The Salute of the Jugger (1989)
Genre: Action / Scifi
Duration: 104 minuten / 91 minuten (US Edit)
Alternative titles: The Blood of Heroes / Farewell to the Jugger / Salute of the Jugger
Country:
Australia / United States
Directed by: David Webb Peoples
Stars: Rutger Hauer, Delroy Lindo and Joan Chen
IMDb score:
6,3 (8.248)
Releasedate: 19 October 1989
The Salute of the Jugger plot
"When juggers play there is only one way to live - THE HARD WAY!"
After the subsequent wars, little is left of the Golden Age of the 20th century. In this devastated arid world, people struggle to stay alive. The only diversion they have is "The Game," a no-rules game with the goal of placing a dog skull on a stick. The 'Juggers', led by Sallow, are fierce warriors and enjoy the privileges of the winners: food, alcohol and sex. Kidda has a huge admiration for them and absolutely wants to join the 'Juggers'.
Actors and actresses
Sallow
Kidda
Mbulu
Big Cimber
Young Gar
Gandhi
Dog Boy
Kidda's Father
Samchin Head Elder
Samchin Timekeeper
Reviews & comments
Lennert
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- 2412 messages
- 1400 votes
Now I've seen the American version and I'm also very curious about how the extended ending exactly goes, because I also found the ending quite abrupt 
Otherwise, it's a successful low-budget post-apocalyptic action film. The best part is that, for once, we don't have to endure any social criticism of the violent gameplay; it's simply a part of future society, and everyone is at peace with it. If the film had had a critical tone, it would have quickly devolved into yet another dystopian film. At least now, people aren't falling into that trap.
The rules aren't immediately clear at first, and they only become more hilarious as the film progresses, as the mechanics of the game become clearer (think MMA with weapons and American football), but the action itself is decent. It's all a bit low-budget, but the action is well-shot and quite bloody. The cast gives it their all, though it's Joan Chen and Rutger Hauer (three films where they're in together, if I'm not mistaken?) who really steal the show.
Ultimately it doesn't amount to much, but with the limited budget they managed to make a quite intriguing film.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Lovelyboy
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- 3954 messages
- 2956 votes
Salute Of The Jugger, such a cult image practically makes your mouth water, and I seem to vaguely remember seeing this film in my youth, and it made quite an impression as far as I could remember.
So, I watched it yesterday with great anticipation, and those first moments really capture the cult vibe. The styling, the setting, the electronic soundtrack—it's cult in capital letters. Add Hauer to the mix, and it's hard to know where anything could go wrong. D'Onofrio appears two nights in a row, and what a lean and muscular guy he is, quite a change from Full Metal Jacket. Hugh Keays-Byrne, better known as Toe Cutter, is amusing, and Max Fairchild is excellently cast for a juggernaut role. Then there's the immense underground city, which fits perfectly into the post-apocalyptic setting.
But still, what could possibly go wrong, as I wondered in the comments earlier...? Well, you shouldn't expect much depth or story, so that's not really an issue. What is a point, from the very first fight, is the fights themselves, which, apart from the battle between the qwiks, are utterly stupid and frankly laughable. Is this it? Couldn't this be done tactically? They're just shoving each other around, and only during the qualifying match do I think some grit starts to creep in.
And so, this cult film was quite disappointing, and I have absolutely no connection with it, even though I can certainly appreciate a cult film. Unfortunately, it can't always be spot on.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Filmkriebel
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- 10013 messages
- 4679 votes
Weak. A Mad Max-esque story centered around a bloody, rugby-like sport that allows the very best to achieve a higher social status. A film that leans closer to Mad Max beyond Thunderdome than to the other films in this series. Lacking atmosphere: the colors are brown and ugly, the fights are confusing (nothing more than just wildly thrashing around). The actors are terrible and quickly become boring. The ending isn't exactly inspiring either... Yeah, we won! Now what?
No, I got very little viewing pleasure out of this.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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