(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“In a Post Apocalyptic Wasteland, a hardened Marshal uncovers a mysterious device and sets out in search of answers, while something powerful watches from above.”
Sometimes the job of a reviewer – good or bad – is to highlight not so much why a particular project deserves to be widely seen and/or praised so much as it is to shed a bit of favorable light on an otherwise forgettable flick that merits being found by a certain audience.
In that respect, let me clarify a few things right up front: 2026’s Wasteland Cop from writer/director Angelo Lopes isn’t an especially remarkable achievement that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with a great number of studio releases. It has no big names. It has no signature action sequences. It lacks the narrative punch to likely be remembered well into the next decade. Nor does it have the intellectual depth of something that might share shelf space with the greater works of George Lucas, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Alex Garland, Robert Zemeckis, or even – say – Stuart Gordon (for those of you who know the name).
But …
What it lacks it modestly balances with sheer guerilla independent filmmaking moxie – the likes of which genre fans clamor for in B-Movies but don’t see all that much these days – and that’s why I find it a cause for celebration … if even only a small festival of one’s closest friends and like-minded neighbors.
The Marshal (played by Brendan Guy Murphy) has stumbled across a piece of technology that shouldn’t be in the hands of the little people who’ve lasted as long as they have in the Apocalypse. Lo and behold, there are those who’ll kill to recover this tech, including the blood-drenched and mutated Gungnir and a cabal savage wannabes who’ll stop at nothing for a chance to rise what services as daily life in the Wasteland. Joined by a few of his law-abiding regulars, The Marshal sets his sights on unraveling the secrets behind this curious artifact even if it means taking down a criminal mastermind whose secret identity might lie perilously close to the famed lawman himself.
The upside to Wasteland Cop is that its clearly derivative, so much so that it likely won’t be difficult for those of us who traffic in genre releases to recognize some obvious influences. The Marshal is a reasonably close facsimile to Mel Gibson’s fabled Mad Max (1979), even so much so that the two drive similarly souped-up police cruisers across the blighted plains. It has replicants – a mildly watered-down interpretation of what Ridley Scott did famously in 1982’s Blade Runner – and perhaps even some small aesthetic nods to pictures like John Carpenter’s They Live (1988) and The Wachowskis’ The Matrix (1999). Like George Lucas’s Star Wars (1977), this wasteland and its various locations look entirely lived in; and those visuals definitely lend themselves to a world that’s mainly fallen into disarray no matter how far or wide one might travel.
But it’s this homage that kinda/sorta also sets up Cop for a bit of a disappointment.
As an auteur, Lopes clearly knows what influences he’s wanted to draw from in crafting his own cinematic universe (I’m led to believe this isn’t the filmmaker’s first time in exploring what life looks like after our big collapse). Those characters and sequences work best, largely because the writer/director has effectively harnessed those influences in translating them into this world: but – in the process – he’s left a lot of the small bits – the tissue necessary to link the chapters together – feeling a bit deadpan if not downright lifeless. When these connective pieces don’t work as well – or if they can’t muster their own level of eloquence – the fuller effort suffers as a consequence, stalling the momentum built on what feels familiar.
Now, thankfully, this weakness doesn’t derail this effort. Again – for those who need it spelled out – this is an independent film; and it should be approached entirely on that level. It has no marquee names. It has no studio-grade CGI budget. The blood, sweat, and tears to bring this to life likely was done with an incredibly small fortune, one that still was money well spent to achieve a dream up in light and shadows. Will it go down in genre history? Probably not. Will it get applause from those who embrace this kind of entertaining schlock? You’re damn right it will; and I’m happy to consider myself among them.
In fact, I’ll make this point once again that I’ve made many, many, many, many, many times on SciFiHistory.Net: I much prefer the days when the SciFi Channel (I am NOT calling it Syfy) used to embrace this type of feature in its Friday and/or Saturday night movie slots. With a bit of trimming and maybe a few extra bucks injected into the flick and maybe even another writer or two cracking this nut, Cop could very well win back fans to SciFi (still not calling it Syfy) for being both similar and different enough from what’s come before. It’s a cinematic clone of something you’ve seen but without enough variances to give it a lingering freshness. Here’s hoping that those who like this kind of ‘diamond in the rough’ schlock find it because rarely do small flicks deliver exactly what they promise. There’s always a bit of nobility in that.
Wasteland Cop (2026) was produced by Lemonade Acre. DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Indican Pictures. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I can still assure readers that – for the most part – Cop has respectable sights and sounds – some of it obviously inspired by other films – and it all works well enough to keep one’s eyes interested but perhaps not one’s gray matter. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? As per usual, there’s a making-of short that really works more as a bloated advertisement for the film itself – not complaining, just being honest – along with trailers for other genre releases. Frankly, I would’ve liked more, but that’s just me being me.
Recommended.
Dammit, kids, I’m much too old to explain why I enjoy what I do; and – in spite of a sometimes-confusing narrative – Wasteland Cop is exactly the kind of good-natured, well-intentioned schlock I wish more storytellers would dabble in. Yes, it’s flawed; but when a good portion of those flaws relate to the low budget reality of indie filmmaking I’ve learned to overlook a blemish or two if there’s enough ‘heart’ to carry me away. This had it – not in spades – but well enough for me to accept it wholly for what it was: a throwback to kinder, gentler, clumsier adventures. Were I in my late teens in the late 80’s sitting around the fraternity house with my beers and frat brothers, it’d likely be exactly what we’d be watching on VHS over and over again.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Indican Pictures (via Allied Vaughn) for providing me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Wasteland Cop (2026) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“In a Post Apocalyptic Wasteland, a hardened Marshal uncovers a mysterious device and sets out in search of answers, while something powerful watches from above.”
