Nomads (1986) User Reviews

Original, not entirely flawless

[rlaine · 6/10 · 29 March 2012]

Got this cheap on a sale. I've been having this 80's season with watching movies and decided to purchase it without any prior knowledge of it. I was just surprised it's a McTiernan movie I hadn't heard of.

I wasn't completely convinced at first and thought that it was 2 euros flushed down the toilet. The story picks up quite slow and the beginning is executed in a style I wasn't very fond of. Brosnan portraying a frenchman was a bit annoying too. But after 30 minutes or so, I was pretty hooked to see how the movie would eventually unfold.

Even tho it turned out to be "ok", it's got a lot of flaws. It feels as if it would've needed a lot more substance in script. The whole nomad story is pretty vague and there's not much background info on Brosnans expeditions, which would've made this movie more gripping and interesting. The connection is there, but to me it didn't deliver. I was left a bit confused with a lot of things. It almost goes into David Lynch territory at times, which isn't a completely bad thing, but you need to have that "something" to pull off a supernatural mystery like this. To me this wasn't such a movie, even tho it may not be too far from succeeding. Something was missing from the story.

I was also left wondering if the movie had worked better without the doctor lady completely, concentrating on Brosnans character. The whole flashback/hallucination thing was mostly just confusing. There was some nice editing at times and it added to the tension, but I still feel this movie would've worked better in a more linear fashion, dropping the doctor character completely.

So, the initial story was interesting, but the execution made it a mess. Maybe I should watch it again to appreciate the structure, but at the moment I don't see myself spending another 90 minutes on it. I'll keep it in my movie library tho, just in case I wan't to revisit it at some point.

As a side note, the movie contains one of the most brutal scenes I've witnessed on screen. It's not graphic at all and is portrayed from a distance, but it comes very unexpected. It really made me feel uncomfortable.

6 points for the story and originality, may be a bit generous tho. Maybe it was worth the 2 euros I payed for it, but not more. McTiernan continues to be a mystery of a director, having made classics and my favorites Die Hard and Predator, but still capable of creating an artsy movie like this and some complete garbage like Rollerball remake.

An anthropologist reveals a dark secret to a young doctor who investigates a strange group of demoniacal creatures

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 11 March 2014]

A French anthropologist (Pierce Brosnan's first leading role in a feature movie) moves to Los Angeles and is followed by the evil spirits of an extinct tribe he once uncovered. A woman doctor (Lesley-Anne Down who married director William Friedkin) investigates and becomes the next target of a group of rare people with nomadic life .

This is an eerie as well as supernatural chiller about a society of malevolent ghosts set in Los Angeles and dealing with a mysterious anthropologist well performed by Pierce Brosnan and the woman doctor finely acted by Lesley-Anne Dowen who investigates the weird deeds . The film packs gruesome images, grisly killings , amazing events , and intense horror sequences . It is a spasmodically effective thriller plenty of suspense , continuous flashbacks and nightmares , chills and plot twists . Nomads notables include pop stars such as Adam Ant and second screen appearance from legendary singer/song writer Josie Cotton . In addition , a cult actress , Mary Woronow and veteran Nina Foch . Director John McTiernan is an expert at staging action and thrills and here he has proved talent at concealing explosive final to individual sequences until it arrives . Catching score though filled with pop music and synthesizer was composed by Bill Conti of Karate Kid. Atmospheric cinematography by Stephen Ramsey , being necessary a correct remastering .

The motion picture was professionally directed by John McTiernan , though has some boring and confusing moments . McTiernan's first efforts at filmmaking were all in the terror genre , and none too successful at all , such as ¨Watcher¨, ¨The demon's daughter¨ and this ¨Nomads¨ . McTiernan is especially known for directing violent, high-energy action-adventures and very active movement of camera . His movies have an explosive combination of suspense and dynamite action that make them irresistible , and boosted by big stars . McTiernan confirmed his ascension to blockbuster with ¨Predator¨ and ¨Die hard¨ , which few expected to be such huge hits , they are two violent , exciting thrillers , as he broke through to the big time . In his subsequent films used big stars as Sean Connery , Schwarzenegger , Willis , Travolta and again Pierce Brosnan , all of them appeared in ¨The hunt for Red October¨, ¨Medicine man¨, ¨Last action hero¨, ¨Die hard with vengeance¨ , ¨Basic¨ and ¨The Thomas Crown affair¨.

