America 3000 is best defined as being silly schlock, but it is the good kind of schlock, the kind that makes a person want to continue watching this film no matter how ridiculous or trashy it gets. In fact, it does get a little trashy sooner rather than later and it is so ludicrous that one has to wonder why Golan-Globus, the production company behind this masterpiece ever green-lit the thing in the first place. On the other hand, they were known exactly for this kind of fare ever since they started making movies. Boiling it down, the film takes place in a far-off post-apocalyptic future after a nuclear war where women rule all, at least that is until some pioneering men decide to change that. It is not the most original of plots, but it holds promise and surprisingly, delivers on it to a degree.

The one aspect the film could have left off was the narration by the main character as it simply takes away from the movie rather than adding to it. If the story were a bit stronger perhaps and had a few more on-screen relationships to focus on, the narration would definitely have been unneeded, but it is easy to see that it was used, at least in part, to fill up some of the dead time present throughout the picture. It is a weakness to be sure and the sign of a film that cannot stand on its own. That aside, it does manage to hold the attention of the audience once it gets going because no matter how cheesy it manages to get, there is some actual storytelling present to draw one in and keep them watching. Will Korvis manage to make his people smart, or at least smarter than they are? Will he unite the men and the women into a cohesive tribe where they might all live and work together with neither as a slave class? It is silly in every single way possible, but it is hard not to watch once it begins.

For a science-fiction film, there are few special effects needed – mainly the desert where the film is set to give it that post-apocalyptic look and feel. The costumes are nothing exceptional, but there is a bigfoot-like creature that provides some comedic relief and while it should not work in the slightest, it does. Some of the backstory explaining how the world ended up as it did is shown and it is by far the most interesting part of the film, yet it is from here that Korvis can use certain things to help bring about his plan to fruition.

As far as post-apocalyptic films go, America 3000 will fit the bill but there are some who do a far better job of it. The story is a little tame and it could have used a little punching up here and there, but for the most part, it was entertaining which is better than not being so.

2 out of 5