( 1985 / Germany / Indonesia )
( 1985 / Germany / Indonesia )
Review by Paul Cooke
Director: Helmuth Ashley Starring: John Phillip Law , Horst Janson , Grazyna Dylong , Barry Prima , Francis Glutton & Christopher Mitchum Source : Embassy Home Entertainment / NTSC VHS Japan / Full Screen Presentation / Mono Sound / English Language With Small Japanese Subtitles‘‘You can forget about growing old’’
An Action espionage low budget vehicle that hit’s the road fast with a recognisable Euro cast that includes a cameo from Indonesian all Action star Barry Prima. Shot in and around the beautiful landscape of Indonesia.
German star Horst Janson plays the role of Martin Forster , a senior engineer who has helped create and develop a top secret laser cannon. The technology involved in the development has cost the Multi Industrial Corporation $16 million , and they want to ensure that the competition don’t get their hands on it before it can be shown to the world. It is ready for testing in Indonesia but already a World News Agency reporter named Judy Staufer has a strong hunch what is going on. She wants the scoop on the new technology and is willing to do pretty much anything to prove its existence.
John Phillip Law is on hand in Jakarta , a transport expert who just so happens to be kept on a retainer for the MIC Corporation , and he is scheduled to head the drive team to deliver the laser cannon to its secret destination. One of his weaknesses is having an eye for the ladies , and of course he is soon flirting with Judy who intends to take full advantage of his important position. As far as John Phillip Law’s character Ted Barner is concerned , pretty much one good ride deserves another !. Woman trouble is the least of Barner’s troubles though as the opposition send in their top problem solver in the guise of tough guy Jack Gull , perfectly casting Christopher Mitchum in the role. He works for an American competitor firm called Protex.
Jack Gull wastes no time at all in recruiting a strong arm in the shape of an ex French Foreign Legionnaire soldier , a Dutchman named Jan Von Clef. The Dutchman is a renowned diamond smuggler who has also done time inside for whom he blames his partner at the time , a partner who just so happened to have been John Phillip Law’s character !. Von Clef holds out that Barner double crossed him but the truth is actually not all that Von Clef realises as is later unravelled. The two meet up unexpectedly but Jack Gull keeps them apart as he cannot afford for the two men to tear each other apart , not yet anyway !. John Phillip Law’s quirky verbal put down of his one time partner here is classic , as he verbalises ‘‘Guess he can’t get over having one of his nuts shot off in Rhodesia. He’s been goofy ever since’’.
Von Clef’s brief is to hijack the transport truck driven by his enemy Ted Barner , or destroy it before it reaches its destination. Barner hooks up with a trusted old friend to assist him , and Horst Janson’s character Martin Forster , make the journey across the jungle. Enter Barry Prima as Ratno Lesmana , a useful addition to the team as he knows how to look after himself and protect those around him. Von Clef rounds up a gaggle of local henchmen to set off after the early hours leaving transport truck and its cargo of the laser cannon. A multi wheeled heavy goods vehicle transversing the rickety roads of the Indonesian outback with two open topped jeeps in hot pursuit , the road ahead soon becomes very rocky !. John Phillip Law and companions are attacked from the rear by one of the jeeps but Barry Prima soon puts an end to the assault , with an acrobatic display of manoeuvrability along the outside of the moving truck to then bombard the attacker , forcing him off the road to a fireball end. A more pleasurable , although initially unwanted surprise arrival , comes in the shapely form of the tenacious Janet. She appears overhead in a helicopter and climbs down a narrow ladder to join the team. She brings news of their pursuers being led by Barner’s old ‘friend’ Von Clef !.
The journey ahead is laden with danger and a close call with Von Clef’s men right on their tails comes at a dilapidated bridge that they have to cross with their heavy load. An encounter at a crossing set with land mines also slows John Phillip Law and colleagues down just as they receive radio news that the testing site has suffered a mining cave in. Martin Forster’s brother is trapped within the cave with fellow workers and their air is quickly running out. John Phillip Law and Horst Janson must get to the site with the laser cannon fast as it is the only tool that is effective enough to cut through the rock without causing a final and fatal collapse.
The journey races ahead and just before closure we finally get to see the laser cannon in action. How it stays in one piece with all the bump and grind of the passage is anyone’s guess , but there’s light at the end of the tunnel as Horst Janson flicks the laser switch. Von Clef of course gets his moment to clash with Ted Barner as the stunt Action team match jeep against helicopter. It’s a whirly bird that gets the earth worm as John Phillip lays down the Law !.
A fairly routine outing that struggles with its uneasy production of European and Indonesian styles. Christopher Mitchum seems to be fulfilling a contract commitment , and Horst Janson looks like he longs for bigger pictures gone by. John Phillip Law as always looks to be having Fun and his input brings proceedings up a notch. For most , even with a tight paced eighty odd minute running time , ‘No Time To Die’ may still prove too long a time to even try !.
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