Filmmaker Steven Kostanski (Frankie Freako, PG: Psycho Goreman) continues his streak of updating ’80s and ’90s cult subgenres with energetic tongue-in-cheek flair. For his latest, the writer-director dusts off the Roger Corman cult classic Deathstalker, a 1983 sword & sorcery fantasy that showcased two things Kostanski specializes in: creatures and practical effects. The reboot dials up the silliness and lowers the barrier to entry, no homework required, welcoming newcomers and devout fans alike for a blood-soaked romp through the Dreadite-infested high fantasy Kingdom of Abraxeon.
In this reimagining, the notorious scavenger Deathstalker (Daniel Bernhardt) finds himself unwittingly on a path to heroism when he swipes a mysterious amulet from a dying prince (Adam Brooks) on a battlefield. To remove the massive target that places on his back from inhuman bounty hunters and sorcerer Nekromemnon’s evil forces, Deathstalker teams with clumsy wizard Doodad (voiced by Patton Oswalt) and plucky thief Brisbayne (Christina Orjalo) to prevent the amulet from falling into the wrong hands in their quest to return it.
Deathstalker may serve as Kostanski’s spin on throwback sword & sorcery films, but its beating heart comes in the form of a screwball buddy comedy. There’s a Pinocchio-like quality to the dynamics between the central duo, Deathstalker and Doodad, with the short-statured wizard frequently serving as the moral compass, attempting to guide the self-serving scavenger toward heroic acts. It’s also what sparks life as the film takes time to settle into its steady and sometimes repetitive rhythm of monster battles. The cheeky back and forth between the pair is infectious, leading to some unexpected surprises that lean into the film’s DIY spirit and sense of humorous adventure. As an example, one battle skips its typical bloody finish to instead hug it out, a moment that sounds far too cute for a Deathstalker movie until you see the beast in need of affection.
It’s those moments that deviate from convention that infuse an otherwise formulaic, straightforward narrative with personality. There are clear budgetary constraints at play, with Doodad’s single-piece facial prosthetic appliance all but rendering the performer beneath, Laurie Field, unable to fully articulate their mouth for a very chatty role. Kostanski demonstrates strong instincts and awareness, though, doing his best to obscure these flaws with clever camerawork or embracing them fully for humor’s sake. The filmmaker also knows where to spend the most effort to ensure Deathstalker punches far above its weight: the creature battles. It’s here where Deathstalker evokes the scale and fun of Psycho Goreman, delivering a barrage of creative rubber-suited baddies (including a contorting Mummy foe played by Troy James) for the protagonist to dispatch with splatstick glee.
Bernhardt, a stunt performer and fight coordinator-turned-actor, navigates combat with expected ease, but charms as the self-serving rogue with a secret heart of gold. This is a Deathstalker not afraid to look silly even when maiming monsters. This is also Deathstalker at his most wholesome under Kostanski’s vision, far removed from Corman’s sex and nudity mandates.
Kostanski pulls from the entire sword & sorcery catalog for inspiration, both for gags and in craft, to recapture the era in his latest throwback feature. Deathstalker employs old school techniques, from matte painting backdrops to Ray Harryhausen-style stop-motion effects and skeleton fights, that only deepens appreciation for Kostanski’s continuing exercises in modernizing forgotten corners of cinema. Kostanski’s latest favors effects and worldbuilding over storytelling, though, and its standard good vs. evil narrative plays like a fighting game that builds to a requisite final boss.
Deathstalker wears its cinematic reverence on its sleeves, delivering a love letter to practical effects and bygone sword & sorcery epics. Even if a bit too simplistic, this remagining veers even harder into cheesy territory with aplomb, leveraging its rough edges in its favor, and brings tongue-in-cheek personality in spades.
Deatherstalker slices and dices into theaters on October 10, 2025.
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