Sometimes the job of a reviewer – good or bad – is to highlight not so much why a particular project deserves to be widely seen and/or praised so much as it is to shed a bit of favorable light on an otherwise forgettable flick that merits being found by a certain audience.
In that respect, let me clarify a few things right up front: 2026’s Wasteland Cop from writer/director Angelo Lopes isn’t an especially remarkable achievement that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with a great number of studio releases. It has no big names. It has no signature action sequences. It lacks the narrative punch to likely be remembered well into the next decade. Nor does it have the intellectual depth of something that might share shelf space with the greater works of George Lucas, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Alex Garland, Robert Zemeckis, or even – say – Stuart Gordon (for those of you who know the name).
But …
What it lacks it modestly balances with sheer guerilla independent filmmaking moxie – the likes of which genre fans clamor for in B-Movies but don’t see all that much these days – and that’s why I find it a cause for celebration … if even only a small festival of one’s closest friends and like-minded neighbors.
The Marshal (played by Brendan Guy Murphy) has stumbled across a piece of technology that shouldn’t be in the hands of the little people who’ve lasted as long as they have in the Apocalypse. Lo and behold, there are those who’ll kill to recover this tech, including the blood-drenched and mutated Gungnir and a cabal savage wannabes who’ll stop at nothing for a chance to rise what services as daily life in the Wasteland. Joined by a few of his law-abiding regulars, The Marshal sets his sights on unraveling the secrets behind this curious artifact even if it means taking down a criminal mastermind whose secret identity might lie perilously close to the famed lawman himself.
The upside to Wasteland Cop is that its clearly derivative, so much so that it likely won’t be difficult for those of us who traffic in genre releases to recognize some obvious influences. The Marshal is a reasonably close facsimile to Mel Gibson’s fabled Mad Max (1979), even so much so that the two drive similarly souped-up police cruisers across the blighted plains. It has replicants – a mildly watered-down interpretation of what Ridley Scott did famously in 1982’s Blade Runner – and perhaps even some small aesthetic nods to pictures like John Carpenter’s They Live (1988) and The Wachowskis’ The Matrix (1999). Like George Lucas’s Star Wars (1977), this wasteland and its various locations look entirely lived in; and those visuals definitely lend themselves to a world that’s mainly fallen into disarray no matter how far or wide one might travel.
But it’s this homage that kinda/sorta also sets up Cop for a bit of a disappointment.
As an auteur, Lopes clearly knows what influences he’s wanted to draw from in crafting his own cinematic universe (I’m led to believe this isn’t the filmmaker’s first time in exploring what life looks like after our big collapse). Those characters and sequences work best, largely because the writer/director has effectively harnessed those influences in translating them into this world: but – in the process – he’s left a lot of the small bits – the tissue necessary to link the chapters together – feeling a bit deadpan if not downright lifeless. When these connective pieces don’t work as well – or if they can’t muster their own level of eloquence – the fuller effort suffers as a consequence, stalling the momentum built on what feels familiar.
Now, thankfully, this weakness doesn’t derail this effort. Again – for those who need it spelled out – this is an independent film; and it should be approached entirely on that level. It has no marquee names. It has no studio-grade CGI budget. The blood, sweat, and tears to bring this to life likely was done with an incredibly small fortune, one that still was money well spent to achieve a dream up in light and shadows. Will it go down in genre history? Probably not. Will it get applause from those who embrace this kind of entertaining schlock? You’re damn right it will; and I’m happy to consider myself among them.
In fact, I’ll make this point once again that I’ve made many, many, many, many, many times on SciFiHistory.Net: I much prefer the days when the SciFi Channel (I am NOT calling it Syfy) used to embrace this type of feature in its Friday and/or Saturday night movie slots. With a bit of trimming and maybe a few extra bucks injected into the flick and maybe even another writer or two cracking this nut, Cop could very well win back fans to SciFi (still not calling it Syfy) for being both similar and different enough from what’s come before. It’s a cinematic clone of something you’ve seen but without enough variances to give it a lingering freshness. Here’s hoping that those who like this kind of ‘diamond in the rough’ schlock find it because rarely do small flicks deliver exactly what they promise. There’s always a bit of nobility in that.
Wasteland Cop (2026) was produced by Lemonade Acre. DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Indican Pictures. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I can still assure readers that – for the most part – Cop has respectable sights and sounds – some of it obviously inspired by other films – and it all works well enough to keep one’s eyes interested but perhaps not one’s gray matter. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? As per usual, there’s a making-of short that really works more as a bloated advertisement for the film itself – not complaining, just being honest – along with trailers for other genre releases. Frankly, I would’ve liked more, but that’s just me being me.
Recommended.
Dammit, kids, I’m much too old to explain why I enjoy what I do; and – in spite of a sometimes-confusing narrative – Wasteland Cop is exactly the kind of good-natured, well-intentioned schlock I wish more storytellers would dabble in. Yes, it’s flawed; but when a good portion of those flaws relate to the low budget reality of indie filmmaking I’ve learned to overlook a blemish or two if there’s enough ‘heart’ to carry me away. This had it – not in spades – but well enough for me to accept it wholly for what it was: a throwback to kinder, gentler, clumsier adventures. Were I in my late teens in the late 80’s sitting around the fraternity house with my beers and frat brothers, it’d likely be exactly what we’d be watching on VHS over and over again.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Indican Pictures (via Allied Vaughn) for providing me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Wasteland Cop (2026) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
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