Woodyanders Nerdy computer expert Paul Bradford (a solid and likable performance by the hunky Jeffrey Byron) has both his mental and physical skills put to the ultimate test by evil wizard Mestema (robustly played with deliciously hammy brio by Richard Moll), who has been looking for a worth adversary to set his powers against. Paul must defeat seven challenges in order to save not only his own life, but also the life of his girlfriend Gwen Rogers (a luminous portrayal by the fetching Leslie Wing). The assorted directors that include Charles Band, stop-motion animation master David Allen, and make-up f/x expert John Buechler treat the gloriously loopy story with admirable seriousness. The challenges are quite colorful and entertaining: A giant stop-motion animation statue, a bunch of rot-faced zombies brandishing all kinds of weapons, pesky dwarfs, an ice gallery of notorious criminals, a homely cackling puppet demon, gnarly animated dragons, and even an ugly cave-dwelling troll. The variable special effects run the gamut from rather shoddy to really impressive. Moreover, it's the way the nifty modern technology versus ancient magic premise gets handled with tremendously engaging aplomb and imagination that in turn makes this picture so much fun to watch. A concert appearance by the hair band W.A.S.P. and an aerobics sequence featuring sexy gals in leotards provide a certain vintage 80's cheeseball charm. Mac Ahlberg's polished cinematography offers a wealth of funky stylish visuals. The lively score by Richard Band and Shirley walker hits the stirring spot. A total blast.

happyendingrocks I'm quite surprised to see so many people writing negative things about this film. I don't know what they were expecting from a film called The Dungeonmaster released by Empire (this isn't supposed to be Citizen Kane, people), but for those who enjoyed the minute in the 80's where Sword & Sorcery films were being dropped into theaters every weekend (and disappearing the same weekend), this splendid little number provides a nice twist on the formula.Watching it today, it does seem a bit clunky and dated, but the special effects remain quite impressive considering the technology and budget the filmmakers had to work with. There is a lot of imagination at play here, and it's delightful to watch each of the segments unfold. John Buechler's undead make-up in the "Demons Of The Dead" segment is particularly excellent, and his lord of that underworld is a great piece of puppetry. People who watch a film like this and criticize the execution of such a prop are obviously forgetting that even Yoda looked like what he a was, a rubber puppet, until George Lucas spent millions of dollars digitally enhancing his effects.Though most of the segments fall squarely into the realm of Fantasy, the "Slasher" and "Ice" pieces are great nods to classic horror sub-genres. The brevity of each segment keeps the film moving along at a brisk pace, and no matter how engrossed you become in one piece of the film, you're assured that there's going to be something interesting around the corner as well.Enough can not be said about the greatness of Richard Moll's performance as Mestema. Moll is a joy to watch, and he seems to take great delight in chewing up the scenery and delivering the surprisingly strong dialogue he is fed. His "cat" speech is a classic, and I can't imagine a better character or actor to deliver such a great piece of wickedness. Sparring against him, our Paul Bradford makes a fine hero, and the verbal interplay between the two of them is well written and executed.One thing I haven't heard mentioned extensively is the music in the film, which is uniformly great. It's unlikely that a soundtrack ever circulated, but upon re-watching this, I found myself plotting my own transfer of the audio to CD. Of course, a strong number by W.A.S.P. ("Tormentor", which appears on their self-titled debut LP) helps in that regard. But, even without it, the score alone would make for excellent listening should anyone ever have the foresight to rescue this film and its supplements from obscurity.It seems so petty to overtly criticize a film that never tries to be anything more than an enjoyable way to spend 80 minutes. To that end, The Dungeonmaster succeeds magnificently. The 80's was a time when films like this flourished, and comparatively, this is far more professionally made and creatively executed than the overwhelmingly poor caliber of direct-to-video fare we are subjected to these days.DVDs are cheap to produce and release, and because of this, there are a lot of truly unwatchable films in circulation that deserve to languish in the scarce VHS-only netherworld The Dungeonmaster currently occupies. In fact, if I could pick one film to be plucked from the past and given a loving DVD remaster, it would probably be this one, and its digital absence is one of the only reasons I still have a VCR.Anyone familiar and comfortable with this sort of material will have a hell of a lot of fun watching this film. After all, that's ultimately the point of The Dungeonmaster, so it shouldn't be graded or scrutinized with the same stringent detail we apply to "serious" or "important" cinema. Those looking for thought-provoking social discourse, breathtaking cinematography, or Oscar-caliber performances will hate this film, and that's okay, because they aren't the demographic for The Dungeonmaster.However, for anyone who enjoys the giddy pleasure of a well-constructed B-movie, The Dungeonmaster is well worth seeking out. If that's you, then prepare for battle, Excalibrate. Mestema awaits you.

JTurner82 A computer geek and his girlfriend get zapped into a dark underworld. She gets chained up by this evil sorcerer guy who compels the nerd to face seven different challenges in order to procure her freedom. The "challenges," each of which are directed by a different person, are little more than just scanty encounters with monsters, giants, bands(!), and explosives, each setting in caves, concert halls, or pyramids. Predictably, the nerd conquers all of them by way of his cheesy zapper watch. At the end of it, the nerd fights the sorcerer, and the victor of it all shouldn't be so surprising. That sums up THE DUNGEONMASTER, a truly heinous turkey with everything which defines a major stinker: hideous acting and even worse dialogue, zero direction, cheap sets, and lame plotting. The best part is that it's short, at 79 minutes long. Even as a generally tolerant fan of movies some would find unwatchable, THE DUNGEONMASTER proved to be not only a waste, but a totally uninteresting and immanently forgettable one. MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 fans, beware: of all films, this has to be the absolute worst. If you dare to sit through this movie (and I challenge you to), expect to be disgusted through every minute. It's really that awful.

cllangkjaer Well this movie has been a favorites of mine for years. It was one of the first Empire films to make it to my collection. I think this is one of the better movies Charlie did in the 80 era. The original title was Ragewar – The challenges of Excalibrate. This film had a few problems in post production, due to what I think was lack of funds. The editing shows that it was rushed a bit, the seven challenges that Excalibrate, played by Jeffery Byron has to face in order to save his girlfriend is out of sequence a cording to the start and End credits. In results of this post production mess up some of the transitions to the different challenges seems rushed and the part "Cave Beast" directed by Peter Manoogian give me the felling that something is missing and got left on the cutting room floor. Then I got my Lightning video Laserdisc edition of Dungeonmaster, I was surprised to see that the opening dream sequence was cut from it. I own a UK. Entertainment in Video. VHS tape, I purchased about 8 years ago. Here is the relative long Dream sequence included. "As shown in the end credits." I remember thinking back then, that it was odd for Charlie to include an opening sequence in Cinema Scope. Fans would know this is unusual for him in the old Empire days. However, I must say that this opening in Cinema Scope do the film credit and give it a sort of prospective look. Everybody has a favorites part of a movie. Mine in this one is the "Heavy Metal" sequence. Directed by Mr. Band him self. Here is just such a cool performance by W.A.S.P (1980 Rock Group). All in all This is a highly entertaining film and should be viewed frequently by anybody who has a love for those old sci-fi / horror films.