is to mock it, that's the only enjoyment really to be gained out of this get a load of alcohol and a few mates into crappy movies and this should be an interesting subject for abuse. That's all it's good for. This is Italian exploitation at it's dumbest.

The biker riding on headless and crashing into a bush was quite funny though.

1/10

Good action gets lost in a nonsensical plot involving biker Atlanteans

[dbborroughs · 3/10 · 4 August 2008]

If you want to see what exploitation films ended up as before home video killed the grindhouses this is for you. Strange Italian lensed scifi adventure that makes almost no sense as the decoding of a tablet found near a sunken Russian submarine, and which the Americans are trying to raise, causes Atlantis to rise up killing everyone on a nearby island. The survivors of the American salvage effort team up with a couple of mercenaries to battle the descendants of Atlantis who have returned riding motorcycles and wearing fashion out of the Mad Max films. Their leader wears a clear plastic skull over his face. Of course it gets weirder but not very clearer. The action is good in a totally mindless nonsensical sort of way, but after awhile it kind of stops being interesting. The characters are a mixed bag with the two mercenaries, the heroes, coming off best thanks to the witty repartee that they have. It's a totally mindless and stupid movie that in the right frame of mind, or in small bits, wouldn't be bad, but sitting watching it from start to finish is a real chore. For bad action film lovers or those seeking to make fun of a movie only.

B Movie at it's worst!

[cynet-52332 · 3/10 · 14 August 2021]

This movie has everything you can name for being a third rate pile of cow dung.

Bad acting on a huge scale with special effects quality dating back to the early 60's.

Classic lines like *I will kill you Mike go away I will kill you Mike*

Father Frank takes one for the team quoting "Brothers no more blood*

Absolute laugh out loud action movie farce. Made on a shoe string budget filmed on a club 18-30 island.

3/10 overall for this Italian made stinker!

Raiders of the Popular Films vault

[Zbigniew_Krycsiwiki · 7/10 · 19 April 2014]

Raiders of the Lost Ark ripoff, crossed with a Mad Max ripoff, and a disaster/ horror movie ripoff, with sunken artifacts ripped off and thrown in for added randomness.

An incomprehensible mish mash of strange ideas and action vignettes, this has a sudden hurricane(?) sinking the oil rig carrying scientists who are attempting raise a Russian sub from the ocean floor. After being picked up by a trio of thieves on a boat, they stumble onto the mythical island of Atlantis (raised by the radiation of the Russian nuclear sub(? again)) and its violent, biker gang inhabitants. Who even knew there were bikers on Atlantis? After being attacked by said violent biker gang inhabitants, the group breaks into the island's conveniently heavily armed, abandoned police force, and declare war.

Things get even more confusing after that, but that's irrelevant. There's no sense in even trying to decipher the story, because it's obvious that there isn't one, they were just making it up as they go along. The purpose of this movie was clearly just the action, and there's plenty of that: they're making their getaway on a stolen bus when a helicopter filled with Atlantis' biker gang launch an attack. But our heros don't bother to shoot the helicopter. Instead, they let the thugs jump out of it and onto the roof of the van, where a fistfight ensues not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES, before they climb out of the windows and onto the roof of this moving bus to shoot the helicopter. The bus crashes though a barricade and barely makes contact with two other cars, but they immediately explode and burst into a ball of flames.

And there's that stone statue thingie that shoots lasers out of its glowing red eyes.

This can actually be fun, if you turn your mind completely off, and enjoy its absurdities, hilariously awful (and completely nonsensical) dialogue, and overly dramatic death scenes; many of the deaths are accompanied by yells of "Ay ayeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

A disclaimer in the closing credits reads: "All events and characters depicted in this photoplay are imaginary and any resemblance to actual persons and events is unintentional and purely coincidental". Imaginary?

ONLY FOR GOOD

[nogodnomasters · 2/10 · 28 May 2019]

This is a very bad film with high camp value. The soundtrack is disco from the era, complete with white suits and pants. The plot has holes big enough to drive a truck through. A sunken Russian sub is being raised from 5000 feet with a secret US platform off the coast of Miami. The radiation from the missiles cause the domed island of Atlantis to rise, but they can't read their own writings. They send out a group that looks like it is from Mad Max who kill nearly everyone on a nearby island. Their goal is world dominance, once they figure out how to do it.

