The Beastmaster (1982) User Reviews

fun fantasy flick

[shantaar-1 · 7/10 · 3 December 2004]

Like most I missed the theatrical run on this film, who didn't? I caught it on cable. I believe Dennis Miller had a running joke about HBO meaning "Hey Beastmaster' on!" This isn't agreat film, there are a lot of very obvious red herrings, but it's a lot of fun and certainly has earned it's cult status.

This sword and sorcery plot is well handled by Don Coscarelli and he directs his good looking leads, Marc Singer & Tanya Roberts, well. The photography on John Alcott is excellent and one of the highlights of the film. Lee Holdrigde's original score and Alf Clausens orchestrations are absolutely superb. Truly I thought the music was excellent. It's epic, memorable and so suited to the scenes!

For a film called the Beastmaster, its smart enough not to ignore the animals. The ferrets are cute, and yes ferrets are like that!, the Tiger (black panther) is fierce and the Hawk is mysterious, yet so graceful. I thought Marc Singer (Dar's) rapport with the animals was just great. The final fight with the Juns is fantastic in it's use of lighting and movement.

This film really should appeal to teenage boys and on that level it succeeds beautifully.

A true genre classic

[HaemovoreRex · 7/10 · 22 May 2008]

An awesomely sculpted Marc Singer headlines in this much beloved sword and sorcery outing brought to us by non other than Don Coscarelli of Phantasm fame.

Singer stars as Dar (great name eh? okay, maybe not then...) a child who comes into the world in a somewhat less than auspicious manner, namely from the belly of an ox(!) after he is magically stolen from within his own mothers womb by a corpse faced sorceress. Yes, I know this all sounds utterly bizarre and in fact it is, but you'll really need to view it to appreciate it in all its, erm....glory. As a result of this bestial birth, our hero grows up with an unusual ability to communicate with animals via some form of psychical connection. So that's how Dr Doolittle got his powers to? Um, the mind boggles! Anyway, to cut a long story short, Dar's abilities prove to come in mightily handy later on when he sets out to take revenge upon the evil warrior tribe who massacred the people of his village.

Tremendously entertaining from start to finish, this is without doubt one of the finest entries in its genre and is highly memorable. So much so in fact, that it has since spawned two sequels and a spin off television series. If you haven't already done so, then I thoroughly recommend you have a ganders at this timeless fantasy classic.

Great adventure in this sword and sorcery movie...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 12 July 2013]

I remember watching "The Beastmaster" when I was a kid, and I thoroughly enjoyed it back then. And as I purchased the DVD in 2013 and re-visited the movie for another watching, I can honestly say that I enjoy it as much today as I did back then.

This is a classic tale of sword and sorcery. An infant is rescued from a ritual offering and grow up on the plains with herders and huntsmen, fully unaware of his royal heritage. Growing up, Dar discovers that he has abilities that allow him mastery over animals and being capable of communicating with them. Drawn into a game of treachery and heroism, Dar have to take up the fight against the vile sorcerer Maax.

Sure, this was shot back in 1982, but it was a blast then, and it is actually quite fun to watch even in 2013. The effects were adequately back then and serves their point straight on. However, don't prepare to be dazzled by today's standards. But if you are a fan of the sword and sorcery genre, then "The Beastmaster" is a sure must-watch-movie.

The people cast for the various roles did good jobs with their given roles, and I don't really remember Marc Singer as being that buffed and muscular when I saw him in the original "V" series. But he was really well-cast for the role of Dar/The Beastmaster. Even the animals trained for the movie were doing good jobs.

"The Beastmaster" is a an excellent sword and sorcery movie, and a very formidable choice of movie to the "Conan" movies. I thoroughly enjoy this 1982 movie and I know that I will put it back in the DVD player again after some years.

a childhood favorite

[MichaelM24 · 15 July 2001]

I don't care what people say, THE BEASTMASTER is a fun film. Thanks to my parents having cable in the 80s, I virtually grew up with it. I can still recall spending many days and nights watching it on television. I probably had no idea of what was going on, but I just loved watching this animal lover named Dar rescue the hot Tanya Roberts while fighting against an evil priest. Marc Singer is great in the title role. If he were to cure world hunger, create world peace, or even be elected president, he would still be known as The Beastmaster. Tanya Roberts doesn't really do much, but looks damn nice doing it, John Amos is also good as a traveler who befriends Dar, and Rip Torn is as over-the-top as he can get. Lee Holdridge's score, composed in a short amount of time, provides a bit more epicness than the film could have created on its own, with a heroic theme that is used throughout. I was also happy to learn recently that Anchor Bay Entertainment is working on a Special Edition DVD of THE BEASTMASTER. I'm, naturally, very excited about this, for no matter what people say, THE BEASTMASTER was, still is, and always will be a childhood favorite.

