VIRTUAL COMBAT (1995)
“Virtual Combat,” a 1995 sci-fi action flick directed by Andrew Stevens, stars Don “The Dragon” Wilson as David Quarry, a Las Vegas border cop in a near-future world where virtual reality reigns. Quarry and his partner John (Ken McLeod) hone their kickboxing skills in VR combat games, but their downtime ends when Dr. Cameron (Turhan Bey), a scientist backed by shady businessman Burroughs (Larry Poindexter), unleashes virtual characters into reality. Using “cyberplasm,” Cameron creates Liana (Athena Massey) and Greta (Dawn Ann Billings), two women from a cybersex program, and Dante (Michael Bernardo), a level-10 warrior from Quarry’s game. When Cameron refuses Dante’s demand to free his virtual army, the warrior kills him and escapes to LA to retrieve the program.
Quarry, tasked with stopping Dante, teams with Liana, who’s adjusting to real-world sentience, while dodging Burroughs’ goons and facing Parness (Loren Avedon), a lethal enforcer. The plot barrels through a mix of martial arts brawls—Wilson and Bernardo trade fierce blows—and low-rent ’90s tech, like shock collars controlling the “A-Life” beings. Dante’s plan to unleash his digital horde threatens chaos, but Quarry’s grit and Liana’s loyalty turn the tide. In a fiery climax, Quarry battles Dante amid exploding choppers and a crumbling lab, destroying the warrior and thwarting the invasion, though Burroughs slips away.
Shot on a shoestring with PM Entertainment’s signature stunts—car chases, practical blasts—”Virtual Combat” blends “Terminator” vibes with DTV excess. Critics panned its thin plot and dated CGI (think flaming outlines), but Wilson’s fists, Bernardo’s silent menace (voiced by Michael Dorn), and Massey’s topless cyber-babe antics fuel its cult appeal. It’s a gloriously dumb ’90s relic—martial arts meets VR schlock—perfect for B-movie buffs craving action over logic.
