This follow-up to Sergio Martino's "The Island of the Fishmen" (1979) is set in the future. Two teenage boys prowl the sewers of post-apocalypse New York and survive by hunting rats for food.
They are illiterate and have only superficial knowledge of the world prior to the great holocaust. The early scenes depict the boys' struggle to escape the ruined city and the warriors who rule it with an iron fist. Once outside, they encounter an elderly man named Socrates who takes them to a pristine tropical island somewhere in the Atlantic or Caribbean. The island is ruled by an evil queen whose oppresses the population and exploits a species of horrible fishmen. The outsiders join a young princess who hopes to overthrow the queen and free her sister and a prince from powerful spells. The film is something of a science fiction/fantasy that is suitable for young viewers.
Sergio Martino has a fairly long resume as both a director and a screenwriter. "The Island of the Fishmen" was set in the nineteenth century and benefited from fairly decent production values and a decent cast. Unfortunately, Mr. Martino didn't leave it at that. "The Fishmen and Their Queen" does not qualify as a sequel. Instead, it is a fragment of a film that fills in gaps through the shameful use of re-edited footage from two previous Martino films: "2019: After the Fall of New York" (1983) and the first fishmen film. The acting is horrible, the storyline is implausible and juvenile, and the final result is boring. Though evidently intended for teenage viewers, the film is so bad on so many levels that it seems to lack appeal for even the target audience. For fans of Martino's original work, this is one to avoid. For parents who think their twelve or thirteen year olds will like this, look elsewhere.
They are illiterate and have only superficial knowledge of the world prior to the great holocaust. The early scenes depict the boys' struggle to escape the ruined city and the warriors who rule it with an iron fist. Once outside, they encounter an elderly man named Socrates who takes them to a pristine tropical island somewhere in the Atlantic or Caribbean. The island is ruled by an evil queen whose oppresses the population and exploits a species of horrible fishmen. The outsiders join a young princess who hopes to overthrow the queen and free her sister and a prince from powerful spells. The film is something of a science fiction/fantasy that is suitable for young viewers.
Sergio Martino has a fairly long resume as both a director and a screenwriter. "The Island of the Fishmen" was set in the nineteenth century and benefited from fairly decent production values and a decent cast. Unfortunately, Mr. Martino didn't leave it at that. "The Fishmen and Their Queen" does not qualify as a sequel. Instead, it is a fragment of a film that fills in gaps through the shameful use of re-edited footage from two previous Martino films: "2019: After the Fall of New York" (1983) and the first fishmen film. The acting is horrible, the storyline is implausible and juvenile, and the final result is boring. Though evidently intended for teenage viewers, the film is so bad on so many levels that it seems to lack appeal for even the target audience. For fans of Martino's original work, this is one to avoid. For parents who think their twelve or thirteen year olds will like this, look elsewhere.