The Warrior and the Sorceress

On the M-Square Classics label, UCM.ONE released the film “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (German: “Der Krieger und die Hexe“) in a limited media book for the first time in Germany in the uncut US version, which is over four minutes longer than the old German VHS version. Non-synchronized scenes were subtitled in German. The film was co-produced by Oscar-winning director and film producer Roger Corman (“Frankenstein’s Death Race”, “The Fist of the Rebels“). The storyline is clearly inspired by films such as Sergio Leone‘s “For a Few Dollars More” (Italy, Spain 1964) and Akira Kurosawa‘s “Yojimbo” (Japan 1961), but has been moved to a fictional planet.

The leading role was played by David Carradine, who became famous for the US western martial arts series “Kung Fu” (1972-1975) and the films “North and South” (1985) or Quentin Tarantino‘s “Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2” and who first collaborated with Roger Corman in 1975 for his brutal future satire “Frankenstein’s Death Race“.

Synopsis:

The swordsman Cain (David Carradine) was once a warrior of a holy order, but after its downfall he hired himself out as a mercenary in the vastness of the planet Ura. The desert village of Yamatar is the perfect place for him, as two warlords fight over the only well far and wide. Cain learns that the last survivor of his former order lives in the city and one of the warlords, Zeg, whose daughter Naja (Maria Socas) is imprisoned because of her magical powers. He decides to free Naja in order to gain possession of the magical sword of Yura, which only Naja can summon and which is said to give its owner infinite power. But for his plan to succeed, he first has to find a way to play the two enemy parties against each other…

Über Regisseur John C. Broderick:

John C. Broderick, who directed only the three films “Georgia Road” (1977), “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (1984) and “A Bed Full of Foreigners” (1998), began his entertainment career as an actor at his San Francisco high school. Between 1974 and 1998 he worked mainly as a film producer, but there is hardly a film worth mentioning ib´n his tenure. A  highlight of his career was an Oscar nomination for his editing work on “The Exorzist” in 1973. At the early age of 58 he died of a kidney disease he had been suffering of for many years.

Aries Cinematográfica Argentina:

Director and producer Héctor Olivera founded Aries Cinematográfica Argentinia in 1956. The studio was particularly active in the 1970s and 1980s and made a number of important contributions to Argentine film culture, such as Adolfo Aristarain‘s “Time for Revenge” (1981) and Hector Olivera‘s “La Note de los Lápices“, which is considered one of the director’s best films. At the beginning of the 1990s Aries had more and more economic problems. A restructuring in the management enabled the studio to continue producing, but the company went bankrupt in 2014.

About Roger Coman:

Roger William Corman was born on 5 April 1926 in Detroit, Michigan. After his studies at Stanford University and his service in the navy Corman ventured briefly into the film world as a messenger for the production company 20th Century Fox. He then studied English literature at Oxford, but soon returned to Hollywood, where he began working as a literary agent. In 1953 he produced his first movie “Highway Dragnet“. Two years later he made his debut as a director with two western films.

In the following years Corman mainly worked as a director for the film production company AIP of Z. Arkoff and James H. Nicholson. He has made films in various genres such as western, gangster and horror  as well as science fiction films for young audiences. In addition, he developed new genres such as rocker and rock’n’roll films, which appealed to young people with their rebellious themes. With his rocker film “The Wild Angels” from 1966 Corman already anticipated the legendary “Easy Rider” (1969) by Dennis Hopper.

Original title: The Warrior and the Sorceress

Director: John C. Broderick

Book: John C. Broderick, William Stout

Screeplay: John C. Broderick

Actors & actresses: David Carradine, Luke Askew, Maria Socas, Anthony De Longis, Harry Townes, Guillermo Marín, Armando Capo, Daniel March, John Overby, Richard Paley, Marcos Woinsky, Cecilia Narova, Dylan Willias, José Casanova, Miguel Zabaleta, Herman Cass, Arturo Noal, Hernán Gené, Gus Parker, Ned Ivers, Liliana Cameroni, Eva Adanaylo, Noëlle Balfour

Producer: John C. Broderick, Frank K. Isaac, Roger Corman

Co-producer: Héctor Olivera, Alejandro Sessa

Cinematography: Leonardo Rodríguez Solís

Camera and Electrical Department: Miguel Amengual, Juan José Fabio, Oscar González, Ever Latour, Hans Ritter

Sound: Pedro Marra, Jorge Stavropulos

Editing: Silvia Ripoll

Special Effects  Ricardo Lanzoni

Stunts: Anthony De Longis

Makeup: George Barry, R. Christopher Biggs, Willy Smith, Rodolfo Spinetta

Costume and Wardrobe Department: María Julia Bertotto, Beatriz Quiroga, Gloria Van Hartenstein, Mónica Mendoza

