BEASTMASTER 2: THROUGH THE PORTAL OF TIME (1991)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *marvelous*
MYTHICITY: *poor*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *adventure*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *metaphysical*

While the second iteration of the BEASTMASTER lacks any of the darker themes of the 1982 original, it's at least silly fun, unlike the abysmal second sequel. 

As the film opens, Dar the Beastmaster (Marc Singer, still looking buff in the role despite the passage of almost ten years) faces a new threat to his world (represented by just a few location-shots in the desert). A new tyrant has arisen, seeking to bring everyone under his control with his (very small) army of raiders. This is Arklon (Wings Hauser), who has apparently had a previous encounter with Dar and his beast-allies before, since Arklon wears a leather half-mask over the part of his face that Dar's eagle clawed. Dar, for his part, has heard a prophecy that he must slay the brother whom he never knew, and in due time it's revealed that Arklon is that brother. I really don't know why any of the credited writers-- the dominant voice, arguably, being that of Jim Wynorski-- bothered with this trope. The script shows zero interest in how the brothers came to be separated, so that there's zero dramatic interest, and only some piddling comedic lines.

The sibling duel of Dar and Arklon is forestalled by the machinations of sorceress Lyranna (Sarah Douglas). She discloses to the warlord that they can acquire a doomsday weapon in order to quell all resistance by visiting a exotic parallel world known as "Ell-A." All the two of them need do is step through a magical portal right out of STAR TREK, and they'll be able to steal the great weapon known as a "nuclear detonator." 

But before Arklon is fully convinced, three cars from savage Ell-A barrel through the portal-- two police cruisers following the car of madcap heiress Jackie Trent (Kari Wuhrer). Arklon has his raiders attack Jackie and the cops, but Jackie gets away. I guess the cops get killed, though the film doesn't show their deaths, perhaps because such a depiction would have been a "downer" amid all the jocularity.

Jackie wanders through the nearby desert and chances upon Dar and his animal buddies: one tiger, one eagle, and two ferrets. The two humans make nice while Jackie tries to wrap her head around being in a parallel dimension. But after two or three jokey episodes, Arklon's men catch up with the duo, and they take Jackie prisoner while Dar is forced to flee. Then the soldiers take Jackie back to their commander, who's decided to use the young woman as a guide to 20th-century Earth. Then, as the villains and their captives venture through the portal, Dar shows up and follows them. Dar confronts Arklon and Lyranna in Ell-A, but the warlord uses his magic super-wand to delay the Beastmaster. Dar gets temporarily captured by the police, while Arklon and Lyranna go shopping for Earth-clothes with Jackie to advise them. 

There follow various alarums and excursions to burn up time, with Jackie getting free and reuniting with Dar. No doubt the writers wanted to distract from the fact that the two villains have no credible plan for invading an L.A. military base to steal a nuclear weapon. They get away with it because the script says they will; nothing more. Finally, after a lot more "fish-out-of-water" tomfoolery, Dar intercepts the evil warlord just as he's about to pass through the portal, and they duel to Arklon's death. Dar goes home with his eagle and tiger, but for some reason leaves his two ferrets with Jackie. Possibly Wynorski thought that a sequel might take the hero back to Ell-A. But since the next installment took place entirely in Dar's world, as far as I recall the ferrets are just back in the Beastmaster's care as if they'd never left.

The principal actors-- Singer, Hauser, Douglas and Wuhrer-- all give the sense that they're having fun with their roles, and that does a lot to prop up the weak script. But the only real consequence of either sequel was that they kept the franchise in play, which led to the 1999 syndicated teleseries, which boasted a few excellent episodes and a much better development of the Dar-Verse than any of the movies put forth.