This was on every day!

[BandSAboutMovies · 6/10 · 1 February 2019]

If you had HBO (Hey, Beastmaster's On) or TBS (The Beastmaster Station) in the 1990's, then you're probably excited to read this. The Beastmaster series of three films ran pretty much non-stop on those channels, even if the first movie wasn't a success.

Just like Phantasm, Beastmaster came from the mind of Don Coscarelli. While he was only involved with the first movie, he set up the character of Dar (Marc Singer). Well, when I say came from the mind, Coscarelli loosely based his original story off of the novel The Beast Master by Andre Norton. In her book, the hero is a Navajo named Hosteen Storm and the story takes place in the future. Unhappy with the changes from page to screen, Norton asked for her name to be removed from the film's credits.

Welcome to Aruk, where the prophecy of a witch reveals that the evil priest Maax (Rip Torn!) reveals that the son of King Zed (Rod Loomis, who was Freud in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure) will eventually kill him. Although Zed exiles the villain, one of Maax's witches transfers the baby who will become Dar the Beastmaster from his mother's womb into a cow's. Yes, I just wrote that. I'm still amazed that this happens.

Dar is rescued by a villager who raises him as her own son inthe village of Emur. This being a sword and sorcery movie, that whole town is destroyed by the Juns, barbarians under Maax's command. Of course, Dar has been taught since childhood to fight and telepathically communicate with animals. As you do, you know?

Dar eventually puts together his animal familiar army of Sharak the eagle, Kodo and Podo the ferrets and a black tiger named Ruh. He also teams up with Kiri (Tanya Roberts), a slave girl, and even spends time wander amongst a half-bird, half-human race who let him go when they realize that he can speak to an eagle.

What follows are battles with Maax, an appearance by Good Times star John Amos, ferrets bravely sacrificing themselves, baby ferrets being born, Dar learning of his royal blood and birdmen battling barbarians.

Coscarelli didn't have a good time making this, as he fought with the producers over editing and casting, such as his choice of Demi Moore over Tanya Roberts. Even sadder, Klaus Kinski was the original choice to play Maax!

Friends from all shapes of life.

[lost-in-limbo · 7/10 · 22 March 2007]

The sorcerer Maax receives a prophecy that he'll be killed by the King's unborn child, so Maax gets a witch to transfer the baby into a cow's womb and then be sacrificed. A man stumbles across the activity, rescues the baby and adopts the child as his own. He was born with the gift to communicate with animals. Dar would be his name and he would grow up to be a muscularly skilled warrior. After his father and his village are butchered by the sorcerer Maax's orders, he sets out for revenge. Along the way he gets in contact with some resourceful animals, a slave girl Kiri and the captive king's right-hand man Seth.

Director Don Coscarelli's cult b-grade sword and sorcery epic (well it's close enough to one) "The Beastmaster" is an enjoyably mystical adventure, which knows it's all a bit of fun. There's no doubting how silly and cheesy it just happens to be, but gladly this item is not overly put off by it. There's a real kid-like mentality to it, but it breathes an sincereness that sweeps you along for the journey. Coming out the same time as "Conan the Barbarian" , it was hard no to compare the two. While Conan is obviously the better made grandeur production, it kind of had a pretentious feel to it and pacing was incredibly sluggish. Beastmaster might be systematic in the story, but to me it was far more entertaining. I might not win any votes for what I have just typed, but I'll stick to it.