Interesting storyline - Poor execution

[Zeegrade · 5/10 · 29 March 2009]

John McTiernan's directorial debut has earned seven ten star votes along with a few nines and eights as of writing this review. I find it hard to believe that Nomads can be considered "brilliant" or a "masterpiece" more than his later works like Die Hard and the underrated 13th Warrior when he had more experience under his belt. The aggregate score of five is more indicative of where this film truly belongs.

We are introduced to a bloodied Jean-Claude Pommier (Pierce Brosnan) a French anthropologist that whispers into the ear of his attending doctor (Lesley-Anne Down as Dr. Eileen Flax) somehow transferring his last memories to her just before he dies. Soon Dr. Flax is plagued by hallucinatory flashbacks that tell the story of Pommier's last days on earth told oddly enough from a third person point of view. Jean-Claude and his wife have just moved into a house in L.A. and becomes intrigued by the local ruffians that insist on congregating outside of his home. After finding graffiti scrawled upon his garage Pommier decides to pursue this group and analyze what sort of mindset drives these people to choose this kind of nomadic life. Soon Pommier becomes obsessed with observing these people prompting him to approach the nomads for an impromptu photo session. When the photos develop Jean-Claude realizes that these people are anything but normal. It then becomes the task of Dr. Flax to save Pommier's wife and flee their common supernatural pursuers.

Nomads sadly reflects the era it was made in when it comes to the absurdly dressed gang. They appear like glam-rocker extras from a Mad Max movie. Mary Woronov bares the brunt of this as her heavy makeup and teased hair make her look like a transvestite. It's just very hard to take them as a serious threat. The Irish born Brosnan and England bred Down both constantly slip in and out of character making me wonder why they had to play a French man and an American doctor respectively. The ending is a bit of a disappointment as it seems even ghosts must respect state jurisdiction. Nomads starts with promise and tails off drastically toward the end. Not a bad movie by any stretch of the imagination just not as good as some reviewers would have you think. But don't take my word for it, rent it yourself and give me your thoughts.

One of the better film examples of Urban Fantasy I've seen

[vtaltos77 · 30 September 2001]

Truly coming from the genre of Urban Fantasy, this film belongs with stories such as Alan Dean Foster's "Into the Out of" or some of Charles de Lint's more horrific tellings.

An anthropologist returns to the city after years of travelling and investigating, only to find that the spirits of the places he travelled have become aware of his probing eye, and have come looking in return. A balancing by the Manitou, as it were. The film has a heavy, oppressive mood to it, but leaves the watcher to figure out a great deal of the content for themselves.

Coming from the same director as "Die Hard" and "The 13th Warrior", this is a rather surprisingly subtle film, and quite delightful in it's execution. Highly recommended, if you can find it.

Too confusing to appreciate.

[paulclaassen · 3/10 · 7 March 2021]

'Nomads' is the debut feature from director John McTiernan, who would go on to bring us unforgettable films like 'Predator', 'Die Hard', and 'The Hunt for Red October'. Honestly, I would lie if I were to tell you I know what 'Nomads' is all about.

This is probably the type of film you have to carefully analyze to fully understand or appreciate. Although classified as a horror movie, it is not horror in the sense of blood, guts and gore. This is horror on a different level: discomfort, nightmares, visions...The film is interesting at times, but ultimately just too weird, and not all that easy to follow due to a most unusual narration.

The film plays like a nightmare - literally. The acting was pretty good, but didn't compensate for a very confusing script. The film certainly is mysterious, and very different. By the end, I had no idea what the story was, or what message they were trying to convey. I'm going to forget this very soon. Even famed film critic Robert Ebert referred to the film as "too confusing to understand".

