The setting for this story is following World War III...a dismal time at best. Mr. Swayze stars in the role of a drifter (a recurring theme for him it seems) and has no name throughout the film. He's simply the Nomad. An apt name for his character as the beginning of the movie shows him wandering around in the mounds of sand before coming upon his old war instructor who is on his way to become a peacemaker in the village of Meridian. Of course, we all know that something has to happen to cause the Nomad to carry on with his journey and happen it does. His instructor is killed by a rather gross looking man (with a WILD hairdresser) played well by Christopher Neame. This sets the tone for the remainder of the film. Revenge becomes the Nomad's motivation.

The Nomad follows the course his instructor would take and finds himself in the land of Meridian. There he finds a woman named Kasha who has a son named Jux. Kasha is no stranger to Patrick as she is played by his real life wife, Lisa Niemi. The main storyline is the lack of water since the war and the mean man of the village, Damnil (played by Anthony Zerbe), trying to control the valley.

Supported by lots of extras, this drama has much bloodshed and is probably not appropriate for younger children (thus the R rating - plus some language is not appropriate for small ears). Lots of fights (with shades of Roadhouse kickboxing), of course the love theme between Kasha and the Nomad (what would a Swayze movie be without that?), a bathtub scene that will have the Swayzemaniacs oohing and drooling (as did this reviewer), and the ever present Hollywood theme of good versus evil.

Swayze is engaging as his character interacts with Jux. The Swayze grins are very apparent....the love of children can be seen in his eyes. Shades of the old western "Shane" come to mind as we watch the small boy grow to love the Nomad....and the ending of the movie is almost an instant replay of the touching ending to "Shane". Also, as this reviewer was watching, the Swayze movie "Three Wishes" came to mind as I saw the interaction between Jux and Nomad in the scene about meditation.

If you're into Patrick Swayze, you'll probably enjoy this movie. If you're not....well....the script leaves a lot to be desired. The conversations are stilted at best. Redeeming factors for Swayze fans include: a few "cute" one liners, his wonderful eyes, his youthful grins, and the short scene of him in the bathtub. The love scenes between he and Kasha are not the usual wild, explosive, "giving you butterflies in the stomach" type scenes we are accustomed to expect from Patrick.

Overall, the movie is passable. Not great, but somewhat entertaining. Even Patrick can't redeem a script with poor lines...although his presence on the screen is certainly a reason to rent the movie.