Coscarelli who co-wrote the story with Paul Pepperman takes the central idea of our hero communicating with animals from Andre Norton's novel of the same name. The campy plot is routine (there's no real twists or surprises) with a constant mixture of sub-plots and ideas involving different adventures (which were mostly about rescuing someone/ or thing), which all lead onto the main story of Dar getting revenge. Some might be worthless and too straightforward with relax pacing, but I never found a boring moment within them. The direction by Coscarelli has a muscular touch to it and imagination to spare in some creative stabs and visuals. He knows how to create a rich atmosphere and his at his top when his going for that dark edge. The way he staged some of the one-on-one combat scenes though, came across as too clean and choreographed (especially the final climax). The larger battle scenes were gritty, kinetic and relentlessly staged though. Also don't expect much in the way of blood from this mainstream aimed piece.

Since the budget was reasonably modest, it did give the film a slick technical advantage, but it definitely tried to outdo itself with the budget it had. The camera-work by John Alcott is beautifully sprawling and nippy. Same treatment for Lee Holdridge's grandly bravura sounding musical score that only heightens the atmosphere, locations and actions. Sound effects were effectively cutting and location sets were cleverly shaped. Only draw-card in this would be that editing at times came across as very ragged. Reading that the film was far shorter in the first cut, the producers then got the editors to extend certain scenes and Coscarelli and Pepperman had no say in it. That's disappointing, because it would have been better off with the first cut and maybe gained more respect. The acting is nothing sensational, but acceptably good. Marc Singer wasn't too bad and felt right at home in the part of Dar. Tanya Roberts looks drop dead gorgeous, but isn't called on to do too much. Chewing it up as the villain is Rip Torn as he fabulously turns it up with plenty of flavour and John Amos is acceptably solid as Seth. Then you got the well-trained animals that impress and charm when on screen.

"The Beastmaster" is extremely goofy, but at the same time this humorous corker makes for great comic-style entertainment. There's nothing spectacular to it, but this cult fantasy flick (which gained popularity on cable TV) is one of the better genre efforts.

Mythic and valiant hero Dar fighting heinous forces of evil

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 8 July 2009]

This is a tale of death, blood and vendetta set in a mythical primitive world and wild age . A good sword and sorcery story dealing on bouncing Dar(Marc Singer, a Conan-Tarzan hybrid), a hunk hero who communicates with animals such as a puma, eagle, and a duo of sympathetic ferrets. Meanwhile he falls in love with a gorgeous,tempting slave-warrior(splendid beauty Tanya Roberts) and fights against nasty magician( hateful Rip Torn)and bewitching sorceress.

This amusing movie packs witchery, wizardly, necromancy, brutality, magnificent production values and lots of adventures and action. In the wake of Robert E. Howard's Conan (John Milius) and Conan the Destroyer(Richard Fleischer), it's a sort of comic-strip and one of the best from ¨Sword and Sorcery¨ genre . Thrills, action and adventures are brilliantly presented and edited to offer the maximum impact. Marc Singer is perfect cast as classic fantasy-hero. Glimmer and rousing cinematography by John Alcott, Stanley Kubrick's cameraman (Barry Lyndon). Spectacular and emotive musical score by Lee Holdridge. This entertaining film is well directed by Don Coscarelli(phantasm and followings) appointing the accent on the adventures and struggles.

It's followed by inferior sequels and TV series , as : 1) ¨Beastmaster 2 : Through the portal of time(1991)¨ by Sylvio Tabet(also trilogy's producer) with Kari Wuhrer, Sarah Douglas and Wing Hauser , where Dar tracks down an ominous tyrant throughout a dimensional portal to modern-day L.A. 2) ¨Beastmaster 3 : The eye of Braxus(1995)¨ by Gabrielle Beaumont with Casper Van Dien, David Warner and Leslie-Anne Down; where again Marc Singer is involved in a life-and-death fights with nasties . And 3) Television series (1999)starred by Daniel Goddard as Dar. Camp fun for ¨Sword and Witchery¨ genre fans.

The best part of the film

[laurajay-2 · 5/10 · 22 January 2007]

The best part about this movie is that plot-wise it is obviously for 12 year old boys, yet there is a stunningly built man prancing around in a tiny loin cloth the entire time. As a woman, I have no problem with that at all, but I wonder exactly who this was originally marketed for, because quite frankly, the movie is terrible! The ONLY thing it truly has going for it is that man's beautiful body. Perhaps the 12 year old boys' mothers were attending with them! Another thing I truly enjoyed is that to summon the eagle, he has to let out a freaky totally unannounced shriek, yet he can call the ferrets and the L'Oreal blackened tiger entirely through telepathy. All in all, I think that it is an entirely worthwhile giant piece of crap. So bad it's good!