Would I watch it again? No.

An interesting experiment

[durante-luca · 7/10 · 5 November 2002]

I think this is a very interesting movie, basically for two reasons: 1)The fear atmosphere is strong around all the time, the horror plot is suggested but almost never showed, and it increase the suspence and the desire to discover the end. 2)It's a low-cost movie and I appreciate it for this. There isn't special effect, gore or whatever but the odiens are still disoriented by a mysterious direction. This is a clear foot-print of a talent director! Good interpretation of Pierce Brosnan (too much better than 007!!). Enjoy it!

Of no fixed abode

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 12 January 2019]

Nomads is style over substance.

John McTiernan as writer and director delivers this mid 1980s surreal and supernatural thriller with LA punks and a thumping rock score.

The film opens with Dr Flax (Lesley-Anne Down) a tired accident & emergency doctor who is called into treat a deranged French anthropologist Jean Charles Pommier (Pierce Brosnan.) He has only moved to Los Angeles with his wife recently where they have been harrassed by punks and rockers.

Jean Charles dies but not before biting Dr Flax in the neck. She does not become a vampire but she gets his memories and experiences into her head. We are not sure that we are reliving Dr Flax experiences or Jean Charles.

Dr Flax seeks out Jean Charles's wife who is very confused as to why she knows so much about her husband. Meanwhile one of Dr Flax's colleague gets a phrase that Jean Charles was ranting about deciphered.

The phrase comes from the Innuat. It refers to a band of nomadic spirits who live place to place in human form. These punks and rockers might be the nomads intent on evil.

It seems Jean Charles and his wife had been constantly on the run from these nomads. A nun warned him to keep on running and hiding, he might still be able to evade them. He needs to leave LA.

The film is an incoherent mess. It does have a great visual style but the narrative is lost. I did find the film a curious watch and felt that there was a better movie in there somewhere.

Still Brosnan and McTiernan would later reunited in the remake of The Thomas Crown Affair with McTiernan becoming one of Hollywood's top action directors.

Uneven, but still interesting.

[jirwah · 7/10 · 24 October 2005]

This flick has been knocking around on Encore for the last few weeks and, never having seen it, I thought I'd give it a look. My reaction was mixed. While Brosnan does a really ridiculous French accent, the acting was decent, and the atmosphere was genuinely creepy.

This was one of those movies that, like 'Near Dark', assumes the audience has half a brain and makes them think a little. What exactly are the Nomads? It's never spelled out - it's left up to the viewer to decide. Now, while this can be a good strategy (it worked like a charm in 'Near Dark'), sometimes you can go a little overboard.

This was one of those times. While I have my own ideas as to what the Nomads were and what they did, a teensy bit of explanation from Director/Writer John McTiernan would've been useful.

But overall, it was a decent way to spend 90 minutes. And check out the last scene... pretty trippy.

Laugh Out Loud Ridiculous

[nafps · 1/10 · 5 April 2022]

On top of bad acting and bad direction, the premise is only scary to the most sheltered suburbanite who saw a teenager kicking over a trash can and thought the world was going to hell.

Oh yes, these are "nomads." That means they are "primitive." That also means they are "dangerous" too, somehow. For some reason, never stated.

Basic premise is that homeless punk rock kids are somehow like tribal people. Get it? Homeless for a short time, gathering food from garbage or from handouts, equals the same as hunting animals and surviving as a people for centuries. Right....

And guess who they get to play a "punk nomad"? Adam Ant, the white Englishman who played Indian. Only his "Indians" were from old racist westerns, and he played them mixed with old movie pirate images.

So what do these supposed nomads do that is so scary and primitive? They skate...seriously, that's supposed to be so scary. They do a little bit of petty theft and minor vandalism.

That's it. A nothing movie.

Underrated

[haildevilman · 7/10 · 15 July 2006]

An early McTiernan flick.

This is not the most coherent film, but at the same time, the pacing and frantic build-up more than make up for it.

The best scenes are when Brosnan's character suddenly realizes he's been following the Nomads for 30 hours and they haven't stopped to sleep once.

Then, when he's hiding in the dark alley, and trying to take pictures of No. 1, (Adam Ant) they make it clear they know, and knew all along, he's been watching. At this point everyone was wondering who, or what, these people are.

The biker/punk look was a new twist, even if it looks dated now.

And Brosnan should really avoid French accents.

I'm also pretty sure that was Paul Bartel's voice on the phone. The fact that longtime friend Mary Woronov is in this film makes me all the more sure.

Creepy flick.

Has it's moments, but not all that much

[slayrrr666 · 4/10 · 27 September 2008]

"Nomads" is a terminally boring and barely worthwhile effort.

**SPOILERS**

Working a grueling hospital shift, Dr. Flax Stafford, (Lesley-Anne Down) begins to feel very weird after meeting Jean-Charles Pommier, (Pierce Brosnan) an anthropology professor and begins to suffer from a series of strange visions. When it soon gets to be a little more than her friends can bear, she is tested by the staff for signs of what's happening while she begins to experience his life through some strange means. She begins to realizer that she is being possessed by him in order to find out his obsession with a specific roaming nomadic biker gang that's been terrorizing people for a long time until she realizes what the connection is between the two of them. Finally understanding what's going on, she vows to get away from the horrifying truth and solve the mystery of the gang.

The Good News: There's only a few moments here that actually work. The early scenes, where it's hard to determine what's going on and are based around the confusion over what's happening, is actually not that bad and generates some decent moments, especially with the flashing images that appear to be from one source but come from another set, leaving this part feeling rather creepy and interesting. That's it all done in the first half of the film, with the wild hospital scenes also coming into play as well making really enjoyable. The chases at the end are also really good, with it's fun setting and only real use of putting in something with some adrenaline into it, which the rest of the film sorely lacks and manages to get something out of it. The only other part in here that manages to get anything decent out of it is the single sequence where, confronted inside a singularly creepy-looking house by a similarly creepy-looking apparition, is told the truth about what's happening and then disappears off into the darkened house, forcing him to chase them through the house. It's a long, creepy chase that actually does a lot of good and manages to have some really tense moments. Frankly, though, these are all the film has going for it.

The Bad News: This is a thoroughly disappointing and disjointed effort. The fact that this one is so dull is one of the greatest problems with it. Nothing in here happens, as it's mainly just a bunch of scenes of him running around the gang trying not all that greatly to incorporate himself amongst them, which isn't exciting. Watching him walk around doing his worst at being incognito around them with some of the lamest tricks to try to hide the fact that he's spying on them is some of the lamest stuff around and offers up nothing interesting or exciting about these things. Since they're so flawed, it manages to make for some really lame sequences and are just so dull that there's nothing at all so impressive about the scenes, which take up nearly all the scenes in the middle of the film that there's nothing worthwhile in there. The other flaw in here has two big parts to it, the film's sheer incomprehensive storyline. This one has one of the single hardest plots to figure out in the world, making it nearly impossible to figure out or understand. It has something to do with an Eskimo spirit that only they believe in tormenting the professor, but even that's a stretch to fully use in here, it's so hard to understand. There's also the fact that it's nearly impossible to figure out if what we're seeing is even real or not. This has an ability to show the scene as being through the one person's eyes, then switching it around to show that it's really about the person possessing the other one and seeing life through their eyes. It's all done in a very confusing manner and it's impossible to figure out. The inherent dullness, though, constitutes the biggest flaw.

The Final Verdict: Barely features anything worthwhile at all, and those few good moments are so beaten down by the negatives that it all falls apart badly. If you want to give it a shot, go ahead, but keep expectations low, but those who know this won't appeal to them shouldn't waste time on it.

