Bounty Killer, Bountiful Fun...

Bounty hunters ridding a Road Warrior-esque world of the one percenter scum responsible for its destruction sounds like an entertaining enough premise for a movie. For the most part it is, but it isn’t without its flaws. Unfortunately, there were just enough to keep Bounty Killer from being the kind of raunchy, grind house exploitation flick that I’d see again. One can’t be too critical of a movie like this, after all it doesn’t pretend to be anything more than it is and the actors’ performances are such that you’re convinced that everybody enjoyed themselves a lot. Essentially it comes down to just a couple blocks of time in the movie where it seemed that nothing really was going on. To the point where I was bored, but perhaps the director was building in some bathroom and snack time in which case I wish I had known and I would’ve taken advantage of those opportunities. The film opens with a flourish of Dark Horse comic style action and violence and quickly segues into a cool animated description of what kind of world we’re about to see here, Like the similarly named paper towel, the first 20 minutes or so are a really quick picker upper. The director, Henry Saine, says in an interview, “We set out to make a movie in the style and tone of the’70s about the future of 1997. Jason’s script was wild — medieval knights riding out of hell to lay waste to corporate criminals and finish the Apocalypse. White collars running around in a Frank Frazetta painting come to life.” Had they done that, I think my feelings about the movie would be totally different- somebody please make that movie. Indeed, there was a Faster Pussycat Kill, Kill vibe that I was feeling during one of the chases through the desert, but perhaps there was just one chase too many. For sure the scene where bounty killer Drifter takes out a gang of Gypsies was Mad Max worthy however the scenes where he and his pursuer, Mary Death, are seen just tooling through an endless desert seem just endless. Movies like this aren’t complete without cameo appearances by actors whose best days are behind them and in this case we have Gary Busey and Beverly D’Angelo. I think though that they missed a real opportunity by not casting Masta Killa somewhere in the movie. My feelings are that any opening to cast a member of the Wu Tang Clan, you take it. All in all, a decent effort that will remind you of the movies that I compared it to already and many more that I haven’t. Perhaps that is where the real merit lies in a movie like this; anything that can help my old, soft brain remember things that put a smile on my face is worth something.