Classic B-Movie swords-and-sorcery

[Rob_Taylor · 9/10 · 17 December 2002]

For one of the slew of quickly produced movies of the 80's this one is pretty good. You've got Marc Singer when he was young and fit (not leathery and ancient like in the later movies of this series) and Tanya Roberts who is hot in this film. You've got swordfights, sorcery, the whole works. That said, I did find the ferrets a little annoying, but that's just me.

On the whole the movie works well and there are some touches, like the flying humanoids that envelop and dissolve their prey, that just make the film.

SUMMARY: Hero who can talk to animals sets out to overthrow an evil warlord.

One of the best examples of the magical cinema of 80's

[InakiArias · 7/10 · 11 July 2013]

Let's start saying that this movie is getting old badly. It is a low Budget film and compared with AAA films of that time like the first Indiana Jones it's easy to appreciate that they don't play in the same league. Cheap scenarios and costumes, poor cinematography... The story is simple, dialogs are plain and some of battle scenes are laughable (of course, in 2013).

However this movie has something that the most of our days films lack: magic, charm and entertaining capability for all the family. This movie is full of magic from the beginning until the last scene. There are a lot of ridiculous scenes or situations which you forget immediately because of the enormous sense of magic and good feeling of this film.

It's very hard to explain, but there is something that evolves you and captures your full attention.

I can conclude saying that this film is as wonderful and great as technically bad, but always worth of your time.

Trashy, but atmospheric

[kneiss1 · 4/10 · 23 November 2010]

This movie has a great atmosphere, great pictures, and great music. Yet, this sadly isn't enough for me to make a good movie. I personally found the movie very trashy. It's full of bad acting, has a bad story, that is badly told as well, bad conversations and seriously trashy action scenes. Conan is so much more superior compared to this one. I personally can't understand how people can enjoy this flick.

Good, non-pathetic fantasy movies are absolutely rare. I so wished that there'd be more out there. I hoped so much, that Beastmaster would be another one of this rare kind.

If you like unintentional humor, or if you are able to ignore trashiness and stupidities, this movie might be for you.

Caw caw caw --- "He is the Beastmaster!"

[Figgiedan · 8/10 · 14 February 2005]

How can anyone not like the Beastmaster? It's what movies are all about - it's got a hero, his woman, a villain, sidekicks, animals, loincloths, violence and much much more! It's one of the earliest of films that HBO would play about 4 times a day so it was almost always available. John Amos from Roots and Good Times cheeses it up but damn, do I have a soft spot for the guy. Dar looks like my brother Eric. Rip Torn is a villain with bad teeth! The freaky eagle/vampire things are nutty. It's got ferrets - FERRETS in co-starring roles! Plus a panther and hawks and B-dialog and swords and last but not least "crazy-eyes" herself, Tonya Roberts! Yowza! It's basically a goulash of afternoon delight. Straight B an 85 - 8 out of 10. Caw caw! Catch it one time or a dozen, you'll love it.

"Classic Adventure"

[kevinkishin · 7/10 · 26 June 2021]

I've enjoyed this film since it's release, like "Conan" it's too the point for me simplicity without the over the top dramatics to weigh it down, "RIP Torn" is a classic villain this is a must have for collectors of good 80's cinema.

A big Yawwn..

[pcsarkar · 3/10 · 13 September 2012]

Story? Hey.. we have already seen Conan, The Barbarian, right? So whats new here? The acting? Zilch. Special effects? Zero. Female presence? Boring. The Beastmaster himself? Ineffectual - who must rely on two ferrets to do his job for him. I fail to understand if this film was targeted at kids or at adults? The hero is off to search for his enemies as usual. His travails, pointless fights and harmless flirtations fail to bring any sort of expression on his face, any fatigue of his body or any wear / tear of his garments. Even after emerging from vicious fights, somehow his doesn't ever have a scratch or dust on him. Truly a superman. But he does forget his parents, his village and his heritage, once he comes across a slave girl. Then its the girl all the way. Poor dude.. spoilt for choice, he falls flat for an expressionless female, because he hadn't seen any female in the buff for so many years. The villain is OTP and the side kick has to be a black. I am yet to see a film, in which the hero is a black and the side-kick is white.

