SIX-STRING SAMURAI is an artifact from one other time – the early web days, when film nerds like us had been a fringe group starting to ascend to energy, and earlier than individuals would make pretend trailers and put them on Youtube. Particularly it was the autumn of 1998, after a wierd summer season of blockbusters all people hated (GODZILLA, LOST IN SPACE, THE AVENGERS) but additionally some classics (BLADE, THE MASK OF ZORRO, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, WILD THINGS, OUT OF SIGHT) — see my overview of the season right here. In the course of all that Palm Photos launched this low finances post-apocalyptic film a couple of Buddy Holly lookalike battling his manner by means of the desert to get to “Misplaced Vegas.” It solely performed 16 screens, nevertheless it lasted 15 weeks. Individuals should’ve been watching it.

I didn’t get an opportunity till it got here to DVD, however I’d been listening to about it for months on The Ain’t It Cool Information. In researching it I discovered an interview with director Lance Mungia the place Harry Knowles acknowledged that his “over-the-top” overview had raised expectations too excessive and led many individuals to be dissatisfied. And that’s my reminiscence of what the response was on the time. I feel I favored it greater than some, I believed it was fairly cool, nevertheless it didn’t change the world.

Then over time the world modified for different causes, and now I’ve come again to SIX-STRING SAMURAI. Viewing it 1 / 4 century later it feels far more particular – a final gasp of the pre-digital video period, whenever you couldn’t make a bizarre style mashup except you actually meant it. The film itself shouldn’t be so critical, however the filmmakers needed to have been as a way to get hold of and correctly use movie and cameras, drag them out into the scorching warmth of Dying Valley and create an alternate actuality within the sand dunes, deserted homes and fuel stations.

On the blu-ray Vinegar Syndrome launched a pair years in the past (in addition they did a 4K) it appears to be like nice. Like an actual film. Not solely does it have stunning, pure movie grain – it has crane pictures! It has a fireplace stunt and an explosion! And solely a few visible results. Lately a pupil at Loyala Marymount may nonetheless make a MAD MAX meets LONE WOLF AND CUB however they’d be capturing it half-assed and digitally, including some sort of “grindhouse” filter in publish, it might doubtless really feel like a joke made by somebody who’d by no means seen the flicks they had been parodying. Mungia’s solely retro affectation is capturing the opening with a non-anamorphic lens as a result of he favored how the previous kung fu motion pictures regarded when their credit had been squeezed for TV.

The opposite uncommon ingredient is the star, Jeffrey Falcon, part of that distinctive custom of white martial artists who moved to Hong Kong within the ‘80s and ‘90s to play the gweilo unhealthy guys in motion motion pictures. His first position was as “Chief of the Robbers” in TOP SQUAD, and he appeared to principally get into the female-oriented motion pictures: OPERATION PINK SQUAD I and II, THE INSPECTOR WEARS SKIRTS II, the Cynthia Rothrock motion pictures LADY REPORTER and PRINCE OF THE SUN. He performed “Kidnapper” in SHE SHOOTS STRAIGHT, and he’s credited as assistant choreographer on one other Joyce Godenzi film referred to as LICENCE TO STEAL.

On the planet of Hong Kong motion he was a minor participant, however I’m positive when Mungia met him on the American Movie Promote it should’ve been holy shit this man’s from the world of Hong Kong motion! They hit it off, and talked about making a film collectively, and later had a eureka second when Falcon placed on Mungia’s scratched up, taped collectively glasses to learn the way he may see by means of them, and Mungia thought he regarded like a post-apocalyptic Buddy Holly. The remainder of it apparently got here to them fairly fast.

So we’ve obtained this absurd premise that Russia dropped the bomb in 1957 and took over America, however Elvis was topped king of Misplaced Vegas, “the final bastion of freedom.” And now that it’s 40 years later and Elvis has died, a brand new king is required, so right here’s this man who appears to be like like Buddy Holly, trekking by means of the desert doing flying kicks, combating off a bowling-themed staff of bounty hunters (they carry chain maces of their baggage and knives of their bowling pins) being stalked by Dying and his faceless heavy steel Horsemen. He carries a rickety umbrella and a guitar with a sword sheath taped to the again.

Within the opening he rescues a bit child in a coonskin cap (Justin McGuire) who begins following him round. He’s a surprisingly non-cloying child – it helps that he speaks so little I assumed he was mute for some time. Buddy tries to eliminate him by drawing a line within the floor together with his sword and saying, “Cross that line, child, I’ll reduce your little teddy bear in half.” The child makes use of the bear to wipe away the road, as if he’s found out a loophole, however then he thinks about it and decides to depart the bear behind. I don’t assume it’s an intentional reference, nevertheless it jogs my memory of EL TOPO when he has his child bury his teddy bear and picture of his mom within the desert to turn out to be a person.