The models used for special effects are old Japanese bad. The dialogue was bad. One guy was a Muslim, but admittedly not a very good one. Unless one plans on a bad MST movie festival, this is on the avoid list.

Parental Guide: No f-bombs, sex, or nudity. Does drop SOB.

Frabtacular action saga!

[Aylmer · 6/10 · 29 July 1999]

One of best in the post-apoc genre. Doesn't really make much sense, but delivers lots of the goods. Some of you might not know this, but they actually reused sets from ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 for one of the action sequences! Good gore effects, outstanding shootouts, a great cast (best of all Ivan Rassimov), funny cheesy special effects, and even funnier dialog. "Manuel, what the hell are you talking about?" Another in the long line of likable films complete with a Tony King scream-o-rama! Why does this guy scream so much in every film he's in? Look hard and buy this flick! A classic.

Discovery that Atlanteans were bloodthirsty Biker Punk Gang

[aleksandarsarkic · 5/10 · 20 December 2017]

The Raiders of Atlantis is really something special, i have watched a lot of strange, bizzare and trashy movies, especially from the 80s but this one beats em all. It has the most bizzare story that Atlanteans are Biker Punk Gang and they want to wipe out whole humanity, this story can only be written in the 80s. the whole movie is like you take some hallucinogenic drug and had a trip. A lot of action, explosions, gore, killings and with great synthisizer driven music in the background. The soundtrack is one of the best from the b-movies, total proto-synthwave stuff. Charachters are enjoyable Christopher Connelly and Tony King does the great job as main protagonist, also supporting cast has done solid job. I would say that the movie looks like a strange mixture of Assault On Prectinct 13, Big Trouble In Little China (note that Big Trouble is filmed three year later maybe Carpenter got some ideas watching this one) and Mad Max with some Italian twist and humour. This is must watch for all fans of cheesy and bizzare 80's stuff, definetely one of the best.

Superfast moving cinematic mishmash

[udar55 · 8/10 · 12 November 2005]

RAIDERS OF ATLANTIS is one of the biggest genre duplicators to come out of early 80s Italian action cinema. If something was an international hit, it is most likely to be found at some point in here. One need merely look at the US box office reports from 1979-82 to find the workings of this Ruggero Deodato flick. Assorted ingredients include THE ROAD WARRIOR, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, THE WARRIORS, FIRST BLOOD, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, FLASH GORDON, SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE, THE FINAL COUNTDOWN, and even a little NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD.

But this is part of the fun of RAIDERS (and most Italian films from this era). Picking out what bit came from where is like a cinematic version of "Where's Waldo?" For example, the group of survivors encounters a formally dressed family hiding out in an abandoned house. Hmmmmm? NOTLD perhaps? Of course, Deodato one ups his sources in some cases and has the family immediately become graphic gang fodder. This mishmash approach also allows you an opportunity to see which films had a huge impact on Italian cinema (let's just say George Miller and John Carpenter should be pleased).

The cast is led by Christopher Connelly, who looks like a more energetic Jurgen Prochnow here. Connelly is clearly having fun in the role and even doing some of his own hazardous looking stunts. He is partnered with Tony King, whose character Washington is always insisting on being called Mohammed and delivers some funny lines. For example, when the group land on Atlantis someone says, "If you ask me, we're just heading around in circles." To which Washington…uh, I mean Mohammed replies, "What's wrong with circles?" This type of head scratching dialogue is abundant. Rounding out the cast are low budget familiars Ivan Rassimov, Bruce Baron and George Hilton doing his best "Clark Kent" as a nerdy professor. If you don't blink, you can also catch appearances by future filmmaker Michele Soavi and Deodato himself.

