El último cazador

I had the privelige to see this awesome movie on a huge screen in 1997, it was shown at a festival as a tribute to the late David Warbeck.

The opening sequence is truly stunning, a slow-burning scene in a brothel ends in huge explosions and sees Warbeck as an action hero in a white singlet years before Bruce Willis.

John Steiner once again shows his prowess as his squad is picked-off, leaving only Warbeck and the larger-breasted of the Farrow species (Tisa), to escape tiger-cages and discover the identity of a traitorous broadcaster.

Don't miss the final shot of Warbeck against the war-torn sunset, left to his fate in the jungle. It's a real kick in the guts, with the same power of seeing Martin Sheen rising from a swamp.

The one problem the movie really has is that the identity of the mysterious traitor is quite ridiculous, but not enough to grind things to a halt.

All in all, one to put at the top of your "must-get" list, right above beer, pizza and peanuts.

Mr. Antonio Margheriti, the uncrowned KING of Italian rip-offs, and his dynamic duo of charismatic actors David Steiner and John Steiner (though the latter only in a small role this time) strike again with this raw and excessively violent war-exploitation flick. Clearly inspired by the success of "The Deer Hunter" and a variety of other Hollywood films about the Vietnam War, but "The Last Hunter" goes straight for shocks, fast-paced and explosive action sequences and macho behavior instead of focusing on story-building, character drawings or – God forbid - underlying messages about the insanity of warfare. This film just loves the war in 'Nam and all dialogs like "Damn this country" or "I hate this awful war" are obviously insincere. Margheriti also couldn't resist providing his film with genuine horror aspect! The make-up effects are extremely gore (gorier than the ones in my horror movies for sure), with images of a soldier missing an eyeball, disembowelment after bombings and the severely decomposing bodies from dead parachutists falling from treetops. The battle sequences are long and exhilarating whilst the actual plot is thin and clichéd. In other words, just the way we like our Italian exploitation dish served! Captain Henry Morris (Warbeck) is assigned with the important mission of blowing up a Vietcong radio transmitter, located far behind enemy lines, which broadcasts demoralizing reports and encourages the American soldiers to throw away their guns and go back home. Morris' squad, which also includes a female report, gets killed and he's taken to a prisoner's camp for some inhumanly cruel torture. And yet, even whilst enduring the most excruciating pains, Morris intends to complete his mission, if it were only as a last tribute to all the friends and loyal soldiers he lost. Admittedly the script features every single Vietnam feature in the book, but hey, at least "The Last Hunter" is never boring and actually one of the most thrilling war movies ever made. You don't look for deep dialogs or complex characterizations here, just a lot of blood and delightful stereotypes. The "twist" at the end is extremely implausible and suddenly gives a somewhat stupid feeling to the whole movie. Truly ironic how the only remotely original twist in the entire script is also the most ludicrous one. Personally, I still like Margheriti's Indiana Jones rip offs better ("Hunters of the Golden Cobra", "Ark of the Sun God") and his ultimate masterpiece remains "Cannibal Apocalypse", but "The Last Hunter" is undoubtedly great low-brain entertainment and comes highly recommended!

This film is one of the most entertaining Vietnam flicks ever produced. Truly excellent opening 10 minute scene, followed by a 40 minute lull. Picks up toward the middle though and keeps on chuggin along. Great cast, excellent gore effects, awesome explosions, cool claustrophobic camerawork, and a lot of funny dialogue make this well worth the 90 minutes. The poor Pan+Scanning is easy to forgive with a couple viewings. Owes more than a lot to APOCALYPSE NOW and THE DEER HUNTER, but honestly, who cares? Grade A entertainment.

The Last Hunter (1980)

*** (out of 4)

Set during the Vietnam War, Captain Morris (David Warbeck) agrees to go on a secret mission behind enemy lines where he meets up with some other soldiers and a photographer (Tisa Farrow). The group heads deep into the jungle where they face the enemy as well as some of their own who are just as bad as the Vietnamese.

Antonio Margheriti's THE LAST HUNTER is an entertaining rip-off of countless American Vietnam movies that were being pumped out by Hollywood. This one borrows from several of them but it seems the biggest influence on this film was THE DEER HUNTER. If you're a fan of Italian cinema then you'll certainly want to check this one out as there's plenty of wild, over-the-top action as well as plenty of sleaze, which is exactly what you'd expect from a film like this.

As you should expect, Margheriti does a very good job with the material as I'm sure they were working on a very small budget yet the film looks very professional and features some great action sequences. The highlight of the film is an insane shoot out in an American compound as the soldiers get a bit too relaxed and come under attack. This sequence features a lot of shooting, explosions and of course blood. Speaking of blood, if you like gore then you'll get plenty of that here with some rather insane moments of violence including an eye wound that would make Lucio Fulci proud.

The film also benefits from a nice cast to help keep you entertained. Warbeck is as fun as you'd expect him to be as he does a very good job in the lead role. He's such a fun actor that he can hold your attention throughout the running time. Farrow does a surprising nude scene here and she too is fun to watch. Obviously the two of them would appear in separate films by Fulci so it was fun getting to see them here. Former football star Tony King is also a lot of fun here as is Bobby Rhodes and John Steiner.

THE LAST HUNTER isn't a film that's meant to be taken serious. I'd argue that its ending is the weakest thing about the picture but if you're a fan of action, gore and Italian craziness then it's certainly worth watching.

Antonio Margheriti's (CANNIBAL APOCALYPSE) first Macaroni Combat film, a genre that would become his final mainstay, is an outrageously, over-the-top thrill ride with no political agenda whatsoever.

After witnessing the grim suicide of his shell-shocked buddy, a burned-out Army captain (David Warbeck, THE BEYOND) agrees to take on a final suicide mission with the help of two black soldier dudes (Tony King and Bobby Rhodes) and a fine-looking photojournalist (Tisa Farrow, ZOMBIE).

As the first Macaroni Combat film about Vietnam, THE LAST HUNTER certainly delivers the exploitation goodness with just a hint of brief nudity. Although the script from Dardano Sacchetti is filled with unintentionally hilarious dialog, mainstream audiences may be turned off by the lack of historical context. Warbeck gives a good performance that is a literal reminiscent of Martin Sheen's Willard from APOCALYPSE NOW.

And speaking of that Coppola epic, the Philippine locations in which the film was shot are in fact leftover sets. It comes to show that no matter how blatant the filmmakers are, THE LAST HUNTER is certainly a pleasure to look at just for the settings. Despite not being a good actress as her sister, Tisa does give some enthusiasm into the character and it works rather well.

Turn off your brains and enjoy the mindless Italian action.