No one watches Steel Dawn for the smart dialogue, the existential motifs, or the brilliant cinematography. This isn't Beckett here. If you like movies where a renegade with a sword gets the bad guys and protects small-town interests, this is for you. It's like the "Road Warrior" without the cars meets the "Beastmaster" without religious cults, and add a touch of Jimmy Stewart's western "Destry Rides Again." This is escapist cinema, and the best kind.

A note on the DVD: this is a full-screen edition that looks pretty cheap--no great remastering job here. There are no special features, no sound options, no languages. But if you want to see a movie featuring a guy with a sword, you don't need Dolby Digital and a pristine print: you need "Steel Dawn."

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ANOTHER OF MY KEEPERS! Dec 8 2001

By M. Hartmann

Format:DVD

Not top notch? -- Ah well, It can be thoroughly enjoyed without picking it apart.
But how many different ways can the same kind of stories be portrayed? Actually it is the writers fault for not giving a different twist to life's story. [Underground pure water?]
I enjoyed the acting - the characters - the desert? but the hairdo's were awful.
This is another one that I like to watch again - what can I say? I like the futuristic SiFi - even the outlandish ones.
The villian's got what they deserved. [grin]

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Shhhhh, dont tell anyone.... July 1 2000

By dsrussell

Format:VHS Tape

Have you ever watched a film that you know isn't very good, yet you ended up secretly liking it, but wouldn't tell a soul (at least those you know personally) that you do? Well, for me, this is one of those films.

I've always been a sucker for post-apocalyptic films/novels and the loner hero, and maybe that's why I ended up enjoying it. Hey, I liked Costner's "The Postman" and "Waterworld", and Yul Brenners "The Ultimate Warrior", and at least one of Gibson's "Mad Max" vehicles (so you know where I'm coming from).

Patrick Swayze and his wife are just fine in this standard yarn, and the fight scenes were done very well. Alas, there is nothing new to find here, but if you are attracted to the cast you might sneak this video in one night (very late, while everyone else is asleep).

Between 1 and 10, I rate "Steel Dawn" a very marginal 6, but in reality, I know it's not much above a 4;-).

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