Where to watch Deathstalker IV: Match of Titans
0 1/2 Star
It begins as a contest of strength the challenge of competition luring fighters from far away to a hilltop castle. Deathstalker leads the combatants but only to discover that the winners are disappearing one by one. Now, in his last and greatest battle, Deathstalker must defend his remaining comrades, his life, and his newfound love in battle against an evil army of stone warriors and the wicked queen who created them.
The distinctive VHS cover art for the Deathstalker movies is beautifully rendered by illustrator Boris Vallejo. They promise a world and movie that are not accurate to what awaits the unsuspecting viewer. The Deathstalker franchise was never intended to be interpreted as high art. But the first film was a modest hit when it received a theatrical release in 1983 and made a staggering $10 million, which was comparable to the high-profile release, The Beastmaster. The original turned out to be a very profitable picture for producer Roger Corman, so it’s a bit of a mystery why it took four years for a sequel that premiered straight to video.
Deathstaker is the series high point. It replaces lead actor Rick Hill with wisecracking John Terlesky, and it’s easily the best entry of the four films. Terlesky did not appear in Deathstalker 3 and was succeeded by John Allen Nelson. Allen is equally charming and fit, and part three is clearly the second most enjoyable of the franchise. I’m not a big fan of the first; I saw Part 2 before Part 1, and I wasn’t impressed when I did catch up to the original, but Deathstalker IV: Match of the Titans is an awful product. It’s a hatchet job, recycling footage from previous movies and awkwardly stitching in new scenes to fit the incomprehensible narrative.
An audicene can join the movie at any time because nothing that has happened before has any meaning to what is going on or what is to come next. DeathStalker IV is a bewildering viewing experience, and it also represents the kind of hack-job filmmaking that is typically associated with New Concorde film productions. An unmagnamouis end to a guilty pleasure series from the golden age of the video store.
Directed by: Howard R. Cohen
Written by: Howard R. Cohen, Beverly Gray
Starring: Rick Hill, Maria Ford, Brett Baxter Clark