The Sisterhood

Cirio H. Santiago managed to churn out one B-flick I actually enjoyed, 1981's Firecracker with martial artist who wasn't afraid to go nude, Jillian Kesner. She knew EXACTLY what kind of film she was in and committed to it, not to mention she could act as well as fight.

Were it only The Sisterhood even 1/10th as good. Poor acting, directing and dialogue requires at least some sort of offset such as convincing action, dazzling pyro, generous nudity/sex or some actual drama. Nearly everything felt so contrived or phoned-in that it had no impact.

In this goofy, female empowerment, post-holocaust tale from director Cirio H. Santiago ("Equalizer 2000"), it's the future year of 2021. In the deserts of Earth, men hold all the power and have enslaved many women. It's up to the nomadic ladies known as "The Sisterhood" to restore some sense of equality. Two such Sisters that we meet are Alee (Rebecca Holden) and Vera (Barbara Patrick, the wife of Robert P.). They take under their wing a teen aged girl named Marya (Lynn-Holly Johnson of "Ice Castles" and "For Your Eyes Only"), whose kid brother (Tom McNeeley) was killed by one of the male antagonists, a warrior named Mikal (Chuck Wagner, "America 3000").

"The Sisterhood" is good, light entertainment for sci-fi lovers who favor the cheesy and silly side of post-holocaust cinema. It does earn some points for portraying its women as strong and independent, but not invulnerable. It also gives Alee and Vera special powers - Vera is telekinetic and Alee has healing abilities. Our three heroines generate sufficient rooting interest, and all of our grunting pig villains are appropriately odious. Mikal is an exception, proving to be more than one-dimensional.

Fine use is made of locations. The sets, costumes, and vehicles look decent enough for whatever minimal budget "The Sisterhood" had. The music score by Jun Latonio is variable: sometimes it's passable, and at other times it is just *awful*. It's all pleasantly cheesy, with a little bit of gore (there's a few close ups of sword wounds) and a fair amount of action. The performances are actually not too bad - Robert Dryer, the main baddie in "Savage Streets", as the creepy Lord Barak, Anthony East as Lord Jak. The female cast is very attractive, and there are adequate doses of bare flesh throughout.

Watching this one is a harmless enough way to kill a little over an hour and a half.

Seven out of 10.

The Sisterhood (1988) is a movie that I recently watched on Amazon Prime. The storyline takes place in a world trying to survive after a nuclear holocaust. Men have enslaved women to do their bidding in most civilizations. However, in the outlands women have formed a tribe of sorts that survive on their own. The only hope for women in civilizations may be for this tribe to rescue them and set them free from their oppressors.

This movie is directed by Cirio H. Santiago (Firecracker) and stars Rebecca Holden (Knight Rider), Chuck Wagner (America 3000), Lynn-Holly Johnson (For Your Eyes Only), Robert Dryer (Savage Streets) and Barbara Patrick (Lord of the Illusions).

This movie had some promise but doesn't live up to its potential. The attire, settings and props were all perfect for the storyline. This also has the classic 80s nudity you'd expect. Unfortunately the writing, especially the dialogue, was a bit stale and Wagner's acting was very mediocre and holds the film back. I did like the "goddess" depiction and introduction towards the end. The conclusion was very mediocre and a bit disappointing.

Overall, this is a below average addition to the apocalyptic genre that I would score a 4/10 but still recommend seeing once.

The Sisterhood (1988)

* (out of 4)

Low-budget movie set in 2021 in a world where women have become slaves to an army of men who use them for you know what. The only the not enslaved are a gang of women known as The Sisterhood and they set out to try and destroy the male gang and set the women free.

Director Cirio H. Santiago wasn't hired to make an Oscar-winning picture. No, he was given a very limited budget and asked to create something that would appeal to action fans back in the days when VHS rentals were the most popular thing around. The film wasn't meant to be any special and in all honesty it isn't. It's a pretty bad and bland picture that really doesn't have too much going for it.

As you'd expect, the entire film looks rather cheap and we're given some rather weak performances and bland dialogue. With that said, you really could argue that those things really don't matter in a picture like this and I'd agree with that. The problem with this movie is that it's deadly dull from the start to the finish. There's really no excitement to the action scenes and the story itself just isn't very compelling.

These post-Apocalyptic films were all a rip-off of MAD MAX and at the very least you hoped for some minor entertainment. The only real entertainment comes from some of the fight scenes but that's certainly not enough to save THE SISTERHOOD.

Another Filipino post-apocalyptic epic from prolific low-budget director/producer Cirio H. Santiago. Featuring an all no-name cast, with the exception of Lynn-Holly Johnson ("Ice Castles" "For Your Eyes Only") the story takes place in the distant year 2021 following a nuclear holocaust. A group of fierce sword wielding female warriors, known as The Sisterhood, seek to right the sexist wrongs of the wasteland. Although I was a fan of Santiago's post-apocalyptic "Wheels of Fire" this one is dud. It felt more Conan than Mad Max and to my taste, that's not a warriors of the wasteland story. Even taking the film on the level of a Conan or Red Sonja ripoff, it's not all the good either.