The budget is obviously low (watch for miniatures that would make Sid & Marty Kroft shake their heads) but enough bullets, explosions and mayhem (including a gruesome decapitation) is supplied to help you quickly overlook that fact. Plus, the film opens with the soooooo out of place but incredibly catchy disco theme "Black Inferno" by Oliver Onions (the pseudonym of the De Angelis brothers). Deodato seems to have completely thumbed his nose at the conventional rules of cinema, jumping from day to night and back to day in scenes that are supposed to continuous. Hell, what do I know, maybe things are like that in Atlantis?

Whew! A true B-classic.

[the_nightfly · 7/10 · 20 March 2005]

I remember seeing this film many times as kid in the mid-eighties. As today, I can still remember certain scenes though I haven't seen it in over a decade.

The crazed motorcycle posse with nearly-comical characters try to wipe out the scientist group with many ways, and vice versa. There are many great death scenes with (maybe unintentional) black humor. For example, the jammed jukebox(playing "somebody" or something like that) with hanged body hitting it time after time.

The best death scene is the decapitation of the punk-rocker-biker. And I can still remember the gang leader waving his cane to command his troops to battle.

A true R-rated classic. You'll laugh and you'll be entertained.

A dreadfully daft action flick from Deodato.

[BA_Harrison · 4/10 · 19 October 2007]

With post-apocalyptic action (Mad Max 2, Escape from New York), gritty urban thrillers (The Warriors), and escapist adventures (Raiders of the Lost Ark) all the rage with early 80s cinema-goers, it wasn't long before the Italian movie industry jumped on the bandwagon, keen to cash in before the fads fizzled out.

Former king of of the cannibal movie, Ruggero Deodato, joined in the fun in 1983 with The Atlantis Interceptors, a decidedly silly film which is essentially an exercise in ripping off as many recent blockbusters as possible within an hour and a half.

Christopher Connelly stars as Mike Ross, a soldier of fortune who must do battle with vicious motorcycle-punks from Atlantis, after the sunken civilisation is accidentally brought to the surface by a radioactive leak from a Russian submarine (I said it was silly, didn't I?). The film also features Tony King (Cannibal Apocalypse) as Mike's sidekick Washington, Ivan Rassimov (star of several Italian cannibal films) as helicopter pilot Bill Cook, and the gorgeous Gioia Scola as token bit of totty Dr. Cathy Rollins.

With umpteen gun battles, several gruesome deaths (including a nifty beheading, a dreadful 'arrow through the head' gag, and a cannibal movie style jungle booby-trap scene), loads of explosions, a tidal wave (featuring some truly awful miniature work), and even a few lasers for good measure, The Atlantis Interceptors might never be boring, but it is still utter garbage. The action scenes are poorly choreographed, the bad-guys are laughable (they sport Mad Max style mohicans and new-wave make-up), and the plot is utter nonsense.

If you're a huge fan of Italian sci-fi action schlock, then there is a slim chance that you may find this film worth a go, but to be honest, there are better post-apocalyptic action adventure movies out there—even Italian ones!

Hail Atlantis!

[Coventry · 5/10 · 20 November 2007]

What do a Russian nuclear waste laden submarine, the lost continent of Atlantis, a gang of violent post-apocalyptic biker thugs and two interracial Vietnam War buddies have in common? Well, I'm not exactly sure, but Italian cult director Ruggero Deodato nevertheless managed to deliver a fun and exciting exploitation movie featuring ALL of the above elements, and a heck of a lot more. "The Atlantis Interceptors" is an extremely entertaining time-waster, as long as you leave all your sense of intellect at the front door and just enjoy the show. The film exclusively offers plenty of testosterone-packed action, macho characters who swing around large machine guns, silly humor & cheesy dialogs ("If you were an island, where would you hide?") and costume designs that are directly stolen from John Carpenter's classic "Escape From N.Y". The leader of the "Interceptors" hides his face behind a crystal skull and drives a cool car tuned with sharp weapons. The music is pretty awesome, as usual in Italian exploitation treasures, and there a few familiar faces to be found in the cast. It was nice to see George Hilton again, although he aged rather badly since he was the star of copious amounts of Gialli and Spaghetti Western favorites of mine in the late 60's and early 70's. Ruggero Deodato directs with a solid sense of professionalism, but he clearly also realizes this isn't another fundamental effort like his notorious "Cannibal Holocaust". Hey, it's no masterpiece whatsoever but rest assured it deserves a much better rating that the lousy 2.8/10 that currently parades the main page. Just bring your sense of adventure and bad taste. Oh, and whatever you do … remember the valuable moral of this movie: Do NOT dump nuclear waste in the oceans, because before you know it, Atlantis emerges to the surface again and mankind will be overrun by aggressive biker punks. Mmmkay, got that?

