I remember having seen this movie before, when I was a kid and it aired on television. But other than the title and the semi-desolate feel RAVAGERS had (because there's quite a lot of people running around in this one),I remembered nothing of it.

Let's start with the soundtrack, because in my opinion that's one of the not-so-many merits RAVAGERS has. Occasionally, there's some "post-apocalyptic jazz music" on the soundtrack. Occasionally, there's a few eerie metallic scrapes integrated in the soundtrack. On one occasion, there's a sergeant playing the piano, providing some recreation. Occasionally, there's some good-sounding orchestrated string arrangements. But they sometimes do sound a bit overly dramatic.

Now that's actually the main problem with RAVAGERS: It's too melodramatic. The protagonist (Falk, played by Richard Harris) is a loner and the script tries too hard to make you like him. In a post-apocalyptic world, you expect everybody to have at least a little edge, right? But not Falk. The man's just too friendly (admittedly, he does fight when he has to). You can see his girlfriend, Miriam, getting killed by ravaging thugs in the beginning of the movie (well, we don't get too see much, actually),but if you think good Falk will go on a blood-seeking quest for vengeance, you better think again. He just kills one of them (not even the leader) and then starts running. At first aimlessly across the country… But then, these very annoying flashbacks of his girlfriend (that just happen too often in the movie) start reminding him of a place she talked about, called "Genesis" (It's supposed to have fertile ground and women who can still bear children). Will he ever find it? Will the Ravagers ever catch up with him? Who knows… All I know is, that it takes forever for anything to happen in this movie.

The opening-scene looks promising, though. Nicely chosen, properly framed, deserted-looking shots of a run-down town set the right tone. But in the end, nothing eventful really happens throughout the rest that follows for 90 minutes. Flak meets different people. All this while the Ravagers are on the search for him. But the violence portrayed in this film, is just too tame and there's not nearly enough of it. I was okay with this kind of western-feeling (as in: Western, the genre) this movie sort of has, but it still remains a slow and rather boring snooze-fest. Ann Turkel does provide some very brief, but welcome nudity in the background during one scene. Her character wants to be Falk's new love-mate, but him rejecting her constantly (because he just can't get over losing his beloved Miriam) became very old, very quick. And at the end, the pay-off to this annoying sub-plot-gag-thing wasn't even redeeming.

Ernest Borgnine must have arrived way too late on the set… He is credited as Rann, but he only appears in the middle of the third act. They do built up to the moment he makes his appearance, but he does nothing more then walk into a dining room and deliver a couple of lines. And then, when the action begins, it's: Exit Borgnine. Somewhat comforting where the final 30 minutes of the movie. They were a bit more amusing (the dining room scene, Falk's discovery of the fish having returned to the oceans) and an big old rusty, stranded ship provided a nice setting. But in the end, the third act had a climax with the Ravagers that didn't deliver much more than a bit of fist-fighting, shooting, an explosion thrown in the mix and a neat one-liner coming from Richard Harris about "Genesis".

The movie itself, isn't exactly badly put together, not in the over-all narrative structure, neither on a technical level. I could be forgiving and try to appreciate that this movie is about hope in desolate times and friendly people, undeserved and tragically, losing their beloved ones and all… But, I mean, this movie's called RAVAGERS… Get it?

Now I know why this movie didn't leave a lasting impression on me when I was a kid.

Being the hard-core aficionado of post-apocalyptic sci-fi/action features that I am, I naturally was pretty pumped at the prospect of finally seeing this extremely rare, forgotten and elusive genre entry after taping it in its uncut entirety off of cable. I didn't really know what to expect, since this was given a spotty release by Columbia and received extremely negative reviews by the handful of critics who bothered to see it during its fleeting theatrical run. After viewing it I can now say it's neither the best nor worst of its type. Instead, it rates as a strictly middling affair that basically does the trick but never totally amounts to anything truly special or resonant.

The plot set-up is standard, but serviceable enough: Following a devastating nuclear holocaust the world has thoroughly degenerated into a bleak, harsh, desolate and dangerous hellhole where all hope has been lost, food is scarce, and vicious vulturous packs of roving ragtag psycho freaks called "ravagers" loot and kill with merciless abandon. A scuzzy band of filthy no-count "ravagers" led by ruthless sleazoid Anthony James viciously rape and murder the lovely wife (bewitching blonde Alana Hamilton) of cagey, cautious, constantly on the move loner Richard Harris, who narrowly avoids getting bagged himself. Harris makes a risky and arduous trek across the dry, barren, perilous wasteland, befriending both a lovably crackpot army sergeant (a delightfully dotty Art Carney) and a sassy lass (ravishing brunette Ann Turkel) during his journey. James and his grimy gang doggedly pursue Harris every step of the way. Harris and his newfound friends discover a heavily fortified redoubt run by benevolently jovial and avuncular dictator Ernest Borgnine. James and his foul flunkies close in to attack the fortress.

Donald Sanford's neatly realized script keeps the story moving and further offers a provocative theme addressing the difficulty of regaining hope in the wake of a severe catastrophe which has rendered the world a most feral, unkind and godforsaken place. Unfortunately, Richard Compton's uneven direction runs hot and cold throughout, thereby scuppering a good deal of the sound script's potential. The film gets off to a cracking start, sags a lot at mid-point by becoming much too dull, talky and sluggish, but luckily gets back on thrilling track with a genuinely rousing conclusion. The cast is uniformly solid: Harris does well as the plausibly rumpled and rundown survival-weary protagonist, the ever-slimy lanky beanpole James makes for a splendidly scurvy villain, and both Turkel and Hamilton are quite charming as well as real easy on the eyes. Seymour Cassel as a doomed blind lawyer and the always dignified Woody Strode as a shrewd survivalist contribute nifty cameos. Fred Karlin's stirring score and Vincent Saizis' grungy cinematography are likewise up to par. Tasty trivia tidbit: Gilda Texter, the cute blonde naked girl on the motorcycle in "Vanishing Point," designed the ratty costumes. Alas, the often painfully poky pacing, infrequent outbursts of reasonably effective, albeit rather bland action, much too tame violence, and, most damagingly, a restrictive PG rating which prevents the picture from completely achieving the raw, gritty, no-holds-barred ferocious tone this baby desperately needs to fully work prevent "Ravagers" from being an all-out knock-your-socks-off winner. If it was only more lively and down'n'dirty nasty in both its content and execution then "Ravagers" would have rocked. As it is, very flawed and imperfect, but not without a few substantial merits, it's passable, but altogether nothing terribly potent or spectacular.

In 1991, with the Earth ravaged by the apocalypse, lone wolf Richard Harris tries keeping one step ahead of the Ravagers, a mad band of human-hunters (led by gaunt, crazy-eyed Anthony James) who have already killed Harris' wife. Art Carney is a former Army sergeant who has a hidden surplus of instant food and automatic rifles; Ann Turkel is a street-smart girl (with shiny, shampooed hair) who suddenly goes all weepy when she falls for Harris (he tells her there's no room in his life for her, to which she replies, "I'm good for you! You'll see!"). Together, they attempt to find a safe haven known as the Land of Genesis. Adaptation of Robert Edmond Alter's novel "Path to Savagery" is undone by a sloppy presentation and a disappointing performance by Harris (wrapped up in a scarf like a nomad and addressing everyone with the same condescending elocution). This may be the most substantial role eternal-villain James ever got, but the picture is such a dud that his opportunity here to break out of bit parts isn't worth savoring. *1/2 from ****