The pacing is slow, and there appear to be gaping gaps in the editing. Some of the sequences seem pointless, e.g. the dude comes across a cauldron with a human head floating in it.. Some black magicians appear.. a dwarf gets killed.. and then?? Then nothing.. The hero wakes up somewhere, all nice and shiny as usual. With a great smirk, as he is wont to be. Jesuz.

The ferrets steal the show. The painted tiger lumbers about. The falcon cheeps like an eagle. And a rather adorable dog dies early in the proceedings. Comparing this film with Conan is an insult to Conan. Actually slept nicely after seeing this. Afterall, there was nothing in this film to excite my senses or keep me awake at night.

A Really Fun Film

[schweinhundt1967 · 3 November 2002]

What struck me,after several viewings,is that not only does the viewer enjoy this movie,but the people doing are having a good time as well.It stays with the standard sword and sorcery/Arthurian motif of a dispossessed hero going on the quest,seeking to either establish his identity,or come into his inheritance.What adds to this particular movie are the following: 1.)Singer not only has the rugged good looks,and impressive physique,but he displays a vastly wider emotional range than did The Austrian Oak.His portrayal of Dar encompasses humor and craftiness as well as courage and determination.And it looks like he did quite a few of his own stunts. 2.)I'm not sure is Roberts is trying to do a caricature of a simpering,clinging heroine,or not.In any event,she does go WAY over the top,but seems to be enjoying doing it. 3.)Torn's villain not only chews the scenery,but spits it out,as well.Is there some kind of inside joke by making him up to look like Richard Nixon? 4.)Amos,as Seth,is every bit as much a loyal comrade as Sallah in the Indiana Jones flics.All he needs is to wear a neon sign flashing"FRIEND". 5.)Let's face it,they based the script on a classic piece of writing,but a famous authoress.If you start out with something good,it gives an extra advantage. 6.)And,the animals do a splendid job,and the ferrets are cute.

Never fails to entertain

[bensonmum2 · 7/10 · 28 April 2007]

I've said it before, but with The Beastmaster, it bears repeating – the biggest single factor I use when rating a movie is entertainment value. Great production values, an intricate plot, superb acting, expensive special effects, etc. are secondary to the enjoyment I get form a film. Sure, I realize my enjoyment of a movie can be affected by something like bad acting, but I as long as I find a certain level of entertainment in a movie, it's a good movie as far as I'm concerned and I rate it accordingly. So while I am perfectly capable of seeing the flaws in The Beastmaster, I have a blast every time I've seen it and have no problems rating it a 7/10. And when you think about it, isn't having fun one of the most important things you can get out of a movie.

I feel sorry for anyone who can't have a good time with The Beastmaster. I mean, what's not to like? If you can't have fun with: an oily, buffed-up Marc Singer talking to his animals and swinging a nice sword; a half-dressed (and in one instance, a not dressed) Tanya Roberts; John Amos in S&M gear: Rip Torn in dreads and a beak of a nose; ferrets; a tiger with a bad dye job; hideous witches; fights on a pyramid; an army on horseback with bat wing helmets; massive explosions; giant bird-like creatures who engulf their prey; and underground passages filled with crazed, berserker like guards, then you just don't know how to have a good time.

Finally, I'm sick of hearing that The Beastmaster somehow ripped-off Conan the Barbarian (something I've heard repeatedly over the years). If you listen to the commentary on the DVD for The Beastmaster, you'll quickly realize that there is no way this movie could have been made in response to the success of Conan - it was pretty much in the can when Conan was released. The timing turned out to be a happy coincidence and I'm sure Don Coscarelli and Paul Pepperman were pleased with that. Conan created a market for Sword & Sorcerer movies in the early 80s. Admittedly, The Beastmaster rode that wave and, I'm sure, benefited form it. And it doesn't hurt that The Beastmaster is one of the best movies of this type that followed Conan. A lot of the Conan-inspired films of the 80s are barely watchable. The Beastmaster rises above the mire and is one of the few actually memorable Sword & Sorcerer movies that came out during this period.