Rated R: Violence, Language, Nudity and a mild sex scene

Interesting theory in Nomads

[sunznc · 10/10 · 9 September 2006]

And the theory is, as spelled out by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro in her book of the same name, that there are earthbound, malevolent spirits who bring madness to any human that makes camp with them. That people don't realize that a percentage of what they see or hear is not.....there! Most people are luckier, they don't look so closely. But Pierce Brosnan's character, being the inquisitive person he is, has looked.......too closely. Now, these nomadic beings, who are attracted to places of calamity, have taken an interest in Brosnan and he is warned by someone, who may or may not be one of 'them'. Warned to leave, change his job and move away. It's all very interesting to watch. And afterward, you can't stop thinking about it. Yes, it contains flavors from the 80's but it is still thought provoking. Read the book too!

John McTiernan's avant-garde first film, a supernatural thriller with Pierce Brosnan

[Wuchakk · 7/10 · 8 May 2023]

A globe-trotting French anthropologist & his wife (Brosnan and Anna Maria Monticelli) try to settle down in Los Angeles wherein he notices a gang of malevolent street punks (Adam Ant, Mary Woronov, Héctor Mercado, etc.) and, regrettably, draws their attention. Lesley-Anne Down plays the doctor who somehow shares his memories.

Written & directed by McTiernan, "Nomads" (1986) is an innovative mystery/thriller with supernatural bits and a smidgen of horror. There are similarities to the soon-to-come "The Lost Boys" (1987), except that this isn't about vampires and is less comic booky (although there are several characters who seem to wander off the set of "The Road Warrior").

It's adult-oriented and artistic in the manner of "The Mothman Prophecies" from fifteen years later, but is even less viewer friendly. Don't expect formulaic convention. It respects the intelligence of the viewer to put the pieces together. Schwarzenegger said he was so impressed by it that he convinced the producers of "Predator" (1987) to hire McTiernan.

A respectable friend of mine cites "Nomads" as one of his favorite movies and so I had high expectations the first time I viewed it and was disappointed despite its professionalism. Seeing it again, I paid closer attention and was able to figure things out. For instance, why does Pommier (Brosnan) do nonsensical things, like after he uses the crowbar on a thug? Who is the weird nun in the vacant building? Why does Dancing Mary (Woronov) turn back when the women are obviously cornered in the attic? Why does the motorcycle rider stop at the border?

Brosnan is at his best here, very masculine, while the stunning Lesley-Anne and the Anna Maria are easy on the eyes.

The film runs 1 hour, 30 minutes, and was shot in Los Angeles and Santa Monica.

GRADE: B/B-

Not For Me, Maybe For You

[gavin6942 · 5/10 · 2 July 2013]

A French anthropologist (Pierce Brosnan) moves to Los Angeles and is followed by the evil spirits of an extinct tribe he once uncovered.

Despite the incredible Adam Ant, and starring Pierce Brosnan (as a Frenchman?)... and being written and directed by John McTiernan, master of the action film, this movie has received overwhelmingly negative reviews.

Jay Scott is the exception, as he described Nomads as "a breathlessly unself-conscious film (there is none of the self-congratulatory stylization of Blood Simple), the tone alternates maniacally between scaring the audience and making it giggle." Scott said McTiernan "has brought to his project a staggeringly resourceful technique. The sharply unpredictable editing, the hypnotic use of slow motion and rack focus (that's when the background and foreground reverse in clarity), the ominous rock music - everything adds up to a debut of singular confidence, full of fun and creepiness."

Scott may be alone. I was not all that thrilled by the film as a whole, neither a horror fan nor as someone who has otherwise enjoyed McTiernan's work. Perhaps I need to give it a second chance, but this is a largely forgotten film that has probably earned its place in the memory hole.

