The Beastmaster (1982)

A sword-and-sorcery fantasy about a young man's search for revenge. Armed with supernatural powers, the handsome hero and his animal allies wage war against marauding forces.

Director:

Don Coscarelli

Writers:

Don Coscarelli, Paul Pepperman

Stars:

Marc Singer, Tanya Roberts, Rip Torn

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marc Singer	...	Dar
Tanya Roberts	...	Kiri
Rip Torn	...	Maax
John Amos	...	Seth
Joshua Milrad	...	Tal (as Josh Milrad)
Rod Loomis	...	Zed
Ben Hammer	...	Young Dar's Father
Ralph Strait	...	Sacco
Billy Jayne	...	Young Dar (as Billy Jacoby)
Janet DeMay	...	Witchwoman #1
Christine Kellogg	...	Witchwoman #2 (as Chrissy Kellogg)
Janet Jones	...	Witchwoman #3
Tony Epper	...	Jun Leader
Vanna Bonta	...	Zed's Wife
Kim Tabet	...	Sacco's Daughter

Storyline

Dar, the son of a king, is hunted by a priest after his birth, so he is sent to grow up in another family. When he becomes a grown man, his new father is murdered by savages. He discovers that he has the ability to communicate with the animals, and after that, Dar begins his quest for revenge in this Conan-like movie.

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Plot Keywords:

sword and sorcery | animal human communication | murder | beast | cult film | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Producer Dino De Laurentiis liked the movie and offered Don Coscarelli to direct Conan the Destroyer (1984). Coscarelli declined because he thought the script was bad.

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Goofs

When Seth discovers the witches' ring on Tal's hand, it cuts back to the view of Maax standing over the one remaining witch as she looks into the cauldron (there were three witches at first, but one was killed by Dar's adopted father at the start of the movie, and the other killed by adult Dar). However, when it cuts to a shot of looking down into the cauldron from above, the hands of all three witches are seen around the cauldron's edge.

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Quotes

Young Dar's Father: Dar... the gods have put that mark on you, and someday, you'll find out why. 'Til then, this mark will be your guide. My sword and my caber will be your trusted companions. Protect Emur, your home. And if anything should happen to me, look for our enemies, the Juns... and you may search for your destiny in the Valley of Aruk.

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was heavily cut for a PG rating with edits to shots of impaled bodies and the puncturing of a ring containing an eyeball, and to remove all footage of topless nudity during Kiri's bathing scene. The video certificate was raised to a 15 but early Warner releases mistakenly featured the cut cinema print. The 1998 Five Star Directors Cut video and all subsequent releases are fully uncut.

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Connections

Referenced in Arrow: Underneath (2017)

User Reviews

A true genre classic

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.

Details

Country:

USA West Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 August 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Beastmaster

Filming Locations:

Valley of Fire State Park - Route 169, Overton, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,955,641, 22 August 1982

Gross USA:

$14,056,528

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,056,528

Company Credits

Production Co:

Leisure Investment Company, Beastmaster NV, ECTA Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 90 min (video)

Sound Mix:

Dolby DTS (5.1 surround) Stereo (Dolby 2.0) Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1