Allan C
Endgame - Bronx lotta finale (1983) ***
Like most Italian ROAD WARRIOR knockoffs, this one is hampered by limited budget and production values, but it does feature some more clever of ideas than most of its ilk. The champion of a RUNNING MAN-type of kill-or-be-killed televised show is recruited by telepathic mutants to take them across the dangerous, untamed wasteland to safety. He puts together a team, ALA THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN/THE SEVEN SAMURAI, and the team escorts the telepathic mutants through a series of exciting events, hopefully finding safety at the end of their rainbow. From semi-talented hack director Joe D'Amato, best known for ANTHROPOPHAGUS, BEYOND THE DARKNESS, and EROTIC NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD, he delivers some passable action sequences and doesn't waste too much time with exposition, moving things along at a brisk pace. D'Amato is quoted as saying this was his favorite film, which isn't saying a lot, but the script did have some interesting ideas that, although not fully explored, have seeds of some interesting world-building that, if this were a bigger budgeted American film, might have been something more. There's an offhand remark about the telepathic mutants not being willing to raise a gun at anyone because they would not be able to endure sharing the emotional terror of the person they just killed. An entire movie could have been built around that, but it's just a throwaway line in this film. There's another episode in the film where the travelers drive up to an abandoned mill town that's inhabited by blind black robe-wearing cultists. Although blind, the cultists quickly turn deadly when they are somehow able to come at our heroes with guns and swords, which they figure out is because they are holding hostage a powerful telepath they're forcing to project images of where they need to attack. That, too, probably could have been an entire movie! This sequence has a pretty great ending to it that I did not see coming, which was exciting since I'm rarely surprised by films. Overall, I quite enjoyed this low-budget Italian warriors-of-the-wasteland flick despite it being cheap, even by cheap Italian exploitation film standards. But to put a qualifier on that, this is a disreputable genre I have a particular love for, so I'm not sure if this film is something others will enjoy quite as much as I did, but if you loved WHEELS OF FIRE or 1990: THE BRONX WARRIORS, you'll likely dig this one.
AI CAPSULE REVIEW: Cheap Italian knockoff of Mad Max, but has some clever ideas. Directed by hack Joe D'Amato. Decent action, fast-paced. Could've been better with bigger budget. Fans of cheesy post-apocalyptic flicks will enjoy it.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
07/14/25
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DARK A K
ITS VERY UNIQUE I WATCHED IT NEAR ITS TIME SO THERE WAS NOTHING LIKE IT IN MY COUNTRY SINCE MAD MAX WAS BANNED
IF YOU LIKE FALLOUT GAMES YOU WILL ENJOY THIS
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
10/03/23
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Audience Member
Another stellar post-apocalyptic Italian film that brings out many of the genre's heavy hitters including Al Cliver and George Eastman. A couple deadly game show contestants deliver a band of telepathic mutants to safety out of a crumbling city. Remarkable entry that proves this formula never gets tiresome.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/24/23
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Audience Member
TV's deadly Endgame points leader Ron Shannon (undefeated in 22 matches!) risks confiscation of personal property among other things to help telepathic mutants escape outside the city limits. "The Running Man" borrows heavily from the first half hour of this. Cool ending, I'd like to know who came out on top between Shannon and arch rival Karnak. Among the best of Italian post nuclear films.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
Full Review
Audience Member
TV's deadly Endgame points leader Ron Shannon (undefeated in 22 matches!) risks confiscation of personal property among other things to help telepathic mutants escape outside the city limits. "The Running Man" borrows heavily from the first half hour of this. Cool ending, I'd like to know who came out on top between Shannon and arch rival Karnak. Among the best of Italian post nuclear films.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/28/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Directed by Joe D'Amato and staring Al Cliver, George Eastman, Al Yamanouchi and Gordon Mitchell
Erin rating: VHS R15
Likely made during the major hype when all these kinds of films were huge at the time and I am of course talking about Post-apocalyptic films there is like a million of them yet Endgame is the least known. I only know about this movie is because we still have a VHS of it I looked and there are no DVDs yet so score one for me over that Netflix thing.
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Al Cliver stars as Ron a veteran who is working on a TV show called Endgame in the future in which hunters battle it out to be the last one standing or kill all on screen mutants. He lives in a world were war has destroyed everything and like Meany of lives in NYC were people struggling to survive or go on Endgame. Ron is then contracted to take a group of people into the wasteland but he doesn't know that the entire people that run Endgame want him dead so the show is shifted so that people can watch him die.
Its low budget around about 1 million in my guess point less scenes of violence and stunts then again it makes a very interesting story.
80% for story: It's very pointless all they need to do is cross the wasteland yet very pointless scenes of acts of murder, fights, Car chases, Mutants, Samurai's, just really all the stuff you wouldn't normally see.
60% for acting: It's really hard not to love Al Cliver (Zombi 2 and the Beyond) and his performance along with George Eastman (After the fall of New York and the Anthropophagus Beast) but that's truly about it.
100% for special effects: They are pored into making the violence and the Cars and my states are.
(1) Over 193 people died in this movie (I lost count more did then that)
(2) There are over 50 modified cars and Bikes
(3) Over 1000 people wearing that short of clothes you would find out the
(4) Over 40 crash there cars and destroy them.
Truly the highlight of the movie.
70% for characters: Again it's impossible to hate Al Clivers Character he just that awesome, he's the only reason I like zombie. And as for everyone else there okay.
80% for everything else: It has that real western feel to it and over everything is really solid.
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I think that's it a movie that is easily worth checking out if you can find a VHS.
Keiko's score 84-100
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/20/23
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