Primal Force

Stuck on an island with bio-engineered primates

This is similar to “In the Shadow of Kilimanjaro” from fourteen years earlier, except with the milieu of a prohibited Pacific island. Think “Sands of the Kalahari” on amphetamines, just with a television budget. Ron Perlman heads the cast as a brooding black ops type while Mark Kiely plays his frenemy on the rescue team. Kimberlee Peterson is a’right in the feminine department as Kelsey, but the director didn’t know how to photograph women. Petite Roxana Zal is also on hand.

In ways, it’s similar to the first half hour of “Planet of the Apes” (1968) with Perlman in the Taylor role. Yet that movie is so memorable because the creators took the time to flesh-out the characters before unrolling the mayhem; the same with “Sands of the Kalahari.” Not so much here. Nevertheless, if you appreciate Perlman and any of the movies mentioned, not to mention deserted island flicks in general, you’ll probably find something to like for quick throwaway entertainment.

Released in May 1999, it runs 1h 25m and was shot in Oaxtepec, which is a 90-minutes’ drive south of Mexico City, with oceanic sequences done in Ixtapa, which is a 7½ hours’ drive southwest of there on the coast.

GRADE: C+