The Ultimate Warrior (1975)

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

I felt like watching that because I had seen the names of Yul Brynner and Max Von Sydow.It was a big disappointment.First of all the script is inept,abysmal and terribly (for 1975) derivative :it borrows many of his "ideas" from other movies for the subject was very trendy in the seventies:you will think of 'the omega man" " Solyent green" and even "silent running" ;as for the ending it apes 'planet of the apes" (1968)without a wrist but with a short view of the statue of Liberty.The undergrounds evoke " beneath the planet of the apes". In a way ,it nevertheless predates the "Mad Max" series.-Shall I save first your (pregnant) daughter or the seeds? -The seeds!

That and there's no spaceships or nuclear holocaust involved (contrary to other reviewers who apparently didn't actually bother to watch the film).In current terms, the film is probably closest to a zombie film where the world has gone through a "plague" killing off most of the population and making it impossible (nearly) to grow food. If you can imagine your favorite apocalyptic virus-zombie film combined with Lord of the Flies and produced as more of a 1960s film than a film just a couple years before Star Wars, that's what you get.Yul is convincing in the lead roll more because the population is starving to death than because he looks like or acts much like a warrior, though he's much more convincing than Charlton Heston would be in the same roll or in the Apes roll had he played that.Although the story is strangely insightful in some ways, especially if you've just seen Food, Inc. or The Informant or Winged Migration, there are holes in the plot (set in 2012 being one of them) that leave a lot open and causes the film to not age very well.

Because I was on a kick for some post-apocalyptic goodness and the cast included old favorites, I watched this flick. The result is mildly disappointing but might still be worth it for some. One thing that must be taken into account is that we are talking about a 1975 movie. This excuse its clunkiness and the lack of scope somewhat, although not completely.The basic plot is rather vague, all over the place. The writing is crude and ridiculous at times, yet there are worthwhile ideas to explore. The story takes place in a post-apoc New-York circa 2012. The usual staples of the genre are there. Lawlessness in a barren city, return to a semi-primitive life and lots of scavenging. Some survivors form bands. This flick focuses on two such rival groups, one of which, in the pure Hollywood tradition is the "good guys" and the other "the bad guys".Yul Brynner, for a man in his 50s, is surprisingly in shape and exudes action hero charisma. He is effective here as Carson, a super-tough survivor who responds to the (very lame, plot-wise) "good guy's offer" to protect them in exchange for a clean room, triple food rations and most importantly to him... cigars (I kid you not). Max Von Sydow's aura is equally perceptible but as in many, many of his 70s/80s movies, he's simply collecting the paycheck here. You'll appreciate his natural screen presence but do not expect to be blown away. He's the leader of the "good band" here but is not use to best effect. His character is very one-dimensional. While the one-dimensionality of Carson works, we expect more emotion from the peripheral characters. William Smith plays Carrot, your usual psychotic main villain and leader of the "bad clan". Surprisingly, he gives the best performance of the entire film by far, even if that's not saying much. The rest of the actors are extremely weak and their characters are flat and/or undeveloped.The main flaw of this movie is a failure to establish much motivations. The way leader Baron (Sydow) "recruits" Carson at the start of the movie is beyond ridiculous. The whole setup is just so unbelievable that we expect there is more to it than Carson just standing there in the middle of the city. The two clans are at war but it's difficult to comprehend why exactly. Sure, we get that it's a typical conflict but we never swallow it. But wait, you say. Why does it matter if the characters are fleshed out or not? Isn't this an action flick? There's the problem. There is a real attempt here at telling a story because there is NOT much action. It's just that there is no real story, unfortunately. We spend a lot of time with Baron's bunch. Learning about various characters and the tensions caused by the lack of food but it's all underdeveloped. You get the impression there are directorial comments here about "communal lifestyle" but they aren't clear. There's also a surprising lack of romance here or other kitsch elements. The final act of the flick is a drawn out chase in the subways that is anything but exciting. The final confrontation has nice ideas but again, falls flat.At its heart, I think Ultimate Warrior wanted to highlight the differences and more importantly the similarities between "peaceful hippies" and "hardened men" such as Carson and how the two react when facing obstacles in a lawless environment. Unfortunately, it fails. Everything this movie does, the Mad Max trilogy does way better. Except I'd rather watch Max Von Sydow than Tina Turner.Big fans of post-apoc films, Sydow, Brynner or cheesy 70s flick will want to give this one one viewing and that's it. Others are better off passing.

This is the movie that virtually set the template for all post-holocaust action films. Yul Brynner, pushing sixty at the time of filming(!)has enough old school movie star charisma to more than make up for the rather pedestrian fight scenes. It is a shame he died when he did because he is loaded with charm and presence and he could have made a much better action movie hero than the lame wanna-be's who followed in the 80's. And how often does one get to see an actor of Max Von Sydow's caliber in films like this? He brings an air of dignity and authority to the film. If one could quibble with anything it would be the sheer cleanliness of everyone--they all look like they just got their freshly laundered clothes from Wardrobe--but this is small potatoes. Take the cool story, cool post-apocalyptic sets and Brynner's and VonSydow's presence and add b-movie legend WILLIAM SMITH as the heavy and you have a rather enjoyable way to spend 90 minutes. One final note,the cinematography by Gerald Hirschfield is quite lovely, contrary to my memories of earlier viewings, where I thought the lighting flat and TV movie-like; not at all; Hirshfields cinematography creates an eerie, diffuse beauty out of the images of a decayed, empty metropolis.