Casting: Stan Shaffer

Music: Luis María Serra

 

Production companies: Aries Cinematográfica Argentina, New Horizons Picture

Year of production: 1984

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Counties: Argentinia, USA

Language: English

Dubbing: German

 

Lenghth: 81 Min

Rating: FSK 16

Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1

Sound: Mono

Resolution: SD

Other titles:

German: Der Krieger und die Hexe

French: Kaine le mercenaire

Spanish: El guerrero y la hechicera

Portuguese: O Guerreiro E a Espada

Russian: Воин и колдунья

Start USA: September 1984

DVD Germany: December 06, 2019

VoD Germany: December 06, 2019

In the 60’s Roger Corman also became famous for a whole series of film adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s literature whose basic ideas he tried to incorporate into horror movies. In the year 1970 Roger Corman created with “von Richthofen and Brown” his last directing work for two decades. With his production company New World Pictures, which in 1983 was rebranded under the name Concorde – New Horizons Corp., he appeared exclusively as a film producer. He created movies like 1972 “Boxcar Bertha” by Martin Scorsese, 1975 “Capone” by Steve Carver or 1978 “Piranha” by Joe Dante. In the year 1990 he returned to the director’s chair for a short stint with “Frankenstein Unbound“. After that he continued his activity as a producer to realize such successful movies as the “Death Race“-series. Altogether Corman produced more than 200 movies.

Among the movies in which he appeared himself are the thriller “Silence of the Lambs” (1990), the social drama “Philadelphia” (1993) or “The Manchurian Candidate” (2004). In 1998 he was honoured with the first award for a producer at the Cannes film festival and in 2010 he received the Honorary Oscar Award for his life’s achievements. Roger Corman is married to Julie Ann Halloran with whom he has four children.

About John Arthur Carradine:

John Arthur Carradine was born on 8 December 1936 in Los Angeles. He came from a family of actors whose careers extended over many decades. David’s acting career lasted nearly sixty years. First he attended a high school in Oakland, then went to junior college and finally studied acting and music theory at San Francisco State College, where he became a member of a Shakespearean troupe which increased his interest in acting. Although he steadfastly tried to avoid conscription, he was drafted into the US Army in 1960. Two years later, after the birth of his daughter Calista, he was discharged honorably. He began to put his attention more seriously towards acting and made his TV debut in 1963 in “Armstrong Circle Theatre“. Further TV roles followed, which finally led to a contract with Universal and his film debut in the Western “Taggart” in 1964. He went to Broadway and appeared in Rolf Hochmuth‘s play “The Deputy“, but appeared again for Universal in front of the TV cameras. But it should be another Broadway play that really started his career: In Peter Shaffer’s “The Royal Hunt of the Sun” he impersonated the Inca ruler Atahualpa who tries to defend himself against the Spanish conquistador Pizarro – played in the play by Christopher Plummer. With 261 performances, the play was not only a great success, Carradine’s performance also convinced audiences and critics all along the line and he was awarded the 1965 Theatre World Award for Best Newcomer for his role.

In 1966 he left Broadway again and took over the leading role in the western series “Shane“. Despite good reviews, the series was cancelled after only 17 episodes, but it made Carradine a coveted supporting actor, especially in Western films. After a role in the TV movie “Johnny Belinda“, which Carradine called the “rescue of his career”, followed several more or less imprtant supporting roles in “Young Billy Young” (1969), “The Good Guys and the Bad Guys” (1969) and “The MCMasters” (1970). After various TV roles he appeared in 1972 as Big Bill Shelly in “Boxcar Bertha”, one of the first films by master director Martin Scorsese, alongside Barbara Hershey.

Four more movies followed, then he got the role that should make him an international star: Between 1972 and 1975 he slipped into the role of the Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in ABC‘s TV series “Kung Fu“. Beside the movies of Bruce Lee (1940 – 1973), “Kung Fu” made the Far Eastern martial art and philosophy an integral part of Western popular culture. The series earned Carradine an Emmy and a Golden Globe nomination and eventually led to his first leading role in “Death Race 2000” (1975), a science fiction film directed by Paul Bertel and produced by Roger Corman, now one of New World Pictures‘ cult films. A year later, the trio reunited for “Cannonball” and Carradine got behind the wheel of a racing car again. That same year, he was named Best Actor by the National Board of Review for his portrayal of Woody Guthrie in “Bound for Glory“, nominated for the Golden Globe, and honored with the New York Film Critics Award. In 1977 he played a third time for Roger Corman, this time the racing driver in “Thunder and Lightning“, and appeared in “The Serpent’s Egg” for the Swedish directing legend Ingmar Bergman.

