Bronx Warriors

"1990: The Bronx Warriors" is a 1982 Italian exploitation movie by genre director Enzo G. Castellari.

Similar in theme to both John Carpenter's Escape from New York and Walter Hill's The Warriors, the film features a "forbidden zone" within New York's Bronx district, abandoned by the police and controlled by various street gangs who maintain a fragile semblance of order through turf lines. When a young girl, about to inherit a vastly powerful arms company runs away into the territory, a psychotic mercenary is sent in to retrieve her, turning the Bronx into a war zone.

Although very dated now, Bronx Warriors was ahead of the competition at its time of release in 1983 with a powerful synthesised music score, a highly innovative credits sequence (montage of various street gang paraphernalia) and a very effective opening scene involving a vicious fight between the Riders and the Zombies gangs while 17 year old Anne cowers in terror watching the carnage unfold, momentarily forgotten by the gang members before being given protection by the Riders' leader Trash.

Number one on the American Billboard charts for 3 weeks in 1983, the movie has retained a cult following spawning both a sequel in 1985 (Escape From the Bronx) and a fan website in 2004. This was the penultimate movie of stalwart actor Vic Morrow who died the same year as Bronx Warrior's release while filming The Twilight Zone movie. Because of his death somebody else (Ed Mannix) had to dub his voice. It also stars Fred Williamson as "King of the Bronx" The Ogre, leader of the most powerful Bronx gang the Tigers who takes on the role with his usual charismatic flair.

=Synopsis=

17 year old Anne runs across the Brooklyn bridge into the impoverished and lawless wasteland of the Bronx.(" FYI the Brooklyn Bridge connects Brooklyn and Manhattan and is far from the Bronx.") Her uncle and father are powerful executives with the Manhattan Corporation and decide to contact a mercenary named Hammer who is known as "a bit risky" to get her back. Through a written explanation on screen we discover that the year is 1990 and the Bronx has officially been declared "No Man's Land" and the authorities have given up all attempts to restore law and order. As Anne runs into the Bronx she is cornered by The Zombies, a gang of roller skaters armed with bladed hockey sticks. As she is overwhelmed by the gang 4 bikers appear with illuminated skulls on the front of their cycles. The Zombies are clearly scared of them and proceed to fight the Riders to the death. As the fight ends, the Riders' leader Trash sees Anne cowering in the corner and after offering to return her to Manhattan (which she refuses) offers her his protection.

An unspecified amount of time later the Riders and Anne meet at the river (the twin towers being visible in this scene) and find the dead body of one of their number, a biker named Chris. As Trash contemplates this he is surprised by the arrival of a gang of sharply dressed guys in cadillacs called the Tigers led by The Ogre and his right hand woman Witch. Trash approaches The Ogre who explains that Chris was a spy who was caught wearing a "gizmo" which had the same frequency as the Manhattan Police.

Later still a figure approaches the Riders' home carrying a mail tube. When challenged by Speedy with a knife he draws a shotgun from the tube and kills both Speedy and his girlfriend Sandy and leaves a Tiger shaped ring next to their bodies before making his way out of the building, being pursued by Trash, Ice, Paul and Blade. The figure is Hammer the mercenary who was hired to bring Anne back and he is trying to turn the gangs against each other to get Anne back.

A truck is seen by the Riders and approached but Hammer is gone and the only occupant is the bad tempered driver Hotdog who kicks Ice in the face as he opens the door. After being searched the truck is clear but trouble is brewing between Ice and Hotdog.

Anne shows Trash the ring she found next to the bodies and Trash cannot believe the Tigers could be responsible but postpones action until Sandy and Speedy have been cremated in a funeral ceremony. Anne says they would still be alive if she hadn't come to the Bronx but Trash tells her not to blame herself, saying "worse things happen by themselves".

