Shepherd

Although I was somewhat wary before watching this movie, because Roger Corman produced it, I decided to watch it all the same. Actually, for the first part of the movie, I thought, "Hey, maybe this might turn out to be good." That's because despite having a low budget, the movie's computer special effects, sets, and props were a lot better than you usually get in a Corman movie. However, the movie soon collapsed in my eyes. The story is pretty incomprehensible at times, and it was hard to get interested in the characters' plight at times. The action is also not that special, coming across as dull and badly edited at times. Howell does try hard, even taking off his clothes in one scene, but we didn't need to see that. If you're a fan of Carradine, be warned - his appearance lasts less than five minutes.

First of all, let me start by saying that I have been a devoted follower of C Thomas Howell's career ever since "The Outsiders" and "The Hitcher". He was an up and coming star in the 1980s - with hits such as "Soul Man" also. The future was bright for this young actor and he had the potential to go on from there and really assert himself in Hollywood. Put it this way - Tom Cruise had a bit part in "The Outsiders" while Howell had the lead. Look at Cruise today !!! But picking material like this drivel will only denegrate Howell's career even more - if that was possible. Why does he pick stuff like this? A small part in a major movie would be of more benefit to him than this rubbish. Essentially the story here takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where everybody lives underground where chaos reigns. Howell is a Shepherd - protecting the flock of various religious leaders by killing off any undesirables. He's a hitman in other words. The sets are so bad, they wouldn't look out of place on a Thunderbirds episode. The use of slow-motion needlessly repeats itself throughout the movie but is well backed up by bad acting (and bad is a kind word here), no continuity, scenes that are thrown in for no reason whatsoever, vehicles that looked like they were made from a Corn Flakes box and a directorial style that bordered on stupidity. Oh yeah, and the storyline was pathetic too. I hate writing bad reviews about films - especially those in which I really like the star - but this film is so bad I don't believe for one second that anyone could have been proud of it. I am not a filmmaker nor am I a director but I would hide my head in the sand if I'd spent whatever amount of money and time on this movie. In short - this was a monumental waste of time and energy and I would not recommend anyone to EVER see this film. It came free with a DVD player I bought but I still turned the thing off halfway through because I was embarrassed for Howell. Come on C - give yourself some credit and wrestle yourself away from these non-hit wonders and try to knuckle down and get a good part - however small.

yes, this is a prety bad film, and it does have some unexplained aspects, plus the sex scene lasts way too long, and does nothing for the plot. anyway, this was a very class film, you have to see past the imperfections of the film, however badly it was filmed, and however pathetic the martial arts aspects, in fact, i kick better than howell. i loved this film no matter how badly it was made, i reckon that if this had been made as an annimation, it would have kicked ass, considering it was only a very low budget film, they just couldn't achieve the grandure and scale that was needed to make that film work, that and the fact that the robot, was about as effective as a lepper with a sharp stick, they quite blatently used the leftovers from short sircuit on that thing. i draw cartoons as a hobbie, and i'm gonna say right here and now, that i am going to remake this film in animated form and send it to the makers of this film, simply because i think this film deserves a second shot.

Planet Earth has suffered a terrible environmental disaster so humanity now survives underground split in to different religious cults . What caused the catastrophe ? I have no idea ? why is humanity split in to different ecclesiastical factions ? I have no idea . Since the surface of the Earth can no longer support human life how are the humans able to grow crops in order to feed the population ? I have no idea . What sort of producer thought this screenplay deserved to receive funding ? I have no idea

SHEPHERD is one of these films that creeps up late at night on cable channels . The sort of film where you consult the IMBb to see if it has any merits . The number of people who've commentated on SHEPHERD on this page hasn't yet reached double figures and this is a film that was released nine years ago . Perhaps the people who have never seen it are the lucky ones ?

As for the rest of the plot it's very routine . Grumpy former cop Boris Dakota whose wife and child died several years previously meets a woman and her child and it's up to him to save their lives , almost like a futuristic western . Throw in a former wrestler who now runs the God channel , a fascist Christian bloke who's trying to snuff out Boris , a ventriloquist , some T&A for the sake of it and you've got a mess of a film . I guess after seeing this Neil Marshall's DOOMSDAY is possibly a masterwork of cinema in comparison

I have NEVER fallen asleep whilst watching a movie before.

I did with this one.

Avoid at all costs, give your time and money to a worthy cause instead.