After enjoying contemporary action/ horror coming from Indonesia we have progressively gone back to the older and more obscure offerings of their cinematography and truth is- no mater how far you go- it’s still damn awesome! This week we’ll concentrate on their cheese 80’s Sword and Sorcery flick The Devil’s Sword (aka Golok Setan) staring the action star Barry Prima (Ferocious Female Freedom Fighters, The Warrior).
Movie starts with an ancient looking wizard forging the sword out of meteorite (with some crazy synth music playing in the background). Remember this sword, it will play a big role later on. Evil Alligator Queen summons a great warrior Banyujaga– he announces himself with the explosion and evil laughter too. She want’s him to stop the marriage between Sangaja and Pita Loca of all things. He obeys and flies toward the village- on a cloud like Goku non stop laughing so we know that he’s really, really evil.
Banyujaga interrupts the wedding. Father-in-law decides to defend him along with many strong young man but the groom himself looks confused as fuck. After beheading bunch of the villagers bride starts defending him with her awesome Martial Arts. So it seems the groom is the single worst warrior in the village?
Thankfully for the bride Banyujaga ‘s good brother Mandala showed up or she would be dead too. Unfortunately evil forces of the Alligator Queen overwhelm them and Banyujaga menages to run away with the groom- soon to be a sex slave of the evil Queen.
No woman can resist him!
This is a man everyone is fighting and dying for? Mandala rides to his master’s home just to find him on the brink of dying after the attack of a group of evil Martial Art experts (including of course Banyujaga , and super evil witch too). They were after the secret of the mystical Devil Sword but the old men refused to talk. Mandala saves him, using some glowing mushrooms but he still has to cut off his legs in a gory scene than none of us expected.
Mandala goes after the Devil’s Sword but runs into the bride- Pita Loca who’s still determined to get her stupid husband back. The same husband that is boning the hell out of Crocodile Queen that same instant. Knowing that he can’t stop her Mandala accepts the team-up. To get to the mountain of swords they take the boat over the lake. The twist- ferryman is a skeleton! And it that wasn’t enough bunch of evil Alligator men attack them (their costumes are especially funny). Who knew Martial Arts are so effective against Animal-Human hybrids (I guess TMNT tough us that in a way too).
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x47m5wc
“The league of Evil” already reached the mountain but it turned out their bond was not as strong as they claimed. They start fighting among themselves and we are treated with a crazy 4-way duel using exotic weapons and a fair share of magic too.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x47m70o
In the meantime Mandala and Pita Loca reach the cave and Mandala bravely marches in. After surviving many deadly traps he faces a giant (rubber) cyclops who’s one of the most ridiculous things in this movie (and it’s not like there’s not a LOT to chose from). After taking a hellacious beating he menages to defeat him by jamming a large knife in his eye. Then he finally reaches the sword that comes to him with a help of some cool levitation (aka wires).
State of the art Indonesian FX!
Unfortunately when he returned he finds Loca captured and threatened by his evil brother. That of course segues into a crazy two-on-one Martial Art fight- fest. After defeating they dive in to the Alligator Queen’s realm. Even though they destroyed most of her soldiers but it turns out that not even mighty Mandala can ignore charms of the Alligator Queen? All of a sudden they start fucking and the rest of her followers join in doing the strange belly dancing that turns into a ridiculously funny soft-core orgy. Everybody seems to be enjoying themselves except Loca that ends up locked up in a cell.
WORST. ORGY. EVER
Mandala tries to rest after a hard sex session with the Queen but his Master telepathically contacts him (it must be embarrassing) and he returns to his mission.He fight the guards and in the end menages to destroy the golden Alligator statue- that explodes like everything in this movie. Left without the source of her powers Queen turns into the ugly hag and then they easily dispose of her. Her underwater castle explodes but Mandala menages to escape with the young couple.
Mandala wishes the couple happiness and leaves to have some new adventures I guess. But I still can’t get my head around the fact that Loca would so easily forgive her husbands for his multiple transgressions and not even try to get even (or at least beat him up a little).
Verdict: Yes, the acting is completely laughable at times, special effects are atrociously bad, action choreography get clunky too and the less said about sex scenes- the better, but this movie is so completely bat-shit insane that you are left with no other choice but to go on a ride and enjoy the hell out of it.
P.S. If you enjoyed this review you should also check out the other Indonesian classics like Mystics in Bali.
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