Sergio Martino's superficial cyborg saga "Hands of Steel" came out a year before "RoboCop" and six years before "Universal Soldier." Interestingly enough, this makes Martino's film somewhat seminal if you put it into a chronological cyborg time-line. These three epics featured cyborgs who suffer a crisis of conscience and rebel against their programming. Of course, all bionic adventures can be traced back to the television series "The Six-Million Dollar Man," but the Lee Majors hero never worried about following orders like the protagonists in "Hands of Steel," "RoboCop," and "Universal Soldier." Prior to these pictures, the biggest Hollywood cyborgs appeared in the "Star Wars" film franchise with Dark Vader as the ultimate cyborgs. Meanwhile, this slightly futuristic Italian melodrama takes place against an aura of political corruption and environmental intrigue. Pollution ranks as our foremost fear in America. An environmental advocate drapes the country with banners that proclaim: You Have No Future." Acid rain drenches parts of America. The villains deploy a primitive prototype of a laser weapon, and they possess a gadget that can penetrate walls and determine the number of individuals in a dwelling. Everything else remains strictly contemporary. "Torso" helmer Martino penned the predictable but action-packed screenplay with number of notable scribes, including Elisa Briganti of "Zombie," John Crowther of "The Evil Men Do," Ernesto Gastaldi of "The Grand Duel," Dardano Sacchetti of "1990: The Bronx Warriors," rookie writer Saul Sasha, with Lewis E. Ciannelli of "Arizona Colt" contributing supplemental dialogue. Most of these scenarists shared screenplay credit on several of Martino's films. Despite six writers, "Hands of Steel" qualifies as a fair to middling, a science fiction hybrid hampered by abysmal acting. Comparably, the film is like its protagonist. At one point, the hero states that he is seventy percent robotic and thirty percent human. "Hands of Steel" is thirty percent sci-fi, while seventy percent contemporary manhunt.The evil chairman of a major foundation, Francis Turner (John Saxon of "Enter The Dragon"), wants to permanently silence an ecology guru, the Reverend Arthur Mosely (Franco Fantasia of "Adios Sabata"), because he is interfering with his so they send a cyborg, Paco Queruak (Daniel Greene of "Kingpin"), to assassinate the popular leader. As it turns out, the same hotel where Mosely is operating out of with his minions is the same place that our hero is staying. Paco slips past FBI security, disposes of Mosely's second-in-command by knocking him out with a powerful blow, and then confronts Mosely. Paco experiences a crisis of conscience when he confronts Mosely. Instead of killing him as programmed, Paco violates his programming and ruptures Mosely's spleen. When Turner's gunsels embark on their search for Paco, they consult a scientist, Professor Olster (Donald O'Brien of "Grand Prix") who no longer works for Turner. Before his encounter with Mosely, Paco had been a classified as the best of the best, maximum in both efficiency and reliability. Olster attributes Paco's refusal to kill to memories from his youth clashing with his operating system. He thinks Paco is trying to recapture his past and rebuild his identity. Doesn't this sounds a lot like "RoboCop" with Peter Weller and "Universal Soldier" with Jean-Claude Van Damme, except "Hands of Steel" beat both pictures to the screen? Anyway, the henchmen kill Olster after he provides them with his theories and head to Arizona. Paco heads to his native state of Arizona and masquerades as a handyman for Linda (Janet Agren) who owns a bar and motel for hookers.While hiding out from Turner's hired guns, Paco finds himself caught up with redneck truck drivers in an arm wrestling championship that anticipated the 1987 sports opus "Over the Top" with Sylvester Stallone. A group of rednecks led by Raoul Morales (George Eastman) make life difficult for Paco. At one point, they drag him across the desert behind a tow-truck and then Raoul and his cronies beat him savagely so he cannot participate in the tournament. The sight of Paco dangling helplessly by his ankles while his assailants smash lead pipes against his physique is cartoonishly violent. Later, an arm wrestling championship appears reminiscent of an earlier Saxon movie "The Appaloosa" where scorpions were tied to the table where the match was held and the loser had his hand smashed down on the poisonous creature. Martino and his scribes have changed it up a little. Martino substitutes rattlesnakes for scorpions. This manhunt melodrama doesn't reveal Paco's true