A great, eerie horror-fantasy

[one4now4 · 11 January 2004]

This is a great horror-fantasy. It's very complicated and surreal, but, if you can dig it, it is a good one. I loved it. In it, Pierce Brosnan turns in an excellent performance as a French anthropologist in L.A. with his wife. He's brought into an emergency room after being attacked by unknown assailants, where he dies. But, before he goes, he somehow manages to pass his memories on to a doctor (Lesley-Anne Downe). She begins to slide into hallucinatory states where she sees how and why Brosnan was killed, with the dead anthropologist every step of the way in his flashbacks. For some reason, some streetpunks are very interested in his house and he finds that they have built a shrine to a murder in his garage. He begins to track them and study their behavior and how they live. It's not very long at all before he not only realizes that these people are no human beings, but also becomes the hunted as they begin to terrorize him. Then, the doctor finds that the mysterious, mystical demons known as "nomads" want her next. Some parts are extremely creepy, like the sequence with the nuns. Man, that was eerie. I liked this movie a lot, even if it was as complicated as it is. "Nomads" is, without a doubt, a thinking man's horror film.

NO!-mads.

[BA_Harrison · 2/10 · 12 June 2020]

Dr. Eileen Flax (Lesley-Anne Down) is called to attend to a crazed man (Pierce Brosnan) covered in blood and shouting in French; he dies shortly after, but not before he grabs the doctor and whispers something in her ear. Following this experience, Flax begins to suffer from bizarre visions, as though the dead man's memories are somehow in her head. She learns that the man was Jean Charles Pommier, a French anthropologist investigating a group of mysterious people in Los Angeles with no names and no fixed abode, who might very well be supernatural in nature -- hostile spirits that have taken on human form.

The discovery of ancient urban nomads living in Los Angeles might be of great interest to an anthropologist, but to a simple horror movie nut like me, it's about as riveting as a thousand page thesis on the dietary requirements of the Manghuds in the Mongol Empire during the 14th century. The movie's supernatural aspect is superficial, and does very little to make the subject any more compelling. Furthermore, the constant cutting between Flax as she struggles with her visions, and the flashbacks to Jean Charles as he encounters the strange street punks (led by Adam Ant and including cult favourite Mary Woronov) result in a very confusing, disjointed mess. Adding to the irritation is a horribly dated soundtrack (consisting of bad synths and painful wailing guitars courtesy of Ted Nugent), a surfeit of '80s style (smoke, strong lighting, slow motion), an excruciatingly unconvincing French accent from Brosnan (mais oui!), and a twist ending so trite it is laughable.

Director John McTiernan would go on to make two of the greatest action films of the '80s -- Predator and Die Hard -- but Nomads, his debut film, gives no indication of the brilliance to come: it's an embarrassment from start to finish.

More thriller than horror

[Friendend · 7/10 · 6 May 2010]

I remember this movie from when I was a teen in high school. I thought I had remembered the plot but was quite wrong when I started to watch this with a friend on a Saturday night. Being the 80's horror fanatic that I am, I figured this would be a good addition to my collection. And I must say WOW!!! WHAT A TREAT!!! This movie grabbed my attention from the get go. It was set up very well and the character development made me care for the doctor that was going through this "experience". The story moves along fairly well and keeps you curious about what is going to happen next. The editing between Pierce Brosnan's character and the doctors is done cleverly as well. It's not so much a horror movie but the trailer, if you watch it, promotes it as such. It's more a thriller than a horror flick. Still... I must say that I wasn't disappointed with it and was entertained from beginning to end.

Some of the worst French accents you'll ever hear

[Nywildcat1 · 3/10 · 5 January 2012]

"Nomads" really shouldn't be classified as a horror film, per se. I really consider it more of a Supernatural thriller since nothing horrific actually happens.

The movie starts off with Pierce Brosnan, who plays a French Anthropologist with the worst french accent this side of a grade school production, who winds up in the emergency room ranting and raving and dies while whispering something in Lesley Anne Down's ear, who plays the ER Doctor attending him. Her character going forward is pretty much used to tell his story leading up to his arrival in the ER in flashbacks, as it seems his spirit, or at the very least his memories, have taken her over.

