WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Like many others I have seen and enjoyed the MST3K version of this movie and have not seen the unparodied version. I probably never will. Yet I think that like many other films, "The Final Sacrifice" has been unnecessarily maligned through its connection with MST3K. Don't get me wrong, I think the show is one of the most brilliant and hilarious ideas ever conceived. However, I am annoyed that it guides so many reviews on this site. Reviewers write their comments as duplications of the wry satire of Mike and the Bots and ultimately dismiss the films as garbage simply because they were chosen for the show. Association does not make a bad movie. Poor acting, overblown budgets, cheese, poor editing techniques, lack of innovation, and corporate hack-writing make a bad movie. Needless to say, "The Final Sacrifice" contains any number of these elements. But as many other MST3K gems, it should be rendered its status of mediocre, rather than join the ranks of ones that truly are horrid. Now that my rant is completed, I will go on to review this film.
Both the guiding principle of this movie and sadly its Damoclean sword is its modest budget. With a limited cast of unknowns, it was filmed in the wilderness of Canada without proper money for professional set design or effects. Low budget films can be very effective, yet the subject matter tackled in "The Final Sacrifice" is one that requires more money than was available. An ancient civilization complete with ruins and an entire lost city is ultimately laughably portrayed in the film. The chase scenes involve backroads and bicycles, old trucks and beer bottles. Despite the obvious shortcomings visually, the low budget does give the film a rather whimsical feel of an extended college production or a bunch of friends getting together to make a movie in the woods.
The writers opened themselves up to much more inevitable laughs than was necessary. Most of this occurs in the characterizations of the main cast. The name of the hero is "Zap Rowsdower", the evil Satoris boasts a voice that belongs to a werewolf more than a simple man in an overcoat, and the ridiculous Mike Pipper has a mountain draw that can melt any straight face. The tiny cast demands that the characters be explored in depth, but there is little allowance for this and the explanations that emerge are insubstantial. Rowsdower's past as a part of Satoris' cult could have been brought to an interesting level, but his stories of his past leave plot holes.
On the plus side, there is some inventive camera work, though nothing that could be considered innovative or grand. It appears that dollies were not even used, so steady cam shots are the norm, with a few handhelds mixed in. Some scenes were good attempts such as the dream/flashback scene but obviously fail to dazzle or enrich the experience. Overall, "The Final Sacrifice" is hampered by its minescule budget and overblown characterizations more than poor technical work. What emerges is a mediocre, mostly dull experience which makes for a good afternoon viewing on a rainy day at best.
Like many others I have seen and enjoyed the MST3K version of this movie and have not seen the unparodied version. I probably never will. Yet I think that like many other films, "The Final Sacrifice" has been unnecessarily maligned through its connection with MST3K. Don't get me wrong, I think the show is one of the most brilliant and hilarious ideas ever conceived. However, I am annoyed that it guides so many reviews on this site. Reviewers write their comments as duplications of the wry satire of Mike and the Bots and ultimately dismiss the films as garbage simply because they were chosen for the show. Association does not make a bad movie. Poor acting, overblown budgets, cheese, poor editing techniques, lack of innovation, and corporate hack-writing make a bad movie. Needless to say, "The Final Sacrifice" contains any number of these elements. But as many other MST3K gems, it should be rendered its status of mediocre, rather than join the ranks of ones that truly are horrid. Now that my rant is completed, I will go on to review this film.
Both the guiding principle of this movie and sadly its Damoclean sword is its modest budget. With a limited cast of unknowns, it was filmed in the wilderness of Canada without proper money for professional set design or effects. Low budget films can be very effective, yet the subject matter tackled in "The Final Sacrifice" is one that requires more money than was available. An ancient civilization complete with ruins and an entire lost city is ultimately laughably portrayed in the film. The chase scenes involve backroads and bicycles, old trucks and beer bottles. Despite the obvious shortcomings visually, the low budget does give the film a rather whimsical feel of an extended college production or a bunch of friends getting together to make a movie in the woods.
The writers opened themselves up to much more inevitable laughs than was necessary. Most of this occurs in the characterizations of the main cast. The name of the hero is "Zap Rowsdower", the evil Satoris boasts a voice that belongs to a werewolf more than a simple man in an overcoat, and the ridiculous Mike Pipper has a mountain draw that can melt any straight face. The tiny cast demands that the characters be explored in depth, but there is little allowance for this and the explanations that emerge are insubstantial. Rowsdower's past as a part of Satoris' cult could have been brought to an interesting level, but his stories of his past leave plot holes.
On the plus side, there is some inventive camera work, though nothing that could be considered innovative or grand. It appears that dollies were not even used, so steady cam shots are the norm, with a few handhelds mixed in. Some scenes were good attempts such as the dream/flashback scene but obviously fail to dazzle or enrich the experience. Overall, "The Final Sacrifice" is hampered by its minescule budget and overblown characterizations more than poor technical work. What emerges is a mediocre, mostly dull experience which makes for a good afternoon viewing on a rainy day at best.