identity until almost an hour into the action. This low-budget, inferior thriller has a few good scenes and some bullet-blasting action but it is as moronic as they come. Fortunately, Martino doesn't let this nonsense drag on past 94 minutes. The acting is abysmal. Daniel Greene's performance is thoroughly impassive, but the bionic modification that his character submitted to could account for his wooden delivery. Naturally, John Saxon acquits himself well considering the low-budget and his inept co-stars. According to IMDb.COM, Saxon went to Rome to complete all his scenes since "Hands of Steel" was a non-union shoot. Had he flaunt the Screen Actors' Guild and done his scenes in Arizona, the actor believes that he would have died in the same helicopter crash that claimed co-star Claudio Cassinelli's life. Spaghetti western stalwart George Eastman is a thorough-going dastard! Look out for the scene when Paco tangles with a female cyborg. Claudio Simonetti's orchestral score enlivens the action.Some have accused Martino's Euro-Trash classic of ripping off James Cameron's "The Terminator," released two years before. Actually, Arnold Schwarzenegger played an android rather than a cyborgs in "The Terminator." The biggest surprise in "Hands of Steel" occurs at about 52 minutes when Dr. Peckinpah defines what constitutes a cyborg. "A cyborg is a human body with most of its internal organs, functions, ands structures replaced by mechanical and electrical substitutes. It's human in form and behavior, but it has incredible physical power and endurance." "Hands of Steel" is definitely no masterpiece, but it has a significant place in the chronological cyborg time-line.

A ruthless businessman, Francis Turner(John Saxon) attempts to assassinate a political revolutionary using a human cybernetic killing machine but doesn't expect that his creation would recall his humanity, softening the blows of his hands of steel leaving the target alive. On the lam, Paco Queruak(Daniel Greene) will find a temporary home working for a lonely female bar owner, Linda(Janet Agren) in the Arizona desert as Turner's agents and the FBI search for his whereabouts. Paco also finds an adversary in truck driver Raoul Morales(George Eastman as yet another memorable heavy, this time a sweaty, hostile, conniving aggressor who doesn't appreciate defeat, especially in an arm wrestling match, and often attempts to harm his foe in underhanded attacks)who eventually assists Peter Hallo(Claudio Cassinelli), Hunter's hired assassin, in trying to upend Paco so that he wouldn't leave a trace to his creator's organization.Sergio Martino's Italian imitation of James Cameron's The Terminator lays the melodrama on a bit thick, but Hands of Steel benefits from some exciting action sequences where herculean Greene's Paco crushes skulls and snaps heads of those that threaten him. Saxon's Hunter is as cruel and vicious as they come, having those under his command eliminated if they fail to carry out his orders in either killing or retrieving his creation..Saxon is relegated to a glorified supporting role, mostly ordering his men from a safe distance in his office, only at the end hitching a ride in a helicopter to personally survey the situation from the sky, although he does eventually comes face to face with Paco, as you'd expect.Being a fan of "human cyborg" movies, Hands of Steel was entertaining if cheap(..the attempts to make the weapons futuristic fail, such as a giant laser and a missile launcher) with attempts at building the central relationship, a blossoming love affair between Paco and Linda, a man made mostly of metal and the woman that helps him communicate with that human side that remains, is really cornball. The arm wrestling matches(..perhaps influenced by Stallone's Over the Top)are a bit of fun filler with Paco's battle with portly baldy Anatola Blanco a particular highlight..the loser would set off a trap releasing a rattlesnake! I thought the use of Arizona in this film was rather effective(..I'm quite fond of films in godforsaken destitute sun-drenched settings where most folks avoid due to the miserable climate)and Linda's remote bar, a place parked in the middle of nowhere, exactly the ideal location for someone on the run from the authorities and assassins, works as an isolated hellhole only bar scum would inhabit. Hands of Steel is a far cry from Martino's stylish giallo thrillers in terms of quality, but the film might be appreciated by aficionados who love B-movie low budget action junk. Terrific electronic score from Claudio Simoneti and a cool special fx sequence where Paco is repairing mechanical problems with his arm.