Good

[mark-53494 · 7/10 · 14 June 2020]

I remember watching this when I was a kid I enjoyed it then and I still enjoyed watching it

Pet Your Friends

[utgard14 · 6/10 · 26 April 2015]

An evil cult leader named Maax (Rip Torn) is freaked out about a prophecy surrounding the King's unborn son so he tries to have the baby killed. But a villager saves the boy and raises him as his own. The boy is named Dar and grows into Marc Singer with the ability to communicate with animals. When Dar's village is raided and all of the villagers killed, he sets out to get revenge on the one responsible -- Maax. Along the way, he is joined by John Amos, sexy Tanya Roberts, and some furry friends.

As with most sword & sorcery movies from the '80s, this bears more than a few similarities to Conan the Barbarian. Obviously it's not as good but the inspiration is clearly there. Beastmaster is very cheesy and hard to take seriously. I mean, at the end of the day, "guy who talks to ferrets" is a difficult concept to make work as anything other than a punchline. It's also overlong and full of poorly choreographed action scenes. For his part, Marc Singer does fine and knows when to play it tongue-in-cheek and when not to. Rip Torn is a total ham as the villain. Tanya Roberts actually takes her role seriously, which is embarrassing for her but fun for us. She looks great, of course.

So yeah it's cheesy and laughable but it's also entertaining. You can shut your mind off and enjoy it as a simple fantasy adventure flick or you can spend a couple of hours poking fun at it. One question I had while watching is why did Dar never try to talk to the horses of the bad guys and make them stop? In the village raid scene and the climax, the bad guys are all on horses and yet the guy who communicates with animals makes no effort to use that to his advantage. Anyway, it's a good way to pass the time. Followed by two terrible sequels and a forgettable TV series.

Hmm, that music sounds familiar -Yes! It's the theme to Battlestar Gallactica! My take on a furry fantasy.

[Al_Truist80 · 5/10 · 22 February 2005]

I could just tell when I heard that crazed cackling from the crones that their faces weren't going to be pretty. Their cauldron tracking device informed me we're going to be treading broadly familiar ground.

On the whole, this was sub-Conan antics in post-Conan style, another muscle bound take on the Joseph Campbell "hero myth" Stone successfully (albiet heavy-handedly) presented in almost comic book style in Conan the Barbarian, that same year. This follows a similar pattern: lone, toned outsider on mission to avenge personal grievance with the aid of similarly predicated cohorts, bravely surpasses assorted fantasy hazards with a bit of self-discovery on the way, before finally vanquishing the evil-doers as fantasy writers know them. Unique selling point: our man has the ability to communicate with animals (a skill he learnt in a cow's uterus!), befriending two mischievous ferrets (his cunning), one immensely strong eagle (his eyes), and a huge *black* tiger (his strength, duh. What did you think?). Add to that the requisite massive blade and a sharp boomerang thing and you've got yourself a slightly offbeat but otherwise genre defining sword and sorcery film.

Entertaining as sword-wielding Barbarians are, I prefer my 80's fantasy heroes to have a bit more charisma than your Singers and your Arnies, relying on wit and intellect over brawn and steel in the face of overwhelming opposition; the Tolkein model of plucky heroism (Dragonslayer is a good example of this with the Galen character). That or a good magic ring.

This film is more fun than Red Sonja and (probably) that old John Norman creation "Gor", but it scores low on the tension front. Dar's nemeses proved unequal and underwhelming, lacking that 'omnipotent threat factor' of the best of the genre. The music was poor and repetitive -redolant of other Italian sword and sorcery scores, plus a hint of Battlestar Gallactica. Adequate special effects, but lighting and camera-work obviously didn't catch the 'beauty' of the landscape so they went for the old tinted-lens look. Needed more monsters and traps (but I think we're talking low budget here).

On the plus side,Tanya Roberts was a suitable damsel in distress/ warrior woman, providing as much distraction as those thieving ferrets. Those eyes!

If you want action, excitement, and tons of fun; look no further!

