| Future Hunters | |
|---|---|
_Poster.jpg) | |
| Directed by | Cirio H. Santiago |
| Written by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Ricardo Remias |
| Edited by | Gervacio Santos |
| Music by | Ron Jones |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Vestron Pictures |
Running time | 100 minutes (US Laserdisc and DVD),[1] 95 minutes (UK)[2] |
| Countries |
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| Language | English |
Future Hunters is a 1986action adventure film directed byCirio H. Santiago and written byJ. Lee Thompson.[3] It starsRobert Patrick andLinda Carol[4][5] with acameo appearance ofRichard Norton andBruce Lee impersonatorBruce Le.[6]
In a post-apocalyptic world, the leader of a rebel group (Richard Norton) fights a warlord to retrieve the mysticalSpear of Destiny from a derelict temple. The spear's powers enable him to travel back in time. 39 years earlier, he saves the aspiring anthropologist Michelle (Linda Carol) and her boyfriend Slade (Robert Patrick) from the attack of a ruthlessbiker gang who injure him fatally. Before his demise, he hands the spear over to the couple and implores them to find the shaft in order to unite it with the spear to break its dark powers.
The search for the shaft takes Michelle and Slade fromLos Angeles toHong Kong and through the jungles of thePhilippines until they reach the legendary Venus Valley. They must fight goons,martial artists, fanaticalNazis,Mongol warriors,midgets and hostileAmazons until they reach the cave where the shaft is located.
After the international success ofFinal Mission (1984)[7] andNaked Vengeance (1985),Vestron Pictures executiveAustin O. Furst Jr. approached the producer/director duoCirio H. Santiago andAnthony Maharaj to do another film for them as anegative pickup deal.[8] Maharaj came across a one-pager about theSpear of Destiny, thelance that is alleged to have pierced the side ofJesus as he hung on the cross during hiscrucifixion and is considered a magical relic of historical significance. Inspired by the popularity ofRaiders of the Lost Ark (1981) andThe Temple of Doom (1984), Maharaj built a story around the search for this object.[9] Veteran British screenwriter/directorJ. Lee Thompson was hired to write a script based on this idea and turned it into a wild mix of genres and locations.[10]
The movie went into production in 1986 with the working titleSpear Of Destiny.[11][12]
Principal photography took place on a 12 hours per day, six days a weekshooting schedule. Actress Linda Carol described the working conditions as strenuous. She reported having suffered aheat stroke during shooting.[13]
Most of the picture was filmed on location in the Philippines, namely inMetro Manila,[13] thesand dunes near Suba Beach atLaoag, Ilocos Norte,[14][15]Baguio, at the Calinawan Cave inTanay, Rizal, and theManila Garden Hotel[13] amongst other places. Some exteriors were shot inHong Kong.[13]
After the successful collaboration onNaked Vengeance (1985), composerRon Jones was once again commissioned to create the soundtrack for this film.[16] Jones created an epic soundtrack dominated byfanfares,[10] which is reminiscent of his later score forStar Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1991).
Future Hunters was released directly to video byVestron Pictures.[17][5]Its video premiere was on September 23, 1988 in theUnited Kingdom and on February 26, 1989 in theUnited States.[18]It was released onLaserDisc in 1989 byImage Entertainment[19]
Variety[11] called the movie a "winner" that "emerges from the rash of lookalike adventure features on video" and "unfolds as a virtual homage to the high adventure motifs ofGeorge Lucas yet moves beyond mere imitation into its own successful territory". It criticizedRobert Patrick's performance as "merely okay" and noted that "more upscale casting might have earned this laudable little film some theatrical attention".
VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever[20] gave theFuture Hunters a one-bone rating (on a scale from zero to four bones).
Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide[21] awardedFuture Hunters two stars and described the movie as an "Indiana Jones-type fantasy adventure" that is "energetic and swiftly paced".
The Psychotronic Video Guide[22]'s verdict was less favorable: "It's a bad mixture ofMad Max,Indiana Jones, and many others".
Douglas Pratt fromThe Laser Disc Newsletter praised the movie in his contemporary review[23] for being "ambitious" and featuring "a lot of action". "It moves in location from the future to the present and from California to Hong Kong to uncharted jungles in the Philippines". He criticized technical aspects of the film, especially the sound recording for often being "pathetic", as well as logical errors such as the heroine jumping from an airplane on a parachute and running through the jungle brush in high heels.
Daniel R. Budnik wrote in his review in80s Action Movies on the Cheap:[10] "Future Hunters stakes its claim to being one of Santiago's most ambitious with the century-spanning plotline, the globetrotting adventure and the epic musical score that sometimes gets a bittoo epic". He lauded the acting for being "a step above" and concluded his review with: "This might be my favorite Santiago".
