The Beastmaster (Don Coscarelli, 1982): USA, West Germany

Reviewed by Byron Potau. Viewed on DVD.

In a year full of mediocre and below superhero movies I felt it appropriate to revisit one of the great guilty pleasures of the eighties, Don Coscarelli’s fantasy adventure The Beastmaster.  Long after Hancock is forgotten people will still be watching this low budget treat.

As with many fantasy epics, it all begins with a prophecy.  Maax, the evil fanatical sorcerer played by Rip Torn is foretold that he will die at the hands of Dar, the unborn son of King Zed.  Maax is banished by King Zed, but not before instructing a witch to remove the unborn Dar from his mother’s womb and disposing of the child.  Dar is rescued by a farmer who raises him as his own.  He discovers that he has a unique ability to communicate with animals wherein they can see through each other’s eyes, literally.  After his village is destroyed and his stepfather killed, Dar sets out to exact his revenge with the help of his four creature companions, the eagle, the tiger, and the incomparably cute ferrets, Kodo and Podo.  Along the way Dar finds time to flirt with the scantily clad Kiri, played by Tanya Roberts.

The film has definite similarities with another eighties fantasy adventure, Conan the Barbarian, also released in 1982, but still has charms of its own.  The assortment of creative enemies and creatures is enthralling and a bit scary at times.  As Dar,  Marc Singer exudes a Mark Hamill like charm and is thoroughly satisfying, likable and believable as our hero.  One need not dissect the scenes of swordplay to identify their lack of exuberance and authenticity, and the main villain seems underdeveloped and far less scary than his minions, yet the film works on so many other levels as to render these flaws forgivable.  The animals in the film all perform wonderfully with the ferrets nearly stealing the show. 

The film is brutal at times and refuses to placate its audience which I believe has helped it remain above similar, but less creative fare.  If you are tired of the subpar dreck that Hollywood keeps churning out then revisit this little gem. It is a bit of a guilty pleasure, but it is a hell of a good time.