Steel Dawn (1987)

Patrick Swayze stars with his wife Lisa Niemi and Emmy Award-winner Anthony Zerbe in this post-apocalyptic action adventure. They call him Nomad, a man without a home, without a past. A new breed of warrior trained in the arts of swordsmanship and hand-to-hand combat, roaming the vast desert wastelands in a postnuclear age...in a time when laws are useless and water is more precious than blood. When Nomad's old friend and mentor is brutally slain by the notorious swordsman Sho, Nomad heads for the desolate valley of Meridian to avenge his death. There he meets the beautiful Kasha, one of the many farmers being terrorized by the sinister warlord Damnil. The desperate farmers appoint Nomad their peacemaker, charged with protecting them against Damnil's diabolic plot to control all the water in the valley. But as Nomad begins to help Kasha's farm, thwarting Damnil's carefully laid plans, he becomes the target of Damnil's savage army, face-to-face with the bloodthirsty Sho, fighting for revenge, honor...and love.

Great Sci-Fi Movie!

Watched it on TV A Couple of times. Loved It. The Ground Enemies. The Fight for Water. The Sword Fights. The Part where Patrick Gets Caught In a Bath Tub by the Villian. Cool Movie, Definately a Gem. Wish More People Saw It. If You Liked Road Warrior, Fortress, Screamers, or Lord of The Rings This is a Must for You. You Won't Be Dissapointed. October 4, 2007

road warrior / beastmaster = steel dawn

No one watches Steel Dawn for the smart dialogue, the existential motifs, or the brilliant cinematography. This isn't Beckett here. If you like movies where a renegade with a sword gets the bad guys and protects small-town interests, this is for you. It's like the "Road Warrior" without the cars meets the "Beastmaster" without religious cults, and add a touch of Jimmy Stewart's western "Destry Rides Again." This is escapist cinema, and the best kind.

A note on the DVD: this is a full-screen edition that looks pretty cheap--no great remastering job here. There are no special features, no sound options, no languages. But if you want to see a movie featuring a guy with a sword, you don't need Dolby Digital and a pristine print: you need "Steel Dawn." September 29, 2003

ANOTHER OF MY KEEPERS!

Not top notch? -- Ah well, It can be thoroughly enjoyed without picking it apart.
But how many different ways can the same kind of stories be portrayed? Actually it is the writers fault for not giving a different twist to life's story. [Underground pure water?]
I enjoyed the acting - the characters - the desert? but the hairdo's were awful.
This is another one that I like to watch again - what can I say? I like the futuristic SiFi - even the outlandish ones.
The villian's got what they deserved. [grin] December 8, 2001

Shhhhh, don�t tell anyone....

Have you ever watched a film that you know isn't very good, yet you ended up secretly liking it, but wouldn't tell a soul (at least those you know personally) that you do? Well, for me, this is one of those films.

I've always been a sucker for post-apocalyptic films/novels and the loner hero, and maybe that's why I ended up enjoying it. Hey, I liked Costner's "The Postman" and "Waterworld", and Yul Brenners "The Ultimate Warrior", and at least one of Gibson's "Mad Max" vehicles (so you know where I'm coming from).

Patrick Swayze and his wife are just fine in this standard yarn, and the fight scenes were done very well. Alas, there is nothing new to find here, but if you are attracted to the cast you might sneak this video in one night (very late, while everyone else is asleep).

Between 1 and 10, I rate "Steel Dawn" a very marginal 6, but in reality, I know it's not much above a 4;-). July 1, 2000

Post-Apocalyptic Swordfighting with a Familiar Plot

Yes, this is another rehash of the Shane/Road Warrior story of the lonely wanderer who defends the intrepid farmers against the evil baron/barbarian horde/wealthy landowner. Yes, it is another post-apocalyptic wasteland action movie. Yes, the dialogue is predictably lame ................... What gives this movie a slight edge over some others of this ilk is the sturdy performance of under-appreciated Brion James as a tired old soldier, the hammy intensity of Christopher Neame as the hero's rival, and the ........... swordfights.

Patrick Swayze plays a member of a knights-of-the-round-table type outfit who's days of glory and effectiveness has passed. He travels incognito through the wastelands, finding a farming community under threat from the local rich & powerful bad guy. He winds up fighting against one of his former fellow defenders of justice, now working for the bad guy.

The Brian May music and desert scenery gives the obligatory road-warrior flavor. The costumes and set dressing give the impression of the return of some culture and industry while still picking over the remains of the old world. The existence of these "guards" implies that there was a "world order" that emerged from the catastrophe, but that there has since been a descent to lawlessness.

The weapons combat was very skillful and, as movies go, convincing. The comatants move with efficiency, speed, and convincingness, fighting with the equivalent of quarterstaffs, bastard swords, and two-swords. It is the strongest feature of the movie and pretty much the only reason to watch it over any other genre movie. This, and the fact that the film achieves at least the minimum big-studio stardards of technical proficiency (cinematography, sound, edtiting, etc) and has a story without any big holes in it gives it the extra star. END June 2, 2000

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