[lizardx78 · 10/10 · 4 May 2006]

Come on, its BEASTMASTER! How can you deny that this movie is one of the top movies in the eighties pantheon of excellent trash. I mean so much stuff happens in this movie and you are never left wondering what is going on. Every move is perfectly placed and paced. Marc Singer is perfectly cast as Dar. He has a legendary physique in this move, and some shots look like a Boris Vallejo painting. Tanya Roberts is perfect as his feminine foil. Jon Amos, bad ass. Rip Torn does a magnificent job as MAAX. The Deathguards, those guys running around like gorillas with spiked gloves, truly frightening. Then you have the tree people, the acid bat guys, come on what could be cooler. Though above all I have to give it up for the animals in this picture. The animals take the cake, the ferrets, the tiger, and falcon, are majestic creatures of beauty that often surpass the actors in finding moments of true beauty and comedy. Better than Conan, Beastmaster taps the main vein of the seventies fantasy feel in every way imaginable.

Where's the love?

[fryguy-88668 · 7/10 · 16 February 2020]

Ok, I was 11 when this came out on video. Must have seen it 50 times. It is the classic sword and sorcery popcorn movie. Don't take it too seriously, remember when it was made re special effects...and enjoy the ride

Pretty good for 10 year old boys and girls

[Erik_Stone · 5/10 · 3 May 2022]

Very dated and really boring for adults. It's a great movie for kids, but provides little to no entertainment value for adults.

Good animal work, pyro, casting, and stunts.

If only they made movies for kids like these again...

[elcopy · 8/10 · 10 June 2000]

Too bad movies from this genre are now all but extinct.

Beastmaster was one of the best movies of the early 80's

Sword & Magic movies (along with Krull, Dragonslayer &

Conan), if not the best. I even believe it inspired He-Man

and the Masters of the Universe for those who as myself

were children of the 80's. Later in the 80's some flicks

came out, like Highlander and Willow, but couldn't help the

disappearance of the genre, which I feel very nostalgic

about. Please, please, please, I beg you: Ignore any sequel

of this movie. Remain with this, a true classic.

Just the right amount of tongue in cheek

[Vartiainen · 7/10 · 18 February 2018]

So we have our hero, a barbarian, who wields a mighty sword, doesn't believe in shirts and travels the land with his odd group of misfits, looking for the pillagers who wrecked his home village and killed his family. On his journeys he will meet magical beings, lost royals, nefarious cults and all manners of beasts. No, I'm not talking about Conan the Barbarian, although the two films are eerily similar. They even came out the exact same year. Funny how these things work out sometimes.

And while admittedly Conan is clearly the superior film, The Beastmaster has its own definite upsides. Marc Singer may not be Arnold, but he has this boyish rogue thing going for him and he makes for an interesting main character. The whole 'beastmaster' thing is also a nice addition, giving the film its own feel, its own unique signature. And I also like that it's not just a gimmick. Dar's (Singer) various animal friends are constantly present and an intrinsic part of the plot.

As far as the plot goes, I've seen worse, though it does seem to wander around a bit. Then again, so does the plot of Conan, so that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's how these stories work. I cannot deny that I didn't enjoy every minute of it. Especially because while the storytelling is not as strong in this one as it is in Conan, the film makes up for it with a more exploitative tone. Kinda cheap, admittedly, but I do enjoy my greasy fast food next to my steaks just fine.

If you absolutely cannot see more than one barbarian film from the 80s, see Conan the Barbarian. But if that leaves you hungry for more, The Beastmaster should definitely go to your list.

Enjoyable Turkey

[jacobnunnally · 4/10 · 2 February 2016]

"Beastmaster" (1982), one of the countless imitators of "Conan the Barbarian" (1982), is fairly decent 80s trash. It's an afternoon movie to watch while you're texting your friends or ordering camping gear on amazon.

Tanya Roberts is smokin hot, fantastic to have her in this movie. A few tit shots for her which is great! Were these mandatory in the 80s? We should bring that back.

Also, Rip Torn plays such a funny bad guy. He was in a sweet episode of Columbo in the 80s in which he plays the bad guy and it just makes me laugh.

When I saw this as a kid, I was scared by the sucker guys that fold their cape things over you. I was also scared by the torture device scene when they put that green worm in that poor chap's ear. Yikes. Having seen it now it's pretty mild though.

All in all - enjoyable turkey. Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-check it ouuuuuuuut. 4/10