2019, escape de Nueva York II

After the Fall of New York is one of the best of the seemingly endless Italian rip-offs of John Carpenter's Escape From New York that deluged the early 80s. Mind you, I really like these films, so that is not a slam by any means. This flick is certainly one of the most entertaining of the lot. Michael Sopkiw does his best Snake Plisken imitation and is quite good. The story is original: Parcifal (Sopkiw) must journey into the hell hole to retrieve the last fertile woman alive; the key to the survival of the human race! You have all the great exploitation elements: violence, gunfire, brutality, gore… could have used more t&a, but hey, you can't have everything. Creative characters abound like the midget (Shorty, what else!) and George Eastman as Big Ape. Anna Kanakis (wow) is great as the treacherous Eurac officer trying to stop Parcifal at all costs.

If you are not a B-movie lover, stay away. Genre fans, however, will not be disappointed here. Enjoy!

Twenty years after a nuclear holocaust ravaged the Earth, the Euraks and the Pan American Confederacy continue the battle for supremacy. Mercenary Parsifal (Michael Sopkiw) is recruited by the Confederacy to try and locate the only fertile woman on Earth, hidden somewhere in the ruins of Manhattan. He is joined on his quest by warriors Bronx (Paolo Maria Scalondro) and Ratchet (Romano Puppo), pretty blonde Giara (Valentine Monnier), dwarf Shorty (Louis Ecclesia) and hulking half-man/half-monkey mutant Big Ape (George Eastman).

One of many Italian post-apocalyptic action flicks to follow in the wake of Mad Max and Escape From New York, Sergio Martino's 2019: After The Fall Of New York is a wholly unoriginal, shoddily made, poorly acted crap-fest full of really badly choreographed action scenes, lousy special effects, manky props, amusing costumes, and seriously dumb characters. Opening with an unconvincing miniature model of nuked New York and ending with the launch of an equally cruddy model spacecraft, with all manner of cheap-jack nonsense packed in between, one might imagine the film to be hugely entertaining as a result, but Martino's uninspired direction and his cast's abysmal performances suck the life out of even the most silly of scenes.

Possibly just about worth watching for the robot clown with a massive glowing eyeball on its head, Shorty's valiant death ("Bastaaaarrrds!"), Big Ape throwing his sword to decapitate several of his enemy, and the hilarious eye-gouging (seriously, how did he not see that coming?), but don't bank on it. 3.5 out of 10, rounded up to 4 for IMDb.

20 years after a nuclear holocaust radiation has rendered all remaining humans sterile. After winning a motorized deathmatch an ex-Confederate soldier named Parsifal is offered a place on a rocketship by The President if he can infiltrate New York City and retrieve a fertile woman, or be killed.

Directed by Sergio Martino 2019, After the Fall of New York (2019 - Dopo la caduta di New York) is more sci-fi orientated than most (with a spaceship inclusion). Ernesto Gastaldi, Martino and Gabriel Rossini screenplay has echoes of Blade Runner (1982), Mad Max 2 (1981) and borrows heavily from Escape from New York (1981). It's one of the better copy-cat post-apocalyptic Italian films in the vein of similar to the films 1990 The Bronx Warriors, Escape from the Bronx, The New Barbarians and Endgame to name a few. Even copying a scene from Flash Gordon (1980).

It has all the same production issues of these low budget Italian cash-ins. Questionable, dialogue, acting, special effects, dubbing and sound design. This aside, the catchy soundtrack from Guido De Angelis and Maurizio De Angelis compliments the shenanigans and action adding to the B-movie charm. In contrast to the kitted vehicles, some of the sets and locations are notable. The derelict city set scenes have plenty of atmosphere courteous of cinematographer Giancarlo Ferrando as Michael Sopkiw's Parsifal and his rag tag side kicks Bronx and Ratchet make their way through the city encountering rats, cyborgs, fallout stricken street gangs, horses, ape-like mutants, dwarfs and dodging sonic weapons. It's grim and downbeat for the most part.

Miss Italy Anna Kanakis as evil officer Ania and striking Valentine Monnier as Giara along with B-movie regular George Eastman are memorable. Unfortunately Monnier is given little to do. Tiziana Fibi and Alessandra Tani even less. Kanakis shines here as the femme fatale as steals the film from not only the villain Serge Feuillard's Eurac Commander but also lead Sopkiw. To Martino's credit and company it's well filmed, with some tight continuity (Donatella Botti) and editing by Eugenio Alabiso there's also a few light left of field twists from the writers in the closing act.

Overall, it should come as no surprise it's over the top, full of tropes and holes, but its fast pace keeps momentum in true 80s Italian science fiction film style.

After The Fall of New York (1983) is a cheesy knock-off of the cult classic Escape From New York. But like most knock-off they're parodies of the original source material and have achieved cult status on their own. This one is no exception. From "Martin Dolman" comes a tale about a once great city that has fallen during World War III. The city's inhabitants are dead or dying from radiation or have mutated to it's filthy surroundings. The "government" has hired a man who looks like a hybrid of Mad Max and Snake Plisken to travel the nuclear wastelands and sneak into New York City to find the "prize". Someone who's very being is key for the survival of the human race.

Filled with action and cheesy special effects, After The Fall of New York is a very entertaining sci-fi/action film. Takes one part Escape From New York, one part Mad Max, throw in some Mad Max 2 and a dash of Alien and viola! For fans of 80's Italian b-movies and lovers of bad cinema. Just remember the filmmakers were having fun. Not to be taken seriously folks. "George Eastman" steals the movie in a great guest star appearance (man can he swing some mean hardware!).

Recommended

Fascist kingpins scheme in an office decorated with a futuristic knockoff of "Guernica." Gladiators clash in souped-up sedans, then get hookers dispensed by cyborgs styled like female clowns. A Dr. Evil-like chrome-dome bad guy gets his eyeballs pulled out by hooks, then replaced by peepers from an unlucky donor. Sergio Martino's AFTER THE FALL OF NEW YORK may be the only grindhouse ripoff of a famous movie that out-invents the original by a power of one hundred. It's supposed to be a copy of ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, but it suggests Jess Franco having a field day on the abandoned sets of Altman's QUINTET. Dizzily cast and designed, with more visual ideas and free-form movement than any grindhouse movie of the period, it's a lesson in what B movies are supposed to be--and were, before they turned into bland late-night-Cinemax fodder.