In 1978 another supporting role followed in “Gray Lady Down“, this time alongside Charlton Heston, and with “Deathsport” – the unofficial successor of “Death Race 2000” – another Corman film. His role in “The Long Riders” from 1980 is one of his most remarkable appearances. In the film about the gang of revolver hero Jesse James, he played the outlaw Cole Younger along with his half-brothers Keith and Robert. Carradine remained a sought-after actor, especially for action films, and in the early 1980s even sat on the director’s chair for “Americana“. He also took on the leading role, but although the film appealed to the audience, there was no great financial success. His last directing work “Mata Hari“, with his daughter Calista in the leading role, has remained unpublished until today.

In the 1980s, however, his fame as a film actor faded somewhat and film roles became rarer. From then on he found most offers on TV or in action films which appeared directly on video, and so he became Chuck Norris‘ opponent in “Lone Wolf McQuade” in 1982, appeared as warrior Cain in “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (1984) and returned in 1986 as Caine in “Kung Fu“. His career found a new success with his role as the vicious Justin LaMotte in the cult series “North and South“, which earned him another Golden Globe nomination.

In the 1990s his career was marked by further appearances in TV movies and B-action flicks, as for example between 1993 and 1997 when he slipped into the role of Cain again in the series “Kung Fu – The Legend Continues“. Shortly thereafter he was honored with a star on the Walk of Fame, but his career was on a downslide. This changed in 2003 when Quentin Tarantino entrusted him with the role of Bill in Kill Bill (2003/2004). A big favorite for the Oscar, Carradine was denied the golden boy, but again he was nominated for the Golden Globe and received the Saturn Award as Best Supporting Actor. Despite a solid performance in “American Reel” (2003), the quality of his role offerings hardly improved and the last years of the 2000s were – like the 1990s – characterized by hardly worth mentioning roles in TV and cheap productions. Nevertheless, Carradine is still considered one of Hollywood’s hardest working actors after more than 230 appearances. On 3 June 2009 he was found strangled in his hotel room in Bangkok. Although suicide was initially assumed, two autopsies revealed an accident caused by autoerotic strangulation as the cause of death.

The Warrior and the Sorceress | Trailer (German)

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Press reviews and comments

“On the surface, it may seem cheap and badly executed, but it’s actually a sociological treatise on how amazing breasts are. And who wants to contradict sociology?” (filmcriticsunited)

“You should watch the movie for three reasons: 1) David Carradine plays the leading role, and he’s awesome! 2) The witch never wears a top. 3) Yes, there is a woman with four breasts in it!” (deathwishindustries.com)

“Lean back, turn off your brain and let yourself be entertained by “The Warrior and the Scoreress”, also a perfect flic for the movie night with friends, and with a little alcohol in addition the laughs come all by themselves!” (retro-film.info)

“An ideal film for a hungover morning or as an introduction to an evening with buddies, canned beer and maybe even better films.” (Remember it for later, Oliver Nöding)

“No great cinematic art, but “something different” that contains elements that makes even longtime trash fans sit in front of the screen with an astonished “WTF?!?”. (moviegeek.de)

“Shame this stuff isn‘t released on DVD. So for years this little gem has been gamming around on the magnetic tapes of the video rental version…hoping to be released from its fate at some point. Peoples of this earth, look at this film…or anyone who has a DVD press. Would be enough already.” (neon-zombie.net)

Equipment and technical data of the Mediabook

Film in the original long cinema version, 16-page booklet | picture format: WS 1.78:1 (anamorphic) | total running time 81 min | sound format: German DD 2.0 (non-synchronized scenes are subtitled in German), English DD 2.0 | Rating FSK: 16 (DVD because of a trailer FSK 18)

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“The Warrior and the Sorceress” by John C. Broderick available today

On the M-Square Classics label, UCM.ONE released the film “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (German: “Der Krieger und die Hexe”) in a limited media book for the first time in Germany in the uncut US version, which is over four minutes longer than the old German VHS version. Non-synchronized scenes were subtitled in German. The…

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Available from December 6, 2019: “The Warrior and the Sorceress” by John C. Broderick

UCM.ONE released the film “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (German: “Der Krieger und die Hexe“) in a limited media book on the label M-Square Classics for the first time in Germany in the uncut version. Non-synchronized scenes were subtitled in German. The storyline is clearly inspired by films such as Sergio Leone‘s “For a Few Dollars More” (Italy,…

More