Eliminators (1986)

A former pilot rebels against his creator, teaming up with the scientist responsible for android technology, her pet robot Spot, a rough-and-tumble riverboat guide, and a martial arts warrior.

Director:

Peter Manoogian

Writers:

Paul De Meo, Danny Bilson

Stars:

Andrew Prine, Denise Crosby, Patrick Reynolds

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Andrew Prine	...	Harry Fontana
Denise Crosby	...	Nora Hunter
Patrick Reynolds	...	Mandroid
Conan Lee	...	Kuji
Roy Dotrice	...	Abbott Reeves
Peter Schrum	...	Ray
Peggy Mannix	...	Bayou Betty
Fausto Bara	...	Luis
Tad Horino	...	Takada
Luis Lorenzo	...	Maurice
José Moreno	...	Neanderthal Shaman (as Pepe Moreno)
Charly Bravo	...	Bartender
Miguel de Grandy	...	Chief Guard (as Miguel de Grandi)
Gabino Diego	...	Young Guard (as Gabino Diego Solis)

Storyline

As part of their experiments in time travel, Drs. Reeves and Takada construct a cyborg "Mandroid" with the body of a downed pilot. After the success of the initial experiments, Reeves decides to have the Mandroid scrapped. Not wishing to be taken apart, Mandroid flees with the help of Dr. Takeda, who is killed for his disobedience. Distraught by the death of his one friend, the Mandroid goes north to America in search of someone who can help him in getting revenge and stopping Dr. Reeves in whatever evil plan he intends to use his time machine for.

---

Plot Keywords:

mandroid | jungle | cyborg | time travel | martial arts | 

---

Taglines:

Mandroid. Mercenary. Scientist. Ninja. Each one a specialist. Together they are ELIMINATORS!

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA Spain

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 January 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

De uitroeiers

Filming Locations:

Spain

Box Office

Gross:

$4,601,256 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Empire Pictures, Altar Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tim Thomerson was originally slated to play Harry Fontana.

---

Quotes

[Harry is reading the name of Ray's boat]
Harry Fontana: "Quo Vadis"?
Ray: That's Italian. It means "We kick ass."

---

Connections

Referenced in Necropolis (1987)

User Reviews

Hard to Find Title Should Remain Hidden

Over the past 15 years, there have been a couple of obscure DVD titles that I have been desperately trying to locate. These are generally films that I screened when I was a teenager on VHS, and for any number of reasons, they have yet to see new life on DVD.

Last year, I was lucky enough to locate a few titles – Kiss and the Phantom of the Park, the Roger Corman version of The Fantastic Four and Blood Beach. This year, I recently scored with finding a few other titles from my list including the 1986 non-classic Eliminators.

Released by Empire Pictures, Eliminators was the story about a downed pilot that is transformed into a cyborg "Mandroid" by two scientists (Dr. Reeves and Dr. Takada) - one of which (Reeves) has a penchant for evil. When Dr. Reeves orders the Mandroid destroyed, the cyborg (played by actor Patrick Reynolds) escapes from his creator's laboratory and heads north in search of someone who can assist in getting revenge and stopping Dr. Reeves from realizing his evil plan that includes the use of a time machine. Help comes in the form of Nora Hunter (Denise Crosby from Pet Semetary) who is a doctor/scientist of her own. Together they will team up for a terribly ridiculous adventure that will eventually lead them to a confrontation with evil Doctor and a chance to thwart his dastardly plans.

Eliminators was released on February 2, 1986 to a dismal $1.9 million opening week-end. And on re-screening, it is not hard to see why the film was so overtly ignored. The Mandroid in the film resembled a poor man's Robocop (which was released the following year). And his various mechanical costume gadgets that included lasers, grapple hooks and even motorized boots, were laughable instead of innovative or awe striking.

The evil Dr. Reeves (Roy Dotrice) hams up the screen, but he really makes Ming the Merciless in Flash Gordon look like an Academy Award performance when contrasted. And a host of other supporting characters including Bayou Betty and Maurice are straight out of The Dukes of Hazzard.

The special effects in Eliminators were equally atrocious. From the small teleporting robot that was their sidekick to the laser shootouts, the movie really failed to deliver on any of the promises projected from the movie's poster and cover art.

Luckily Denise Crosby and Andrew Prine as the playful Harry Fontana give the film enough life to keep us smiling through all the disappointment.

Eliminator s was therefore terrible. But we expected such a response and wanted it as part of our collection anyways. It can sit proudly beside Megaforce and Ice Pirates and badly conceived and executed movies from our past that were entertaining as youngster and almost unbearable as an adult.

www.killerreviews.com