Stupid Stereotypical 80s Action Flick

[Rainey-Dawn · 1/10 · 14 November 2016]

This movie is nothing more than a very stupid stereotypical 1980s action flick. It begins with an awful 80s disco-dance song where they kept singing "rolly pollie" over and over. Then off to boats, helicopters, car chases, guns, people either killing or beating each other up and more stupid music.

And I hate the film poster. The dude looks like he's trying to be Chuck Norris being Rambo. The movie is exactly what you see on the poster and if that is attractive to you then you might like this movie - only the film is worse than the poster (in my opinion).

I'm sorry, I like *some* action films of the 80s (only a small handful really) but I find the bulk of them a real snore - and this film is a snore to me.

1/10

Typical Deodato crap

[Phalanx666 · 2/10 · 5 November 2002]

I saw this film a couple of years ago and didn't like it one bit back then. I saw it again last week and it even made worse second impression. Here's the story: scientists, Atlantis, moronic motorcycle gang. Shake it together and let it stir for about an hour and half and add one messed up Italian director... et voila: one rather uninspiring Z-movie. I gave it a 2 out of 10 because it made me laugh sporadically.

Watch this abomination only after Spanish superman movies or giant-carnivorous-rabbit-flicks. Or not...

A really puzzling bit of Italian fluff

[rdoyle29 · 6/10 · 4 July 2017]

Where to begin? These scientists on some sort of oil rig are busy raising a Russian nuclear submarine from the ocean floor. They bring in ... archaeologist I think ... Gioia Scola, an expert in pre- Columbian languages to decipher a weird relic that has something to do with the submarine ... I think. Raising the submarine seems to cause a hurricane which capsizes their rig and perhaps also causes an island enclosed in a plastic dome to rise out of the water. Scola and scientist George Hilton and Michele Soavi and some other folks abandon the rig and encounter mercenary Christopher Connelly and his buddy Tony King on their boat. They all head for the shore of an island (not the one that rose from the sea), only to find it overrun with Atlanteans ... who are, for some reason, dressed like extras from "The Road Warrior" and riding motorcycles and armed with a weird mix of primitive weapons and machine guns. They have killed nearly everyone on the island, so after running into helicopter pilot Ivan Rassimov, who is buddies with Connelly, our heroes try to survive the onslaught of ... post-apocalyptic ancient warriors from under the sea? This movie is almost completely nonsensical, but tries to make up for it with near constant action and gore. The gore is pretty cheap and mediocre and the action pretty silly, but somehow the movie isn't completely awful. When it veers into deep science fiction territory near the end with scenes reminiscent of the Krypton sequences of "Superman: The Movie", you have to kind of admire it's giant balls.

Bloody Violent!

[Johnny B · 2/10 · 27 December 1998]

What is this? The storyline is somewhat vague. A bunch of men and a woman suddenly find themselves on an island where a group of weirdos pass their time killing people and hanging them about the place or else toasting them alive. Somehow (surprise!) the good ones all get killed except for two men and a woman (who falls in love with one of them!) and they kill all the bad ones. (To be sincere I particularly liked the part where they decapitate a motorist with a string of nylon). Call this entetraining? You're sick. Oh yes! By the way - Altantis is mentioned in the title because they find a relic and think it is altantean - crap. Burn it!