"An international industrialist is determined to stop the interference of a world-leading ecological scientist. The industrialist hopes to continue his profitable, but environmentally unsafe practices, by sending his cyborg assassin to kill him. His plans take a turn when the cyborg's human side takes control and he refuses to kill the scientist, thus threatening to expose the evil man's enterprises," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Poorly produced in Italy, and poorly dubbed in English as "Hands of Steel" - this is a, consequently, poor "Terminator" movie imitation. Star cyborg Daniel Greene (as Paco Queruak) is a handsome bodybuilder. Cool blonde Janet Agren (as Linda) brings out his "human" side. George Eastman and Claudio Cassinelli (his last feature) are okay; and, John Saxon phones one in. Mr. Greene's battle with the female cyborg is the highlight.** Vendetta dal futuro (3/26/86) Sergio Martino ~ Daniel Greene, Janet Agren, Claudio Cassinelli

THIS is a totally awesome, adrenalin rushing, down and dirty in-your-face 80's Italian exploitation effort, but of course you have to be cautious who you may recommend it to! If you're, for example, attending a convention for people with an enormous IQ and you got a couple of hours to kill, you probably shouldn't suggest watching "Fists of Steel" because the script's intellectual value is rather questionable. Or in case you're a guest at a feminist gathering, I wouldn't advise mentioning "Fists of Steel" neither, as the film is literally stuffed with macho characters and typically male showdowns. In fact, to put it rather bluntly, "Fists of Steel" is a movie for guys, and preferably guys that like their heroes invincible, their women docile, their action & violence graphic & plentiful and their dialogs and story lines rudimentary. I'm not implying you have to be a retard in order to enjoy this film (otherwise, I'd be one myself) but it's merely a relaxing and undemanding film to watch after a hard day's work or together with a group of friends where there's loads of beer and pizza."Fists of Steel" is basically an attempt to cash in on the huge success of James Cameron's "The Terminator", but without the rather complex time-traveling structure and advanced character developments. In futuristic America, where acid rain hurtles down daily and breathing poisonous air may kill you, beefcake Cyborg Paco Querak is programmed to terminate a blind & crippled environmentalist whose movement is seriously annoying big-shot industrialist John Saxon. However, Paco's conscience prevents him from finishing the job and he flees into the Arizonan desert. He entrenches himself in a cheap & sleazy motel where he falls in love with the friendly owner, arm-wrestles against aggressive truckers and patiently awaits the army of hired killers to come after him. There isn't a single moment of dullness in this movie and I was actually sad when it finished. The arm wrestling contests are incredibly entertaining to behold (muscles all over the screen), the car/truck/helicopter chases are extremely exciting and the fistfights are so harsh you can almost feel them. Daniel Greene is more than adequate in his heroic Cyborg-role but the supportive cast is even better with the almighty John Saxon as the über-bad guy, George Eastman as the jealous lead-trucker and Claudio Cassinelli (who sadly died during shooting) as one of the relentless hit men. Cassinelli's untimely death clearly caused a scripting problem, as his character is killed off screen. As always, Sergio Martino's direction is fast-paced and competent but nothing more than that. He was one of Italy's busiest and most versatile directors during the 60's, 70's and 80's, so don't expect too much typical trademarks or personalized styles as he just wanted to finish the job quick and proper. Claudio Simonetti, the multi-talented brain behind cult band Goblin, was in charge of the music and that's another reason for avid fans of Italian exploitation film to track this puppy down. Great testosterone-driven entertainment, love it or hate it!