The child is aware of learn how to drive (utilizing the Brief Spherical technique). All of the autos are beatifully rusted, and theirs doesn’t make it far earlier than breaking down. In a stunning, surreal contact, Buddy opens the door and a bunch of gumballs pour out in gradual movement. To cite what one among Ricky Bobby’s sons mentioned about anarchy, “I don’t know what it means, however I like it!”

Buddy nonetheless desires to ditch the child, and in a contact that feels very ‘80s, drops him off with a parody of a center class suburban household. They dwell in a wrecked home and put on torn up garments. I don’t assume you possibly can belief anybody who wears a tie in a post-apocalyptic situation, and that’s precisely what this dad does. He additionally performs golf. The mother wears pearls, the son attire as a cowboy. “Unusual, nevertheless it’s higher than what’s outdoors,” Buddy causes. He relents and takes the child with him after they turn into cannibals planning to eat him.

It’s an episodic film, however the sort of episodes I Iike: a bar combat, a bike journey (and crash), a tai chi montage (with a bit added rock ‘n roll swagger) in entrance of an ideal sundown… how can I not at the very least sort of love a film that has that? Have a look at the guitar and the sword within the nook! That’s a film!

And there’s a sword combat towards a complete platoon of Russian troopers. Dying finds the our bodies and says, like some Saturday morning cartoon villain, “Just one man can kill this many Russians. Deliver his guitar to me.” When Dying and Buddy come nose to nose they first duel with guitar riffs, then swords. (Falcon introduced in a wushu swordsman pal, Liu Boa, only for the latter.)

There’s a energetic soundtrack worthy of the subject material, with songs by the Purple Elvises, a surf and rockabilly band made up of People who emigrated from Russia, and use that as a gimmick. Like Yakov Smirnov, besides cool. They’re additionally seen within the film, and their songs mesh properly with the rating by Brian Tyler. It’s solely the composer’s third characteristic, after one indie and one TV film. Just a few of his credit since then embrace SIMON SEZ, BUBBA HO-TEP, VAMPIRES: LOS MUERTOS, PAPARAZZI, and BANGKOK DANGEROUS.

Oh, and William Friedkin was impressed by his work on FRAILTY so he recruited him for THE HUNTED and BUG and in addition Justin Lin introduced him onto TOKYO DRIFT so he’s executed virtually all the FAST & FURIOUSes since then, in addition to RAMBO and RAMBO: LAST BLOOD and THE EXPENDABLES 1–3. And likewise he did IRON MAN THREE which led to THOR: THE DARK WORLD and AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON and like 100 different massive motion pictures. The man has executed properly for himself.

I don’t need to repeat historical past’s errors and overhype this. It’s a easy film. I simply recognize these younger hungry residents of the ‘90s getting sandy and sweaty to carry this goofy idea to life, and doing such a top quality job of it. To me the true Buddy Holly is just form of cool. However train him to make use of a sword, ship him and his two-tone footwear into the wasteland to leap away from explosions, battle legendary villains, then push up his glasses and snap his fingers – now we’ve obtained a celebration. And I love a film with so many completely trashed areas and props made out of junk but additionally stunning samurai film imagery. These are spectacular first timer accomplishments. My solely grievance, actually, is {that a} film with a lot LONE WOLF AND CUB spirit oughta have a couple of blood geysers. Perhaps that’s why it didn’t fairly stick within the cultural reminiscence. However possibly it’s able to resurface there, as a result of wanting again at it now I can actually recognize it. Have a look at these things:

The AICN interview I discussed was proper when the film had come out, so that they had all people in Hollywood telling them they had been scorching shit, and getting their hopes up that they may construct off of this. Mungia mentions Falcon being up for an excellent hero film, which I’ve heard elsewhere was Cyclops in X-MEN. He additionally mentioned they had been about to do “a very wacky Christmas motion film this winter that Jeff and I wrote, a couple of plot to assassinate Santa.” Many years later, on a commentary monitor, he says that Falcon solely wished to do lead roles, and that it led to a falling out. Sadly, Falcon by no means did one other film, and possibly by no means will, since nobody has been capable of find him for years. Perhaps he actually did turn out to be the King.

Mungia didn’t handle to leverage the SIX-STRING buzz into something greater both, with one exception: seven years later he did a straight-to-video THE CROW sequel, which we can be discussing quickly. On the in depth extras of the Vinegar Syndrome launch Mungia appears to have a very good angle about all of it, having fun with his life operating a small media manufacturing firm, fondly remembering SIX-STRING as a enjoyable time he and his mates had after they had been younger, talking extremely of the enigmatic Mr. Falcon. I’d be excited if these two in some way reconnected and determined to proceed the journey, but when it’s not meant to be it’s not meant to be. They’ll all the time have Vegas.