The Warrior is a 1981 Indonesian film from director Sisworo Gautama Putra, best know for his work on action films as well as the horror film Satan‘s Slave which had a recent Blu-ray release from Severin Films. Barry Prima stars as the titular warrior Jaka Sembung, here in his first excursion as a fighter and leader for a group of Indonesian rebels battling the incursion of Dutch colonists who have been enslaving and imprisoning his people in the 19th century. Along with more standard martial arts action, the film dives into some weirder mystical/spiritual stuff including a pretty visceral eye-swapping sequence, lending a unique atmsophere to the intriguing premise.
Prima’s Jaka Sembung is a pretty standard hero figure with a Christ-like trajectory, escaping imprisonment in a rock quarry only to eventually become captured and blinded by Dutch leader Van Schram (Dicky Zulkarnaen) and, through some magic performed by the zombified Ki Hitam (W.D. Mochtar), turned into a pig for a while. Yes, The Warrior is often as wacky as it sounds, leading to some of the best moments in the film; its Mortal Kombat-esque power battles and magical infusion add a degree of unpredictability to Gautama Putra’s production, and when the film leans into these moments, it’s a refreshing take on a number of different subgenres including action, martial arts, and even spaghetti western.
But when the film attempts to wind itself down to explore character and the more realistic elements of Dutch expansion, The Warrior gets bogged down in sloggy dialogue and events. Unfortunately, these more tepid moments are more numerous than the film’s high-energy action sequences, and the bigger problem is that the script from Imam Tantowi doesn’t explore the rich historical background of colonialism as much as it should. That could partially be due to cultural differences; of course, The Warrior‘s documentation of Dutch settlement might be more well-known to its native Indonesian viewers than contemporary audiences now. But it still feels like The Warrior misses some moments to make a bigger statement on these events instead of slowing the pacing down with a forced love story.
The Warrior has a lot going for it regardless, specifically for viewers who enjoy these types of supernaturally-tinged action films (think Chinese hopping vampires, as an example). While it does have its slow moments, the zanier gore and well-choreographed fight scenes make up for it, leading to a frenzied final act. This one’s worth a look, especially considering multiple sequels spawned from this progenitor.
Blu-ray
Mondo Macabro has released The Warrior on Blu-ray with a new uncut transfer from the film negative with 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Overall, this production looks quite good for the first time on US Blu-ray, featuring a filmic-looking scan with a medium-bodied grain presence and an overall high level of detail. Facial features and textures are suitably apparent, as are the lush jungle backdrops amid the Dutch abodes. One notable item is the presence of green lines and splotches throughout, which seems to be some issue with the negative itself; these aren’t on-screen routinely, but they are visible consistently throughout the film. Otherwise, though, Mondo Macabro’s presentation of The Warrior is an excellent way to watch.
Both DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono English and Indonesian tracks are provided. The English dub is a bit more robust especially with the music score, but both sound quite good otherwise unmarred by any major audible issues. English subtitles are included, but it should be noted that these only correspond with the Indonesian audio and the translations can be quite different from the English dialogue.
For extras, this release collects some new and some archival interviews. The first new offering is with sepecial effects/art director El Badrun, who discusses his career in film on a number of Indonesian sets and then dives into how The Warrior accomplished its disembodied head sequences. Filmmaker Joko Anwar, who directed a Satan’s Slave remake, discusses Jaka Sembung and the film series’ lasting impact on directors, as well as his other Indonesian film inspirations. Scriptwriter Imam Tantowi – who wrote both this and sequel The Warrior and the Ninja – discusses adapting the comic series by Djair Warni and some production techniques used on Primitives.
Also included are archival interviews with producer Gope Samtani and another interview with Tantowi, as well as trailers for the three films in the series.
It should be noted that previously Mondo Macabro released all three films in a collection, and that included a booklet essay by Indonesian film historian Ekky Imanjaya. While this stand-alone Blu-ray release technically does not have that booklet, I did receive it in the other disc featuring the sequel films. This essay dives into the origins of Jaka Sembung and the series’ release, as well as its lasting impact in Indonesian culture.
Extra Features
- NEW Anamorphic transfer from film negative
- NEW Interview with film maker Joko Anwar (1080p; 37:03)
- NEW Interview with SFX maestro EL Badrun (1080p; 22:51)
- NEW Interview with writer/assistant director Imam Tantowi (1080p; 21:03)
- Archive interview with Imam Tantowi (1080p; 9:43)
- Archive interview with producer Gope Samtani (1080p; 11:59)
- Trailer (1080p; 4:15)
- NEW translated English subtitles
Verdict
A curious offering from Indonesian cinema, The Warrior is certainly a suitable viewing for those fans of Asian mixed martial arts or even Shaw Brothers-esque action films. This Mondo Macabro Blu-ray brings the film to HD for the first time uncut with a good transfer and robust set of extras.
