Written by Nicholas J. Corea Cinematography John McPherson | ||
Produced by Stephen CaldwellNicholas J.Corea Starring Lane Caudell as ToranBelinda Bauer as EstraVictor Campos as SlantGeorge Kennedy as BrakusKabir Bedi as GarMarc Alaimo as SandrosPriscilla Pointer as NaestraRichard Moll as ferrymanChao-Li Chi as astrologer | ||
The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire, also known as Fugitive from the Empire and The Archer and the Sorceress, is a 1981 American sword and sorcery action film written, directed and produced by Nicholas J. Corea.
Contents
Production
Originally the TV-movie was produced as a pilot for a planned television series by NBC, but the TV-series never saw the light of day. This explains the open ending of the movie (mainly that Lazar-Sa was not found and the group declares the search for him as a target). In comparison to films like Dragonslayer (1981) the technical possibilities of the early 1980s were not utilized to the fullest. Quite successful is the look of the masks and the makeup effects used to portray the Snake People. Mainly involved in it was John Goodwin (The Thing, Men in Black). The film-score that was composed by the synthesizer-specialist Ian Underwood is one of the first soundtracks ever completely produced electronically.
Plot
The movie plays in the land of Malveel, an area inhabited by clans of nomadic people who battle against each other. This land is in danger of being conquered by the rising Draikianian empire mainly called The Dynasty. After a long time King Brakus, ruler of the falcon clan is able to gather and finally peacefully unite several antagonizing clans. He thereafter trys to win them over for the combat against their shared foe. However there is treachery in his own rows: His nephews Sandros and Riis contacted the Dynasty in their craving for power and so the Dynasty's supreme warlord Gar and his snake people command the two to get rid of Brakus. Meanwhile Brakus' son Toran has a clash with the beautiful sourceress Estra, whose mother was murdered by Brakus under the order of his mentor Lazar-Sa. At the end Estra is giving Toran a cryptical prophecy where she is promising him a hopeless search.
The story goes on with Brakus getting killed in that same night by Gar using Toran's dagger, which had been secretely stolen by Sandros before. While breathing his last, Brakus wrests a last promise from his son Toran: Searching for Lazar-Sa so the king's efforts weren't to no avail. Toran is found with the corpse of his father, so he is kept captive as his murderer. Toran's old mentor Mak, who is the wearer of a magic bow, frees Toran and together they both start the search for Lazar-Sa while being chased by Gar and his snake people who are determined to prevent a new alliance of the clans of Malveel under the leadership of the Falcons. To ensure that, Gar even kills Sandros and Riis. Drained by the escape and his age, Mak turns over the magic bow to his apprentice, dying in the process of the bow choosing his new wearer.
Toran is able to wound Gar at the confrontation and gets attention of the thug Slant who joins Toran without asking. Although Slant tries to steal the bow at first, he starts to really like Toran, and therefore helps him with his wisdom of the world. At the same time Estra starts her search for Lazar-Sa to kill him and avenge her mother. While on her way she crosses with Toran. In the city of Kamal the three meet a person who is impersonating Lazar-Sa and who is trying to chase the people out of that area. Toran, Estra and Slant are then asked by the city council to end the menace. Because they are searching for answers, the three agree and travel to a canyon where the sourcerer is hiding. After their departure Gar also finds his way to Kamal where he resumes his track of Toran.
In the canyon, the three meet Lazar-Sa. They realize very quickly that he is just a magical simulacrum controlled by an ex-slave from Kamal named Rega. He once met Lazar-Sa and got a magical stone and a gauntlet from him to take revenge for the humiliations he once suffered. Rega tells the three where Lazar-Sa was seen last but then kills himself cause his identity was revealed. Gar, who followed Toran, grabs the gauntlet and challenges Toran. During the battle Toran strikes the stone with an arrow and the stone becomes unstable and the might of the stone destroyes the canyon and Toran, Estra and Slant are happy to escape.
Thereupon Estra is parting with her former companions to follow her own path of finding Lazar-Sa. Toran and Slant are on their way back to Kamal, when a message from Lazar-Sa reaches them. Lazar-Sa is promising Toran to lead him to his higher purpose if he frees the sourcerer from his current prison: The Endworld. What Toran and Slant don't know is the fact that Gar also survived the catastrophe in the canyon and still hungers for Toran's death...
Reception
The movie had more success abroad as it "received some theatrical exposure" across Europe and publications on media like VHS and DVD (29. April 2011, Koch Media) in Germany.
Critical response
Adventurous fantasy examination in comic style between good and evil, questionable when it comes to its glorification of violence.