American Cyborg

I paid a buck for a used VHS of this title and really only picked it up because I wanted to buy something at this thrift store and there wasn't much else to pick from. I actually sorta dreaded putting it into the machine but what the heck, I went for it. I was surprised that I actually enjoyed it as much as I did. The production values were surprisingly good and the pacing of the film was about perfect for this type of movie. The three leading roles were fairly well cast in my opinion. The female lead had the minimum required acting chops but she was pretty cute just the same. She looked eerily like Kirsten Powers from Fox news...really!

The plot was nothing all that original, basically it was a Terminator redo...but hey Terminator was good so maybe that's not such a terrible thing. There was a TON of action in this movie (and its a long movie) Its all pretty well staged too. Lots of climbing, falling, shooting, punching, running, hacking, etc. This flick probably falls into the B- movie category but its a good one for what it is. There are even some nice touches like the Mummy people and a live fetus carried around in a test tube by the heroine. There are some rather cheesy stuff here and there...like when the bad Cyborg attacks a lab and wastes about 40 people despite the fact all of them were heavily armed. (He got hit one time) It was kinda like the good guys were yelling out "Hey I'm over here, shoot me please!" I guess I'm saying that scene could have used a tad less action and a bit more realism. Overall though, most everything made sense. I also think that a really good actress could have done something with the female lead role. Oh well.

This movie was well directed though, very well directed. The man took some rather standard chase and fight stuff and managed to created some real tension several times in the movie. Even though you knew what was coming I found myself squirming a bit. The editing and lighting were much better than I would have expected also. Decent sets too.

To summarize...a futuristic Terminator style B flick that delivers...especially the last 40 minutes or so. I enjoyed myself and what more can you realistically expect from a movie...my score..6.5 A could way to waste a couple hours of your life fer shure!

I had the pleasure of seeing this Terminator ripoff at a very young age; preteen to be exact but that's not what I'm saying here. What I'm REALLY saying is that you can do a lot worse than watch this; something that I forbid anyone of actually doing. The acting is so relentlessly painstakingly bad it makes Faye Dunaway more alluring than the Mona Lisa! At least sci-fi has evolved to the point of excellence thanks in part to A Space Odessey, Star Wars Orig Trilogy, and of course the Terminator films. Poor Joe Lara. His career never recovered at this point. This piece of crap is nowhere near the level of those classic films so avoid this one at all costs. Avoid. Like the plague.

The end.

Me and my shlock buddy Bison Lewis just sat down to check out this turkey; and ended up enjoying the hell outta it!!!

Great villain - a rival to Vernon Welles in Commando (actually, no one can really rival Vernon in hammy villain status!)

Great terrible brilliant and awful, all in one!!

Best feature: the smiling foetus in a jar - the very future of humanity!!!

Rent and Enjoy!

Joe Lara stars as a tough martial artist who helps escort the last pregnant woman to Europe, while a cyborg (John Ryan, not John P. Ryan) is close behind in their footsteps. American Cyborg:Steel Warrior (a rather awkward title) actually got a theatrical release (And no I didn't see this in theaters) and well with all things considered it represents the last dying breath from Cannon films. (Who distributed this) Back in the 1980s, Cannon were the ones responsible for such movies as the American Ninja series, Revenge Of The Ninja, Delta Force, Invasion USA, Masters Of The Universe, Bloodsport, Kickboxer, Death Wish 2-4 and Cyborg. I listed this filmography mainly so I can point out that the type of movies that Cannon used to pedal to market. In this regard American Cyborg:Steel Warrior isn't the best or the worst production from Cannon, it is just a low budget rip off of Escape From New York with elements of Cyborg and Hell Comes To Frogtown thrown in for good measure, it really isn't so bad as it is derivative. I mean it's a B.movie, but i'm not sure this deserves a 2.2 rating on IMDb. The movie itself has a couple decent action sequences but mainly it's a rip off and I think fans of B.movies will be the ones who find this enjoyable. The movie is also respectably made with some okay production values and the story (if simplistic) makes sense. Although Lorenzo Lamas rip off, Joe Lara is a liability that the film's competence can't overcome.

* * out of 4-(Fair)

By searching on flea markets,sell-outs and conventions for exploitation, horror and grindhouse/b-flicks sometimes you come across pictures on VHS or DVD sleeves that attracts you. This was one of those. For only 1 Euro I picked it up, the cover made me think of a bad Terminator rip-off but it wasn't that bad after all.

Boaz Davidson was the director for this flick but as a director I didn't know him but as a producer he is quite famous, The Expendables (2010) is one of them. And he surely knew his stuff, still it's a B-movie and a complete rip-off of The Terminator with some Blade Runner post- apocalyptic feeling. If I got it right I saw a sign stating the year 1999. But the way it was shot and the way it was edited was rather surprisingly good. Even the places they are running through are well done. The effects used are a bit cheesy sometimes but still did worked out. The cyborg really looked believable for a B-movie and the mummy people were also rather scary.

The acting surprised me too. Naturally there not that famous in the big productions but still the cyborg was played by John Saint Ryan, a Brit I knew from G.B.H. (1983) directed by David Kent-Watson a rather brutal flick. Still almost unfindable even on VHS. After this flick he went to Coronation Street as Charlie Whelan. The other lead was played by Joe Lara (Austin) who is known for action and post apocalyptic flicks. The female was played by good looking Nicole Hansen, she's still in the business but never made it into a big production.

I enjoyed it even as it clocked in over 90 minutes. The story is very simple and easy to follow with a lot of running, fighting, crawling, explosions and cheesy shootings a la Rambo (you know, standing in front of 40 people and never getting shot). If you can find it don't hesitate to pick it up.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5