Oh, the 80s. Boy does Mankillers just reek of it, and that makes me super happy. Slasher//Video, an Olive Films company has brought this forgotten gem to blu-ray, and now you, too, can hate men just as much as these women!
The Movie (2.5/5)
A government agent has gone rogue and turned to a life of trafficking drugs and women. His unique and intimate knowledge of the agency’s tactics has made him a tricky foe to deal with. So what do you do when trying to take down an enemy that knows all of your moves? Well you send in women, of course! Who in their right mind would do such a thing?
Ok, to be fair, this guy is a known misogynist who shot his former partner (who had just confessed her love for him) and left her for dead. So sending in a squad of female assassins does make sense.
On the flip side, this movie is every bit as sexist as you may believe, from the disbelief in women’s ability to carry out important tasks to the nipples falling out of shirts during training camp and the stereotypical sexy outfits. However, the women go from convicts to badass warriors and kick a lot of ass. So there’s that.
Apart from the setup and training montage, this film largely takes course over a bloody one day battle between the all woman group of assassins and the drug cartel’s ex agent leader and his henchmen. The action may be cheesy as all hell, and completely unrealistic, but it sure is funny and entertaining.
Don’t go into this one looking for a serious or amazing movie, go into it for the laughs and almost guaranteed good time of riffing it to pieces as you watch it. It’s perfect for that.
The Picture 1/5
Unfortunately, this film shows its age fairly poorly. While I’m sure Slasher//Video has done what they could with the transfer, you won’t be showing this off for its visuals. Thankfully the movie is “so bad it’s good” and in my opinion, the poor quality enhanced that.
The Sound 3/5
Older films have a certain sound to them, which I cannot describe very well. Suffice it to say, the lack of several surround tracks and big budget into using them will put this in the lower end of the spectrum, but again, this is a limitation of the time. For an older movie it sounded just fine, except for the theme song. It will dig in deep and never leave you again. Be warned.
The Features & Packaging 3/5
As always with Olive Film’s releases, Mankillers comes in a sturdy blu-ray case that feels quite solid. The sleeve has awesome retro art that will surely remind you of VHS cases from back in the day. Inside, you get an insert showing off some of Olive’s other releases, and the disc, which has some decent art on it as well.
However, the bummer of this release is the lack of special features. All we get in this package is a photo gallery and a trailer. I would have loved for more, but alas, it was not to be.
The Verdict 3/5
If you are the type of person that enjoys Mystery Science Theater 3000 not just for the riffs, then you may be in the right place. While this film was definitely not “great”, I definitely had a great time watching it. Lovers of bad movies should pick this one up!
You can scoop up Mankillers here.
Note: This Blu Ray was sent to us for review. This has not affected our judgement or editorial process in any way. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this process.
