Equalizer 2000 (1986)

Calificación de los usuarios:

3.5/10   

Director:

Cirio H. Santiago

Guionista:

Frederick Bailey (writer)

Género:

Acción | Aventura | Ciencia-Ficción

Frase comercial:

The Final War Is Over. The Battle's Just Begun.

Plot:

In a bleak, postnuclear future world, warring factions struggle to claim the Equalizer 2000, the one weapon powerful enough to guarantee survival.

Plot Keywords:

Future | Biker Gang | Post Nuclear War | Post Apocalyptic | Desert

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Not One of the Directors Best Movies...

Reparto

Richard Norton	...	Slade
Don Gordon Bell	...	Gossage (as Don Gordon)
Robert Patrick	...	Deke
Corinne Wahl	...	Karen
Henry Strzalkowski	...	Alamo
listado alfabético del resto del reparto:
Frederick Bailey	...	Hayward
Steve Cook	...	Skidplate
Rex Cutter	...	Dixon
Vic Diaz	...	Bone
Ramon D'Salva	...	Firewall
Bobby Greenwood	...	Denah
Bill Kipp	...	Tailfin
De Daniel Long	...	Boze
Warren McLean	...	Fletcher
Willie Schorber	...	Lube Job
Peter Shilton	...	MacLaine
William Steis	...	Lawton

También conocida como:

Equalizer 2000 (Spain) [es]

Duración:

85 min

País:

USA | Philippines

Idioma:

Inglés

Color:

Color

Sonido:

Mono

Clasificación:

Iceland:16 | Germany:18 (cut version) | USA:R | Germany:Película restringida en Alemania

Locaciones de Filmación:

Philippines

Conexiones de Película:

Editado en Raiders of the Sun (1992)

Not One of the Directors Best Movies...

Now, believe it or not, i'm actually a big fan of the director/producer Cirio H Santiago. I think he has a real gift for directing and makes the best out of the very small budgets he is given. Although i prefer his martial arts films (One Man Army, Live by the Fist etc) I also own several of his post-apocalyptic action films - the genre he is really known for - and although they are all a bit 'samey' (desert, dust, cars with spikes on, flame-throwers..), i have always thought he does a good job of recreating the lawlessness and horror of life in a world after nuclear war.

However, i just think there was something lacking in Equalizer 2000. Basically, its the story of a ruling faction - 'The Ownership' - in a post-war Alaska, now just a war-torn desert (surprise, surprise) who preside over the earths supply of oil, and the rebels who fight to overthrow The Ownership and reclaim the oil for everyone. Naturally, every film needs a hero and he comes here in the form of Richard Norton, who says about 10 words in the whole film - a former Ownership soldier who has changed sides and lives to kill the commander who betrayed him and killed his father. With the help of the beautiful Corinne Wahl and a huge, seemingly infinite-bullet-ed super-gun (the Equalizer 2000 of the title) he leads the rebels to reclaim their freedom...

Although i quite like the simple premises behind these films, and enjoy switching my brain off to watch them, i just felt there was something wrong with this one. When i think of the Cirio H Santiago films i like - Raiders of the Sun, Dune Warriors etc - i think what the problem is is that Equalizer 2000 lacks real heart. Although i'm a huge fan of Richard Norton, and think he's a superb, charismatic martial artist, here he is just wasted as a cardboard cut-out monosyllabic action-man. Dune Warriors had great characters that you really cared for, well-acted by good actors. Here we have wafer-thin characters played by good actors who really have nothing to work with...

Also, although obviously huge, plentiful explosions and gun-battles are a given in films like this, its nice to have them interspersed with a bit of character or story development. This film is basically one long raging gun-battle from start to finish - which starts off fun enough, but gets pretty tedious and boring towards the end.

Overall then, not one of the directors best works, but not entirely without hope - Richard Norton is always watchable even when playing characters like this, Corinne Wahl is a stunning, feisty lady, and it was fun seeing a pre-fame Robert Patrick in a very early role, showing some of the promise that would make him a star in later years. Not the worst way to spend 90 minutes of your life if you're in the mood for watching a post-apocalyptic B-movie, but why bother when you can enjoy superior films such as Dune Warriors, Stryker and Wheels of Fire?