Bullet Points: Aftershock
Movies are one of the best forms of escapism entertainment. There is nothing better than sitting back and watching a movie and imagining yourself in a different time and place for ninety minutes. Like for example, I got a real kick out of a movie that I recently watched that took my mind off real world troubles with a little post-apocalyptic fun. Aftershock is a 1990 movie that combines an alien, some legit martial artists, an all-star cast and throws them altogether in a post-apocalyptic setting for a unique movie in a common genre. Luckily for you, I happen to have some Bullet Points for a movie that left me shocked after I watched, Aftershock.
- Opening for the Ending – Aftershock opens to a world already beset with devastation. It is never mentioned how the world got to the state it is in besides a reference to some bad leadership, but I for one don’t care. When you open a movie with James Lew (18 Fingers of Death!) riding around hunting people, you know you are in for a good time. When James Lew plays a character named Mr. James, I really don’t need much else. When Mr. James and his men are a murderin’ innocent people, an alien, soon to be named Sabina (Elizabeth Kaitan), lands in town and I have a feeling she is going to be important. This is all before the credits, but the excitement doesn’t stop during the credits as we are introduced to Willie (Jay Roberts Jr., White Phantom) as he is riding into town on his motorcycle.
- Who Wants to Be Good? – There is revolution going on where the disenfranchised populace are against the ruling group because of the way they are treated. Mr. James going around with his men killing people would do that. Mr. James is under Oliver Quinn (John Saxon, Enter the Dragon) and he is tasked with finding Sabina because she has some extraordinary powers. Quinn works under Commander Eastern (Richard Lynch, Cyborg Conquest) and holy crap. Are you telling me that after the apocalypse there will be an organization that has Richard Lynch, John Saxon and James Lew? And Richard Lynch will carry around an adorable puppy for no other reason then it is frickin’ the cutest dog you will ever see? When is the apocalypse and where do I sign up?
- Viva La Revolucíon – Ok, I can’t look passed the murder and luckily for me the freedom fighters have a pretty strong roster. I have already mentioned Jay Roberts Jr., and you know what, the world needs more Jay Roberts Jr. He might have only been in eight movies, but he has some legit martial arts skills and is likable enough as a lead. He teams up with Sabina and Danny Girard (Chuck Jeffreys, Bloodmoon) as the trio escape a prison. And you know what, the world needs more Chuck Jeffreys. He might have done more stunt work, but he has some legit martial arts skills and he is laugh out loud funny. The leader of the resistance is Col. Slater (Christopher Mitchum) and even though Willie is new to town there is a past history with Willie and Col. Slater.
- We The People – Turns out Sabina is on the planet because her homeworld is struggling with wars just like Earth. Her planet received transmission and photos from satellites of a time when Earth was very peaceful, fools! Sabina is very smart and powerful, but communicating is tricky for her… at first. After she absorbs the knowledge out of a world encyclopedia/thesaurus via a 5¼ floppy disk, it becomes much easier. She need to get back to the place where she arrived on Earth in order to make it back to her home world. Col. Slater gives her a copy of the U.S. Constitution as a guide and template for a successful world. Willie and Girard will be taking Sabina back, but it won’t be easy because Lynch, Saxon and Lew want to get a hold of Sabina. They even send notorious bounty hunter Brandt (Chris DeRose) to hunt the trio down. With all the moving parts, you better believe they intersect with some standout fight scenes.
Aftershock is a fun little post-apocalyptic movie that will have you almost yearning for you to take the long odds of surviving the extinction level event. It is a good thing that movies are just escapism and we can enjoy what life would be like in a post-apocalyptic world, and even though it looks like it is fun at times, always running for you life is not what I am looking for… although that dog Richard Lynch is carrying was pretty damn cute… no I don’t want to take the risk. I will continue to enjoy movies like Aftershock and what better way to enjoy Aftershock than with some Aftershock Bonus Bullet Points.
- Familiar Faces – My favorite duo in Aftershock is Cassidy and Queen played by Matthias Hues and Michael Berryman respectively. Who knew they were both so good at dancing? The Matthias Hues fighting I knew about.
- It’s a Sequel? – Aftershock has lots of similarities to another Jay Roberts Jr. film, White Phantom. In both movies his name is Willie (Willi in White Phantom), he begrudgingly works with a Col. Slater, he is a lone wolf who helps an attractive lady, he really digs wearing those white pants and he plays the harmonica whenever he gets a chance.
- Familiar Faces 2 – Willie is forced to fight his way out of a bar and his opponents are Al Leong, Gerald Okamura and Matthias Hues in that order. Someone get that man a towel.
- Archers and Arbalists Need Not Worry – While the apocalypse has devastated the buildings and landscape, plenty of compound bows and crossbows have survived.
- Familiar Faces 3 – I know it is not an action movie, but I loved seeing Riff from West Side Story, Russ Tamblyn and Thorg from Gymkata, hey that one is an action movie, Bob Schott, in Aftershock.
- Not to Be Confused With – There are movies called Aftershock from 1999, 2008, 2010, 2012, along with Afterburn/Aftershock and Tremors II: Aftershocks. I have only seen the 1990 and Tremors sequel so watch at your own risk. I can recommend the Yaphet Kotto True Action movie After the Shock.
- Cute. Clever. Mischievous. Intelligent. Dangerous – Of all the things I liked about Aftershock, the use of AMC Gremlins, Gremlins with their tops chopped off to make convertible Gremlins, as the go to vehicle was my favorite part.
- Favorite Quote – “Wheels!” If you know… you know.
