Textual content © Richard
Gary / Indie Horror Movies, 2023
Photographs from the Web
Condor’s Nest
Directed
by Phil Battenberger
MBG Movies; Misplaced Galleon Movies; Icon Movie Distribution;
Voltage Footage; Strike
Media
102 minutes; 2023
www.fb.com/condorsnestmovie/
www.Strike-Media.com
German Nazis (versus
those that marched in Charlottesville and stormed the Capitol on January 6,
2021) residing in South America have lengthy been a trope…properly, a minimum of for the reason that
finish of World Warfare II, anyway. It has come up within the likes of the e book The
Boys from Brazil (1976) by Ira Levin and the movie that adopted (1978), and
a very ugly pilot episode from the anthology present, “Evening Gallery”
(1969) known as “Escape Route.”
To present a little bit of a
background, in the true world, the German Condor Legion was a mostly-air drive unit
of Nazis who fought within the Spanish Civil Warfare within the mid-Thirties (thanks
Wikipedia). Whereas this has no relation to this explicit movie, which was filmed
in Greensboro, NC, it explains from the place the identify originated.
 |
| Jacob Keohane |
Mainly, that is an motion
revenge movie. Because the trailer reveals, within the prolonged prologue, an American conflict
aircraft shot down in hostile territory, runs into a bunch of traditional ruthless
Nazis, led by SS Colonel Bach (Arnold Vosloo, who performed the title character in
1999’s The Mummy and its 2001 sequel, The Mummy Returns). He
brutally has the US crew killed, principally by his personal gun, with a lone survivor,
The primary crux of the story
takes place in numerous locales in South America, together with Argentina and
Paraguay, ten years after the occasions within the prologue, as the only real survivor aircraft
crash, Will Spaulding (Jacob Keohane) is on a one-man revenge mission to
kidnap, torture, and kill as many escaped Nazis as he can discover whereas looking
for Bach.
 |
| Arnold Vosloo |
On a psychological and
socio-political degree, he’s so filled with anger and thirsty for revenge, he does
not understand that he has grow to be what he’s looking, on some degree. He’s so
compromised that he’s prepared to lie to save lots of a Nazi, Albert Vogel (Al Pagano),
from justice to realize info on his goal, however can’t see the paradox. He
is blinded by his hatred.
When he and Vogel joins forces
with Israeli spy Leyna Rahn (Corinne Britti) who desires to deliver atomic
scientist Vogel to Jerusalem to hold, the search heats up. It additionally doesn’t
assist that even the Germans are attempting to kill Vogel earlier than he will get to Russia,
led by the vicious Fritz Ziegler (Jackson Rathbone, who was Jasper within the Twilight
“saga”).
 |
| Corinne Britti |
Varied enemies grow to be compadres
is a well-used trope and this makes use of it a number of instances. There’s double cross
after double cross all through the story, as Will units to get Bach, who’s
hanging out with Heinrich Himmler (James Urbaniak, who performed Robert Crumb in
2003’s American Splendor) in mentioned Condor’s Nest, which clearly takes
up Act 3 (you don’t want a fortune teller or psychic to know this, or perhaps a
spoiler discover, as it’s within the rattling title, fer chrissake).
Held up within the Condor’s
Nest (a very nice chateau) is an elite bunch of head Nazi’s planning the
Fourth Reich, led by Himmler. Truly, the historic Himmler supposedly died
in Europe and by no means made it to South America, nevertheless it works for the story, so
why not, proper? I imply, they mentioned the identical about Adolf, and he was “killed” in Inglorious
Basterds (2009); poetic license is a gorgeous factor.
 |
| Al Pagano |
There’s the high-action
conclusion that’s harking back to a Rambo movie, or one thing with Schwarzenegger,
or maybe out of The Soiled Dozen (1967), a movie I totally loved as
a younger’n. The movie is filled with violence, particularly gunfire, however surprisingly very
little blood nor, it appears, South American characters.
What it does have,
nonetheless, is plenty of cameos that embody Jorge Garcia (who will all the time be remembered
for “Misplaced”) as a bartender, Michael Ironside (1981’s Scanners, 1997s Starship
Troopers, and so many nice others), and Bruce Davison (1971’s Willard
and the X-Males franchise). Even Vosloo’s position will be thought-about one, although
he is without doubt one of the essential foci of the storyline.
 |
| Bruce Davison (proper) |
Many social and political
points are introduced up, reminiscent of a hatred for Jews, and the consequences of revenge on
each the revenger and the revengee, with the border between them
a grey space (sure, they even use the cliché – and I’m paraphrasing – “We’re not
so completely different, you and me”). Together with the motion, this take a look at a tradition of
hatred, particularly within the current political instances, can be properly dealt with. There’s additionally a pleasant contact of Germanic mysticism and eugenics.
The surroundings is beautiful,
from impoverished environment and historic buildings, to pure wonders likes
rivers and forests. Even Peru’s Machu Picchu makes a quick look.
The actors are all on
their A sport, although Davison appears nearly uncomfortable carrying the swastika
armband, which I respect. I’ve to confess, I might have cherished to listen to him yell,
“Tear ‘em up!” even when it was in German.
As for the director, Phil
Battenberger focuses on conflict movies, from the Civil Warfare (the upcoming With out
Consequence by Vietnam (Level Man in 2018). He handles battle
in attention-grabbing ways in which makes the story compelling right here, and retains the
curiosity with out being excessive.
Condor’s Nest is offered on iTunes, Amazon Prime, Google Play,
Microsoft Retailer, Rakuten TV and Sky Retailer, and on disc in April.
IMDB itemizing HERE