Though somewhat enjoyable,this movie could have been a lot better than it actually was with a few retweakings. Lesley Anne Down's character was completely unnecessary and added nothing to the final story, even at the end. They would have been better off just telling the story from the moment Pierce Brosnan and his wife move into the house. Also, the horrible French accents used by Mr. Brosnan and Ms. Monticelli (who portrays his wife) are so horrible, it adds an unintentional comedic flair to the film. There doesn't seem to be any real reason as to why their characters had to be French, other than to have Lesley Anne Down's character utter some french words while in a delusional state (perhaps to give the appearance that she's possessed)? Or maybe to stretch Pierce Brosnan's acting wings (since he was still doing "Remington Steele" at the time as was not, as of yet, a big movie star).

However, a movie that shows Pierce Brosnan in a full frontal nude scene, that was completely gratuitous, can't be all bad. If anything, you have to give Mr. Brosnan some props for showing his junk during a time period when very few male actors would, especially television stars.

There Are Worse Things Than Death

[Bob-45 · 6/10 · 4 January 2005]

If you want narrative plot summary, read the one posted on the IMDb. However, here are a few observations about "Nomads." o The most annoying thing about Brosnan speaking with an accent was not that he frequently slipped out of it. The most annoying thing is that both Brosnan and his wife were frequently unintelligible.

o The movie slips into its plot so quickly, it doesn't really allow you time to develop empathy for the characters.

o Most viewers are probably not familiar with entities of varying physicality. However, there are recorded cases of these.

o The writer-director rarely raises much suspense. However, the closing scene was chilling enough to be worth the watch. There are worse things than death.

I give "Nomads" a strong "6".

Silly movie

[preppy-3 · 3/10 · 29 August 2009]

I caught this in a movie theatre back in 1986 and I remember being less than thrilled. Pierce Brosnan plays Jean Charles Pommier (with the worst French accent you ever heard) who is tracked down and killed by some tribe he uncovered. Before he dies he whispers their name to doctor Flex (Lesley-Anne Downe) who is in turn hunted down by the tribe.

The movie is boring and pointless with no scares and a stupid plot. Also just try to imagine Brosnan trying to play a French guy! Brosnan is a great actor but his French accent is downright hilarious. Downe does what she can with a seriously under written role. However it was fun seeing Adam Ant and Mary Woronov as part of the tribe (even though they have no dialogue). I will admit that this film had one scare--when you find out who is riding the motorcycle at the end. Still, that one scene doesn't make watching this any easier. Mostly forgotten--for good reason!

Strange but tense

[neil-douglas2010 · 6/10 · 27 November 2022]

Interesting but confusing thriller starring Pierce Brosnan and Lesley Anne Down, Brosnan plays Jean-Charles, an anthropologist who has settled in LA with his wife Niki. He becomes interested with a strange group of outsiders who are keen on his house and who have built a shrine in his garage.

Jean-Charles dies in the emergency room of the local hospital and passes his memories onto a doctor at the hospital, Dr Flax (Down). These youths turn out to be Nomads who roam the earth. With Flax now getting flashback from Jean-Charles memories she ends up at his house with his wife. The Nomads break into the house, but the two ladies escape to the attic. The youths leave later after scaring the two women.

Deciding to leave the city they pass a biker on the way and are shocked to find it's Jean-Charles, now one of the Nomads.

Interesting to watch Brosnan before he became a worldwide star as James Bond, not sure his French accent totally works though.

experiment that fails

[drystyx · 3/10 · 10 September 2012]

The late eighties was very experimental and risk taking in films. And that's why I'm not going to lambaste this movie.

This is an experiment that fails.

It probably should have been good, but this has to be one of the worst 100 directing jobs ever.

It's too confusing to tell you what it's about. You won't be able to stay awake for any ten minute stretch, so you will have to watch it in chunks. "Plodding" is the huge understatement for this movie.

It's a supernatural piece about a woman who hallucinates seeing a man who has died, and what occurs in the movie is something you could never possibly guess without looking at the "plot synopsis" in the guide. There's nothing in the movie to tell you what it is about.

The mistake here is that the director tries too hard. Technically, things look good. The women who occupy most of the screen time are very pretty. There is some good scenery in rare spots.