After a heated meeting with the other Riders who want to go to war with the Tigers, Trash goes to the beach to meet Anne who has gone off alone to think. She reveals that she will soon turn 18 and inherit the Manhattan Corporation who makes arms and weapons and she cannot settle her conscience by doing this. On their return through the same tunnel that the opening fight was held, Trash is caught in a net by The Zombies and Anne is kidnapped by them after Trash is beaten down.

Returning to the Riders Trash decided to travel across the Bronx to meet with The Ogre to ask for his help getting Anne back. Paul and Hawk agree to accompany him while Blade is asked by Trash to keep an eye on Ice in his absence.

With Trash gone, Hotdog and Hammer approach Ice with an offer of getting rid of Trash if Ice can negotiate with the Zombies' leader Golem for Anne's return. Ice sees Blade eavesdropping and gives chase while Blade attempts to follow Trash to warn him.

On their journey to the Ogre's territory Trash, Paul and Hawk meet the camp, tap dancing gang the Iron Men who easily floor Paul and Hawk and are about to kill them when their female leader intervenes and after flirting with Trash, spares their lives telling them to "beat it". Travelling further they enter the area controlled by The Scavengers who kill Hawk but are beaten off by Trash and Paul. Finally making it to the Tiger's territory Paul and Trash are confronted by one of the Tigers who threatens to shoot them but Hammer appears, hurling a Riders' fight stick into the man and framing Trash for the murder. Paul runs off and Trash is caught by Witch and other Tigers and brought before the Ogre who believes Trash's story as Witch saw Hammer making off after holding Trash at gunpoint until the Tigers arrived.

Blade tries to make his way through Scavenger territory to warn Trash but is caught and beaten. Trash, Ogre and Witch then try to make their way back the Zombies' territory and find the beaten and mutilated Blade who Trash comforts and cries over, before breaking his neck to end his suffering. After fighting off and killing many Scavengers they finally make it to the Zombies' base where Golem and Ogre fight and Ogre pushes Golem's face through a window before stabbing him to death.

Hotdog tries to stop the traitor Ice from leaving but is murdered by Ice by a concealed blade in his shoe (after Ice discovers that the pistol he was given by Hammer was loaded with blanks). Ice then confronts Trash and Anne and in a fight with Trash falls onto his own fight stick and dies.

With Golem and Ice dead the Riders and the Tigers team up and Ogre brings out a cake made for Anne. During the singing of "Happy Birthday" a squad of National Guardsmen attack the base and kill Witch, Ogre and many of the Riders and Tigers while Hammer watches, dressed in a leather police uniform and laughing hysterically from a hole in the floor above as the carnage unfolds.

Seeing a guardsman taking aim at Trash, Anne steps in the way and is fatally wounded. Cradling Anne in his arms Trash watches in tears as Anne utters her final words "remember, we in the Bronx live with death". Finding a discarded harpoon gun used by the guardsmen to scale the walls Trash fires it at Hammer killing him and as the credits roll ties the body to the back of his motorbike and drags it along behind him.

=Controversial Issues=

Various aspects of the movie remain under discussion by both fans and detractors, some decrying them as nonsensical and/or proof of how awful the film is, while others argue that they give the film its unique charm.

* Trash, the leader of the Riders walks in a very effeminate and amusing "strut" that somewhat detracts from his status as a ruthless gang top dog in a lawless No Man's Land.

* While the Riders assemble at the docks for a meeting with the Tigers a drummer is loudly practicing on his drum kit near to where they stop. His presence is given no explanation and he even starts up again as they begin to move away. The camera cuts alternate between the gang members, the vehicles and the drummer.

* Like Achilles slaying Hector, Trash ties the dead body of an enemy to the rear of his motorcycle and takes it for a drag round the Bronx at the movie's conclusion.

* While the Bronx is supposed to be lawless, a long shot of the Riders in formation on the streets of the Bronx shows shops open, cars parked untouched and traffic proceeding in an orderly fashion in the middle and foregrounds of the sequence.