Conquest (1983)

Director:

Lucio Fulci

Writers:

Gino Capone (screenplay)
Giovanni Di Clemente (story)

Release Date:

6 April 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror

Tagline:

In a place beyond time, comes a terrifying challenge beyond imagination! [USA theatrical]

Plot:

A young man, armed with a magical bow and arrows, embarks on a mystical journey through a mystical land to rid it of all evil and joins forces with an outlaw to take down an evil witch bent on claiming the magic bow for evil.

Plot Keywords:

Violence | Demon | Sword And Sorcery | Bow And Arrow | Sword

Cast

Jorge Rivero	...	Mace (as George Rivero)
Andrea Occhipinti	...	Ilias
Conrado San Martín	...	Zora
Violeta Cela	...	Sacrificial Victim
José Gras	...	Fado (as Josè Gras Palau)
Gioia Scola	...	Girl Ilias Saves from Snake (as Maria Escola)
Sabrina Siani	...	Ocron (as Sabrina Sellers)

Also Known As:

Bárbaro, la conquista de la tierra perdida (Mexico)
La conquista de la tierra perdida (Spain)
Mace the Outcast (International: English title) (working title)

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

Italy | Spain | Mexico

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Telecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Norway:18 | Australia:R | Finland:K-16 (1992) | Finland:K-18 (cut version) | UK:18 (cut) (1983) | Italy:VM14 | Spain:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Canada:G (Quebec)

Company:

Clemi Cinematografica

Quotes:

Mace: When a man meets a man, you never know which one will die. But when an animal meets a man, it's always the animal that dies. I'm on the animals' side.
Ilias: Isn't this an animal you're eating?
Mace: [shrugs] I didn't kill him.
Ilias: That's a pretty strange law.
Mace: Not when you're hungry.

Only Bad If You're Dumb Enough To Take It Seriously

Adults deserve to have their fairy tales & fantasies too, and I'd say Lucio Fulci cooked up a pretty potent adult pulp fairy tale here. I'll leave it to others to describe the plot: My first indication that this wasn't going to be your average CONAN ripoff when the four guys dressed up like Smokey the Bear rip a cave girl babe into quarters, snort drugs with a nude sorceress witch babe with a body from hell who then copulates (R-Rated style) with her companion python while having a vision of someone shooting her with TRON's bow & arrow. Talk about weird!

The film is an interesting combination of opposites that aims right at the atavistic, adventure-loving 14 year old with a desire to see bared breasts in all of us. While the narrative is somewhat confusing in your typical Fulcian kind of way the visuals are just as striking, with costume design by Mad Max and Larry Flynt, including oddball touches such as the Dog Men, the Gauze Men, Ape Guys and that far-out sorceress. She really is the focus of the film: The two guys out gallivanting around saving each other from imminent doom are more sort of there to give the film an excuse to have such an outrageously sexy harlot as it's force of evil, complete with a bestial contingent of half men half animals to do her evil bidding.

But seriously, if you go into this expecting anything other than complete dreck the movie *WILL* annoy you. For fans of be-headings, clever escapes, back-flips, fights to the death, mystical snake babes, ferocious howler guys, Atari era computer graphics, ridiculous cornball dialog and equal amounts of beefcake and cheesecake, this movie should be your priority rental next time you're in the mood for something other than a Global Warming movie. CONQUEST may not change the world, win any elections or even be that good, but I'd rather be confused by something that knows it's garbage & has fun with the idea than snookered by ideology disguised as entertainment.

7/10, even if it doesn't make much sense ...