Neon City

Okay, I for one liked this movie. Now granted, it doesn't compare to the special effects that are around today, but overall, I enjoyed it! It had an interesting plot, lots of action, nice character development, and an excellent performance by Michael Ironside. This movie held my interest all the way through until the last scene. It is categorized as science-fiction; however, there was very little scientific lingo, so it is easy enough for anyone to follow. I especially enjoyed how the characters began as strangers in the movie, and slowly melded together into a sort a renegade troupe, determined to stay alive. I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone who can get there hands on it!

I'm pretty apathetic towards this film and don't like or dislike it. It has good cinematography and decent direction. It's just that the script is...eccentric. And the times when it tries for comedy are very tedious. The action scenes are boring, and...well, this is an example of a flick that is average in every sense of the word. Ironside is excellent.

"Take a deep breath, it may be your last. Welcome to the year 2053!" In the year 2053 the world is a post-apocalyptic wasteland. In this movie it is called "The Outland", with a blatant disregard for the Sean Connery film of the same name. "The Outland" doesn't have a lot of clean air or water. People are eating dogs for sustenance.

Enter Harry M. Stark (Ironside), a no-nonsense bounty hunter who looks like Jack Nicholson. His job is to bring Reno (Vanity) back to Neon City. He handcuffs himself to her because she is always escaping. There are so many outlaws in "The Outland" that one can collect "Red Star Credits" for bringing them to justice. What you can exchange these for aren't explained. Is it like Skee Ball tokens or "Coconut Coins"? The world may never know.

Luckily there is a bus going to Neon City. The movie never explains where they are and how long it takes to get to Neon City. The bus driver is named Bulk and he is played with aplomb by Lyle Alzado. As if the name "Bulk" wasn't enough, he is nicknamed "The Killer Tomato" because "He crushes people's heads as easily as an overripe tomato". Bulk and Harry don't get along at first because Bulk is an ex-con that Harry brought in.

Also going to Neon City in this bus are a bad stand-up comic looking for work, a sketchy doctor with a mullet, a spoiled rich girl and a woman who looks like Hillary Clinton. Riding shotgun with Bulk for most of the journey is a mysterious Asian man named Wing (Arsenio "Sonny" Trinidad) Along the way there are many obstacles and pitfalls. Besides the obvious personality clashes, there are roving bands of killers dubbed "Skins". They ride souped-up, broken down motorcycles if such a thing is possible. There are continuously chasing the bus and shooting at it. We don't know why. Stark shoots back with a laser that makes a classic laser noise: "Pew! Pew!" The many chase sequences are very repetitive and strongly reminiscent of the "Orange Grove Chase" from the classic "Cobra" (1986).

Other dangers our heroes have to face include something called a "Zander Cloud" which is a poisonous cloud. It would make more sense if it was a "Zzand Cloud". Similarly, there are some hot lights which are a silly menace that pads out the running time. Not to mention if they are so hot, why don't they melt all the snow around the area? They take a million breaks on the way to Neon City and they could have gotten there a lot faster. The importance to getting to Neon City is negated with all the breaks. One of the important breaks involves healing water that Harry and Reno take. It doesn't make much sense.

After all those breaks, they finally get to Neon City which is just a "Neon Room" (No city is actually seen) They are welcomed into the room by none other than "The Office's" Creed Bratton (Who was also a grip on the film). Already overlong at this point, after multiple endings Stark confronts his commanding officer (who is also evil) and is named "Jenkins".

There are some twists as far as relationships are concerned: Will Stark and Reno stay enemies or become an item? Will that annoying comic get his comeuppance for selling poison to cave-dwelling burn victims? And will Bulk get his wife's ring back from the "Skins"? and is Wing (once again played by Arsenio "Sonny" Trinidad) who he seems to be? All will be answered if you watch the entire thing.

"Neon City" closely resembles the recent box office smash "The Book Of Eli", obviously the Hughes Brothers closely studied this flick. Honestly, the movie is a "Mad Max" knockoff and scenes from it are ripped off wholesale.

Make sure to watch "Neon City" in the future! Interesting side note: Fan favorite Chuck Zito did some stunt work on the film.

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Michael Ironside plays the post-apocalyptic version of John Wayne in this low-budget, cheesy yet likable futuristic take on John Ford's classic STAGECOACH. Ironside leads a group of passengers aboard a transport vehicle through dangerous wasteland territory, having to contend with mutants, road warriors, and even each other, on their way to safety at Neon City. Most MAD MAX warriors-of-the-wasteland stories are basically westerns, so why not rip off from the best? THE ROAD WARRIOR was basically a remake of SHANE. Joining Ironside aboard his transport are a prisoner (Vanity, remember her?), a fish-out-of-water rich girl (Juliet Landau in her first film), a would-be comedian (Richard Sanders, AKA Les Nesmann from WKRP), and football player turned actor Lyle Alzado in his final film appearance before dying of complications from steroid use. The film was directed by character actor Monte Markham, who also appears in the film, and he handles the action quite well. That and Ironside do a good job of carrying a what's only a passable script, and make it worth watching for fans of these sorts of films. Also, shooting the film in a wintry, snowy setting rather than a sweltering desert was rather novel compared to most films from this genre. Overall, if you dig cheesy post-apocalyptic movies of the 80s and early 90s, you'll likely enjoy this one, even if it's far from a classic.

AI CAPSULE REVIEW: Neon City is a snowy, post-apocalyptic Stagecoach riff that coasts on Michael Ironside's gruff charisma and a fun B-movie ensemble. It's cheesy and derivative, but fans of early '90s wasteland flicks will find enough charm to make the ride worthwhile.

As previously stated, this flick doesn't stand out for good or for ill, it has a few shining moments, but for the most part it seems to be one long star trek reject script about how screwing around with the atmosphere (particularly ozone) will have dire consequences. Possibly considered a potential star vehicle for "Vanity" (remember her?). Has some of the strangest dialogue I've ever heard: "I was in private school in Sweden. We lived underground in caves. They eat chocolate & they're bloated & they never see sunlight & they're pasty pale..."

I can't imagine this *EVER* went to theatres; it must have been direct to video; it's too sickly even for made for cable!