Three laughs: The Devil's Sword

It is hard to rate some trashy films. Films can be really good entertainment in spite of the quality of the filmmaking. In fact, it might be even harder to create unique trash that keeps surprising you than most "quality" films with which you know what you are going to get. It certainly is an even better pleasure to watch them. My friend says that he knows a trash film is worth something if it gets three laughs out of me. I mean proper, good belly laughs when you just can't believe what the film is showing to you, scene after scene. That's as good a rating as any for these movies. Any film that has these three laughs has a special place in my heart.

Three laughs case file #24: 

The Devil’s Sword (Golok Setan) Indonesia, 1984

Director: Ratno Timoer

It is a particular pleasure of seeing genre films from far-off countries, since they often innovate and blend western action movie basics with more exotic sensibilities. Though it utilizes some Indonesian folklore, The Devil's Sword is actually a comic book adaptation. But one does not have to read some obscure Indonesian comics or need to know anything of the island nation's complex history to enjoy the movie. It is gleefully violent, logically dim, constantly surprising and often totally bonkers.

If Indonesian movies would have a big film star, then Barry Prima would be it, known from this and another film called The Warrior. Basically, he is Liu Kang from the Mortal Kombat games, a guy who sort of looks and acts like Bruce Lee, but has a bandana, and has been enhanced with some outlandish magic abilities. Here he plays Mandala, a mythical warrior that has to avenge the death of his master to the evil powers allied with the sinister Crocodile Queen.

At the same time his rival, the rogue Banyuaga (Advent Bangun) is after the legendary Devil's Sword that would give unmitigated power to its wielder. He is after the power for himself, but is seduced by the Crocodile Queen and thrown to do her bidding. The film's cast of character and basic structure seems to be a bit indebted to Star Wars, or perhaps it is just that it also follows Joseph Campbell's basic formulas. Nevertheless, there are plenty of amusing side characters to be met along the way.

Three laughs (SPOILERS):

1. Even the first major fight is a corker, where Banyuaga and his men distrupt a wedding to kidnap the fiancee of a local prince. Mandala happens upon the fight, arrives on a flying boulder and starts kicking ass. He is not above hitting people's heads off, or punching them so hard they float off to treetops, after which they are impaled by a spear. Crocodile Men pop out of the ground and Mandala is not at all miffed, quipping "Oh, Crocodile Men". The fight choreography here is surprisingly inventive, with a scene with a wooden table proving to be particularly noteworthy.

2. We're introduced to the Crocodile Queen when we see her select a mate for herself. She has hypnotic gestures that make shirtless young men stand up as she slithers around them. When she takes her pick, it enrages one would-be suitor, that attacks Banyuaga. But the attacker is defeated with a quick punch and thrown to a cage where apparently the Crocodile Cult keeps their prisoners in hunger. The poor guy is soon ripped into pieces. Banyuaga's reward is sex on a circulating bed in a giant chalice of fire.

3. It is not quite clear, if the crocodile cultists are supposed to be half-crocodile mutants or just people with elaborate croc costumes on. Nevertheless, the film's showstopper is Mandala's fight on the raft with crocodile men rising from the river. Dudes have to swim in theircostumes to get a shot at Mandala, who swings his big-ass sword and decapitates them all. He is also shown to have some magic powers as he shoots friggin' laser beams from his hands. Toastyyyy.