The Dungeonmaster
| The Dungeonmaster | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by |
Dave Allen Charles Band John Carl Buechler Steven Ford Peter Manoogian Ted Nicolaou Rosemarie Turko |
| Produced by | Charles Band |
| Written by |
Allen Actor Dave Allen Charles Band John Carl Buechler Jeffrey Byron Peter Manoogian Ted Nicolaou Rosemarie Turko |
| Starring |
Jeffrey Byron Richard Moll Leslie Wing Phil Fondacaro Anthony T. Genova III Lonnie Hashimoto Chris Holmes Michael Steve Jones Peter Kent Blackie Lawless Paul Pape Randy Piper Randy Popplewell Tony Richards Felix Silla |
| Music by |
Richard Band Shirley Walker |
| Cinematography | Mac Ahlberg |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 73 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Dungeonmaster, (originally, Ragewar: The Challenges of Excalibrate and Digital Knights), is a 1984 low-budget science fiction/fantasy film, rated PG-13, starring Jeffrey Byron, Richard Moll and Leslie Wing. The film is produced by Charles Band, and is split up into seven distinct story segments, each written and directed by a different person: Dave Allen, Charles Band, John Carl Buechler, Steven Ford, Peter Manoogian, Ted Nicolaou, and Rosemarie Turko. The film's theme was influenced by the popularity of Disney's 1982 film Tron and the roleplaying game Dungeons and Dragons. Principal filming began in 1983 but the film was not completed until 1984. The film features an appearance by the heavy metal band W.A.S.P.. A sequel segment was planned for the anthology Pulse Pounders, but the unfinished film was never released due to the collapse of Empire Pictures.
Plot
Paul Bradford (Jeffrey Byron) is a skilled computer programmer who lives with his girlfriend, Gwen (Leslie Wing), and "X-CaliBR8," a quasi-sentient personal computer that Paul programmed and which he interacts with via a neural interface. Gwen is jealous of Paul's unusually close relationship with X-CaliBR8, to whom Paul has given a female voice, and fears that their relationship will be destroyed by Paul's reliance on X-CaliBR8 for his various day-to-day activities.
One night, Paul and Gwen are both transported to a Hellish realm presided over by Mestema (Richard Moll), an ancient, demonic sorcerer who has spent millennia seeking a worthy opponent with whom to do battle. Having long defeated his enemies with magic, Mestema has become intrigued with technology, and wishes to pit his skills against Paul's, with the winner claiming Gwen. Arming Paul with a portable version of X-CaliBR8 (which takes the form of a computerized wrist band), Mestema begins transporting Paul into a variety of scenarios in which he must defeat various opponents. Most of the challenges involve Paul using his X-CaliBR8 wristband to shoot people, monsters, and objects with laser beams.
After Paul completes Mestema's various challenges, the two engage in a final battle, which takes the form of a fist fight in which Paul kills Mestema by throwing him into a pit of lava. After Mestema dies, Paul and Gwen are transported back to their house, where Gwen expresses her acceptance of X-CaliBR8 and suggests that she and Paul get married.
In popular culture
The quote "I reject your reality and substitute my own!" (said by film character Paul Bradford) was later popularized by Adam Savage of MythBusters.
This line is actually a rephrasing of dialogue spoken by actor Tom Baker in the 1976 Doctor Who serial The Deadly Assassin.
The film is sampled in the Skinny Puppy song "Hexonxonx", the second track from the 1989 album Rabies.
The film's trailer is featured in Drafthouse Films compilation of B-movie trailers Trailer War.
Release
On October 29, 2013, Scream Factory released the film on DVD for the first time, along with Contamination 7, Catacombs and Cellar Dweller as part of the second volume of their Scream Factory All-Night Horror Marathon series.
On December 15, 2015, Shout Factory will release The Dungeonmaster on a double feature Blu-ray along with Eliminators.
Sequel
A short film, "The Dungeonmaster II," was produced as an entry in the anthology horror film Pulse Pounders. Byron and Moll both reprised their roles. As of 2014, the film has only been exhibited once.