Endless cheesy action and a nonsensical plot

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 31 January 2017]

THE ATLANTIS INTERCEPTORS is a somewhat quick and slapdash addition to the Italian mini-wave of post-apocalypse movies that came out in the wake of ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK and the first two MAD MAX movies. This one is directed by Ruggero Deodato and it's fair to say that it's not one of his best films, lacking the raw power of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST for example. However, it does still manage to be one of his more entertaining efforts despite the shortcomings.

The first thing to mention here is that THE ATLANTIS INTERCEPTORS makes little sense in terms of plot. Atlantis rises to the surface after a nuclear accident and is protected by a giant plastic bubble. The inhabitants are the usual weirdly-dressed goons from the MAD MAX films, presided over by cult ninja star Bruce Baron playing a guy called 'Crystal Skull'. His appearance has to be seen to be believed.

Against them are a motley group of heroes played by the usual Italian stars like Ivan Rassimov and Christopher Connelly. Even Antonio Margheriti Tony King is here as the token black guy with a talent for kicking ass. What follows is an endless stream of action scenes as the plot barely strings together one set-piece following another. There's a siege on a house, a foot chase, a chase in a bus that directly references MAD MAX 2, and even some helicopter action. The ending goes into overt sci-fi territory and is the worst part of the movie, making little sense.

The sheer wealth of action in this film is what keeps it moving. There's the occasional gore effect of a decapitation or slashing but mainly this is about firepower, explosions, and stunt men earning their money. The early scenes in which the characters explore their newly-destroyed world are quite eerie and atmospheric, but these are soon dispensed with in favour of endless cheesy action. What harm is there in that? None in my book. THE ATLANTIS INTERCEPTORS is shallow but never less than fun.

Throwaway Sci-Fi tedium

[The_Void · 4/10 · 16 August 2006]

Raiders of Atlantis features one of the most convoluted and ridiculous stories that I've ever seen in a film. Because the story is so silly, it's really difficult to make sense of it, and after about twenty minutes; I found myself just enjoying the violent shootouts and not worrying too much about what is actually going on. My main reason for seeing this film is the fact that it's directed by Cannibal Holocaust director Ruggero Deodato, who has also directed a number of other films that I have enjoyed. Deodato directed this film under the moniker Roger Franklin, probably in order to try and trick the viewing audience into thinking that Raiders of Atlantis was an American film...although I'm sure that not wanting himself associated with this film wasn't too far from his intentions. The plot revolves around the lost city of Atlantis, which resurfaces after a relic is found while a group of people were trying to resurface a Russian nuclear submarine. The resulting tidal wave kills nearly everybody; with the exception of two Vietnam Veterans relaxing after their latest job.

The cast list features three names that I'm familiar with, although none of them take big roles. Italian cult film regular Ivan Rassimov makes an appearance, along with Giallo regular George Hilton. Michele Soavi has his first name changed to 'Michael', and gives another one of his cameo performances, as he did in a number of Argento's works around the early eighties. It's clear that this sort of film wasn't what Ruggero Deodato really enjoyed making, as the cult director's direction feels rushed and the way that the story is implemented doesn't fill the viewer with a lot of confidence. After having seen Deodato's real talent in films like Cannibal Holocaust and The House on the Edge of the Park, it's a shame to see it wasted here. Raiders of Atlantis feels a lot like an obvious attempt to cash in on the popularity of the big American Sci-Fi efforts at the time; films like Escape From New York in particular, but with it's tacky special effects and incomprehensible and frankly dull plot line; Escape From New York, this isn't. Overall, if you're a Deodato completist or just really like tacky Sci-Fi, you might enjoy this...otherwise I recommend staying clear.

"Get this chopper in the air, Inshallah!" "Who's Ursula?"

[Bezenby · 9/10 · 31 December 2013]

This is one of the dumbest Italian films I've ever watched, but don't let that put you off – It's brilliant! The plot, what there is of it, concerns the ancient lost island of Atlantis somehow being brought up from the sea bed by the radiation from a sunken nuclear sub, causing either the Atlaneans or local humans to turn into Mad Max style killers and before you know it you've got everything being destroyed and everyone being killed – but don't worry. We've got a list of Italian exploitation vets out there willing to pick up a machine gun and blow these mental sub-aquatic upstarts to hell.

