O Novo Princípio

Apparently there are good reasons for this film's obscurity status as well as for the low rating on this wondrous website. Richard Harris doesn't nearly whoop as much butt as I expected in this overall dull and completely unmemorable post-apocalyptic Sci-Fi feature from the late 70's. The one strong point this movie benefices from (set pieces) isn't nearly enough to overlook the massive amount of weaknesses (lack of action, miscast players, no script…), but it has to be said the location spotters and set piece designers pulled off an exquisite job. The story may be non-existent and sadly ruining all its potential, at least all the exteriors look very depressing and the scenery appears to genuinely have lived through a nuclear holocaust. The story, as said, is mundane and hardly worth wasting words on. Falk (Harris) and his wife are two of the last few civilized people left in the world, all the rest is either extinct or joined Ravagers clans. When a gang viciously kills his wife (of screen even, damned!), Falk flees towards … nowhere. On his journey chased by the same scum that killed his wife, Falk encounters an army sergeant who went a little mad due to the loneliness, a community of cave people and the new & highly enlightened leader of mankind Rann. "Ravagers" had copious possibilities and could have become a great film, but nothing justifies the script boredom! Falk doesn't even want to avenge the death of his wife? Bah! There may be some famous names in this American production, but without hesitating I prefer the anonymous but violence & spectacle-packed Italian exploitation efforts instead.

A lot of post apocalyptic movies were made in the 70's and this is one of the worst. I can't figure out what's worst, the plot, script or acting. Interestingly the only thing I'm reminded by this movie is how over-rated Richard Harris was. As a kid I loved him in 'The Wild Geese', but except for the 'This Sporting Life' and 'A man called horse' his best movies came in 1992, 'Unforgiven'. Don't waste your time on this rubbish, it makes 'The Cassandra Crossing' look great!

I only write reviews of movies with low rating, which actually are not that bad. Give them a chance!

I don't know why this film has such a low rating ( 4.6 at the this moment ) when it is actually really cool. Good story, acting, costumes, environment design, good presentation of post-apocalyptic world. I love movies about apocalypse and post-apocalypse and that's why I wanted to see this one at first place. I don't regret it at all! I enjoyed it and you probably will to if you like these kind of movies. Maybe the story is slow and becomes boring in few places, but that is not a reason to have 4.6 rating.

6/10

In 1991, with the Earth ravaged by the apocalypse, lone wolf Richard Harris tries keeping one step ahead of the Ravagers, a mad band of human-hunters (led by gaunt, crazy-eyed Anthony James) who have already killed Harris' wife. Art Carney is a former Army sergeant who has a hidden surplus of instant food and automatic rifles; Ann Turkel is a street-smart girl (with shiny, shampooed hair) who suddenly goes all weepy when she falls for Harris (he tells her there's no room in his life for her, to which she replies, "I'm good for you! You'll see!"). Together, they attempt to find a safe haven known as the Land of Genesis. Adaptation of Robert Edmond Alter's novel "Path to Savagery" is undone by a sloppy presentation and a disappointing performance by Harris (wrapped up in a scarf like a nomad and addressing everyone with the same condescending elocution). This may be the most substantial role eternal-villain James ever got, but the picture is such a dud that his opportunity here to break out of bit parts isn't worth savoring. *1/2 from ****

There are plenty of good ideas here but they are betrayed by lacklustre direction. There is something about these 'last men on Earth' movies that I really enjoy and I am not sure exactly what it is. In common with THE OMEGA MAN and MAD MAX 2, this film posits a future in which a handful of people seem unaffected by that which has wiped out most of the world's population. This is never explained here but it is hinted that a massive global conflict, presumably nuclear, has finished virtually everyone off. It is said that the seas are poisoned and that nothing can grow on land. This gives every opportunity for scenes of scavenging for food and the joy of discovering a couple of unopened tins of peach slices. Unlike NIGHT OF THE COMET and DAWN OF THE DEAD, the holocaust happened many years in the past and thus we have no scenes of glorious looting in deserted shopping precincts. In fact it has been so long that the initial despair has worn off and a new lifestyle has developed. So much so that there are hints of a new mythology: unconnected groups of people all speak of 'Genesis' a place where fish swim in the rivers and fruit grows on the trees. Thinking about it, there is plenty of religious allusion in this film, all the way up to the somewhat abrupt ending.