Technically, the dramatic suspense is text book, but it isn't inspired. It simply drags and drags. And the good scenery is rare compared to the bland city scenery. Hospitals, cars, streets, homes are dull. Making them duller with actors plying their "suspense" acting makes it a debacle.

I don't care about the accents. The actors try, and that's the problem. It's all "trying". The director extends every scene to make it last forever. Roughly 90 minutes is what this runs. It should have been 8 minutes.

The experiment here, by the director, was to suspend everything, to try to make the most out of a simple movement. There was a popular poet-teacher who held a "Writer's meeting" in Louisville named Leon Driskoll, who loved that sort of boredom, but it bores me to tears. Still, I realize there are people like him who love boredom.

One of the most unique horrors out there

[NateWatchesCoolMovies · 8/10 · 10 June 2017]

John McTiernan's Nomads is one of the best, and most unconventional horror flicks that you've never seen. Nestled so far back into the 80's that it stands as the mile marker for Pierce Brosnan's first on screen leading role, it's a beautifully tense, atmospherically crafted fright flick that's been lost to the hazy aeons of time. Unique in it's ambiguity, this is a film bereft of bells, whistles, gore effects or even obviously spooky apparitions, relying solely on mood to impart illusory menace that's never shoved in your face of spoon fed. Brosnan plays a French (hon hon) archaeologist who begins to suspect he's being followed by a group of unruly urban punks which, upon further introspection, could possibly be the malevolent spirits of a now extinct tribe he discovered years ago. It's a vague, very weird concept, but it just somehow works, the presence of these grimy streetwalkers inciting palpable fear at the thought that they're not what they seem at all. Opposites are at work here; by showing nothing, the filmmakers tell us and make us feel everything that is unseen, daring us to imagine what these mysterious beings might actually be, unsettling us further by having them appear in such benign (relatively speaking) form. It'll frustrate many, but those tuned into the film's eerie frequency will get the same chill down their spine that Brosnan perpetually walks around with, harassed no end by these meanies. The actors for these things are all especially chosen as well, each coached beautifully by McTiernan to act just normal enough to blend into the derelict fringes of an urban environment, while giving their demeanour an unnerving esoteric aspect, until they seem like a cross between mute versions of the Near Dark gypsy vampire clan and spectral coyotes. Brilliant concoction of subtle horror, clammy tension and gorgeously layered atmosphere.

Awful, slow, confused, terrible choreography

[jtownsle · 1/10 · 20 August 2013]

The movie starts out slow and confused. Perhaps I'm simply imposing a 2013 movie-watching experience on a 1986 film. But I've seen plenty of pre-1986 films that were great. This one is awful. You occasionally get glimpses of a plot, but it's rare. Brosnan is a decent actor, but I could barely stand to watch the film because of his farcical French accent. And while he has a nice body, I don't know what the rear and frontal nudity has to do with the movie. In another scene, he defends himself against an interloper (Adam Ant), and while his swings all look like they miss by a good foot, the attacker still goes down, even though for one of the blows there is a lamppost between the Brosnan's arm and Ant. People appear in and out of nowhere and switch bodies--perhaps it's real, perhaps it's part of a transcendent consciousness, or even just a dream--who knows? Certainly not the audience. How could anybody think this was a scary movie? When the movie was made I was 10--perhaps I would have thought it was scary then.

So much potential squandered by the need to make this one a featured film.

[management-59537 · 4/10 · 30 March 2023]

It's a clever film with great pacing and a well-executed tense atmosphere . . . For the first 30 minutes. Then it gives way to every negative trope of an 80s movies feature. Clearly John McTiernan's career was destined to be directing action flicks because the remaining hour devolves into a cat and mouse chase reminiscent of his second film (Predator).

The shift to the action sequences in 80s leather clad works against the film's core theme - the conflict between yearning for freedom versus the bondages of modern life - which is subtly alluded to via visual cues and expositions best served for the cerebral thriller. Nomads really is at its best when exploring the personal conflict in both protagonists' lives.

For what it's worth, the ending gives the audience one last glimpse at the potential it had with an audiovisual sequence that will leave you going "aha".