You've got mercenaries Christopher Connolly (Strike Commando) and Tony King (The Last Hunter), professor George Hilton (Devil with Seven Faces), pilot Ivan Rassimov (Eaten Alive) dubbed by Nick Alexander (every Italian movie ever) in a double whammy of greatness, Michele Soavi (Blade in the Dark) and even Mike Monty (Zombi 3). These are the folks I'd be calling if the apocalypse loomed (even though at least four of them are no longer with us)! The head bad guy? Bruce Baron of The Ultimate Ninja fame! I'm getting faint just typing all that out.

After meeting up on Connolly's boat after some lab is destroyed in a storm, our heroes head for the mainland and from then on it's a toe to toe battle with our ridiculous looking antagonists involving shotguns, loads of petrol bombs, machine guns and even some electrical wire (which chops off some guy's head).

I love the way that Connolly and co lay waste to hundreds of Atlanteans over the course of the last hour of the film. Sure, he's no good at protecting people, especially when he promises three scared people they'll be fine shortly before they're all killed, but I reckon he was just fobbing them off anyway as they were distracting him from mowing down dozens of bad guys. There's a slim plot about a lady who can decipher all these languages getting drawn to Atlantis in some plot to free the Atlanteans (which confused me regarding who all the bad guys were), but just strap yourself in a let the contant sound of gunfire roll over you.

I said this film was dumb, and I mean it. Soavi's character states at one point, when they're all trapped in a building, that he's going to scout around for a way out, then he walks out the front door and gets captured. Check out the Atlanteans – their costumes are like rejects from the Bronx Warriors! And what's with the echoey voices? And what purpose does it serve to have Tony King's character as a recent convert to Islam? It's this kind of stuff that draws me back to Italian films again and again.

It's a Ruggero Deodato film, so there are fleeting bits of gore (decapitations, a woman being shot through the mouth with an arrow etc), and this is so much more a guilty free pleasure than Cannibal Holocaust – no animal cruelty here, thankfully. Get in! I loved this one.

Watchable

[jthaule · 6/10 · 18 September 2021]

This film makes no sense whatsoever, but the visuals are strong. Good b movie. They don't make them like this anymore, sadly.

Who ordered an Action Movie with the lot?...I know I did!

[shoddyhorror · 15 July 2003]

Can someone please call the cops, because this film just stole my heart. Never before has the screen been so electrified with such a vivacious ensemble cast. It was as if someone had pulled out my eyeballs and poured golden syrup directly into my sockets. During the 1980s, you would have been hard pressed to find a teenage girl's bedroom, without at least a dozen Chris Connelly posters adorning her walls. For good reason too, for here, in his greatest role to date as 'Mike Ross', he comes across as a bronzed God, with the rippling physique of a Gym Instructor, and the devil-may-care charisma of a young Rudolph Valentino.

It is hard to put into writing a description of a script so knicker-twistingly intense. With Russian Submarines, Kidnapping and Road Gangs, it plays like a kind of Mad-Max-meets-Saving-Private-Ryan-meets-Les-Miserables-meets-The-Karate-Kid -Part-4 (You know, the one with the chick).

Tony King plays Ross's partner, Washington. His intensely personal portrayal of an alcoholic kidnapper reduced this hardened critic to tears. I will never look at a Bus full of Post-Apocalyptic Gang members the same ever again.

At the end of the day, this film belongs on any serious film collectors shelf. The perfect film to break out at a Wake, "Raiders of Atlantis" will leave you glued to the set for it's 2 hour running time, and you wont be able to shut up about it afterwards.

1 star.

Takes me back to my teenage years

[sverrehu · 5/10 · 29 December 2021]

This movie is worth watching just to see how far fight choreography has come since 1983. I grew up with movies like this as a teen in the 80s, and I thought they were cool. Since then I have 30 years of karate experience, and when I watch it again, I see that not a single fight move would work. And it took me half the movie to realize that the Mad Max-inspired gang of punk riders were the Atlanteans. Fun to watch because it is so bad, and captures everything I watched as a teenager.