PANTHER SQUAD (1984)
The Eurociné Collection
Label: Full Moon Features
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 77 Minutes
Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0 (No Subtitles)
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.78:1)
Director: Pierre Chevalier
Cast: Sybil Danning, Jack Taylor, Karin Schubert, Jean-René Gossart, Analía Ivars, Franícoise Bocci, Donald O'Brien
80's trash-action fever dream Panther Squad (1984) is directed by the French exploitation bottom-feeder Pierre Chevalier (House of Cruel Dolls) under his pseudonym Peter Knight. It was produced for the legendary z-grade-galore studio Eurociné and stars Sybil Danning (The Howling II: You're Sister Is A Werewolf) as Ilona aka The Panther, leader of an all-female squad of anti-terrorist bad-asses called Panther Squad; who sort of look like an alternate reality version of Charlie's Angels if the Angels were actually members of 80's metallers Girlschool lead by Wendy O Williams.
At the start of the film we get a super-80's opening credit sequence with the catchy tune "She's Tough and Tender" by someone named Steve Stone, then we dive headlong into a very 80's notion, the race to dominate space. Enter the New Organization Of Nations (N.O.O.N.) who have just launched a new space defense spacecraft, but their nemesis the eco-terrorist organization Clean Space believe N.O.O.N. will pollute outer space the same way industry has polluted Earth, so they decide they have to put an end to that. To that end Clean Space somehow manage to jam the signal to the spacecraft and over take it, then they kidnap a high-ranking female astronaut who somehow connected to the N.O.O.N. space program.
That's when N.O.O.N. head honchos call in a guy named Mr. Frank Bramble (Jack Taylor, Pieces) to put Clean Space out of commission permanently. Bramble seems to be to Panther Squad what Bosley was to Charlie's Angels, rendezvousing with the Panther Squad at an undisclosed location with tons of trashy cut-rate action ensues with Sybil leading the way in a just-barely-there leather outfit and rocking some bad-ass oversized 80's sunglasses. Jack Taylor is a hoot in this, sort of coolly sleepwalking through the film looking like he's just trying to get to the next bottle of booze, which I am not sure if that is scripted or just reality bleeding into the fiction of the film, but he's a fun presence and he steals the show several times.
The flick has some super cheesy 80's action set pieces, we get loads of training montages, a hairdryer flamethrower, Danning (and her stunt double) on a dirt bike, and a top-secret laser pistol - its fun stuff. We also see what looks to be the same castle location later used in Jess Franco's Angel of Death (1987) AKA Commando Mengele. As it's a Eurocine production there a high probably there's a lot of borrowed footage happening her, and I'm pretty sure the opening shots of the spacecraft orbiting Earth were not shot for this low-rent actioner, but that's the both the charm and yoke of these cheapie Eurocine productions. Aside from Taylor and the seam-bursting Danning keep an eye out for Karin Schubert (Black Emanuelle), Analía Ivarsand (Golden Temple Amazons), Donald O'Brien (Ghosthouse), Shirley Knight (Angel of Death) and Jess Franco regular Antonio Mayans (Night of Open Sex) as a General.
Audio/Video: This Eurocine gem arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Full Moon in 1080p HD framed in 1.78:1 widescreen with a fairly crisp looking transfer. The source is in good shape with only a few vertical lines marring it, and a few iffy looking insert shots, but otherwise this had solid color an appreciable bed of grain. Audio comes by way of English Dolby Digital 2.0 with no subtitles options.
While it's not listed on the sleeve there is an audio commentary here from Actor/Co-Producer Sybil Danning moderated by Chris Alexander. Sybil was not only an actor but also a co-producer on the flick, and she has a great memory as she discusses the score of the film, the Mediterranean locations, her co-stars, and most importantly, that awesome wardrobe, which she says she still has in her possession. She also gets into why she never worked with Jess Franco, the casting, and the archiving of her wardrobe from different films. It's a solid commentary recorder via telephone, Alexander's half sounds iffy at times but Sybil comes through clear as a bell. We also get a collection of Full Moon Trailers.
Special Features:
- Audio Commentary with Actor/Co-Producer Sybil Danning moderated by Chris Alexander
- Full Moon Trailers: Weedjies: Halloweed Night, Necropolis: Legion, Panther Squad, Trancers 2, Robot Wars, Puppet Master III, Specters
This trashy actioner is pretty poorly executed, there's no T&A, and it's a sloppy and slapdash production, but the eurocult stars seems to have aligned here and what we get, shitty as it is, is a pretty entertaining flick for lovers of z-grade Eurocinecheese, it's top-notch trash even if there's no top-shelf assets on display. .
Screenshots from the Full Moon Blu-ray:
