Ator 2 - L'invincibile Orion

The Blade Master
One-sheet for The Blade Master, one of several titles for the film
Directed by	Joe D'Amato
Produced by	John Newman
Written by	Joe D'Amato
Starring	Miles O'Keeffe Lisa Foster David Brandon Charles Borromel Chen Wong Robert Black Donald Hodson
Music by	Carlo Rustichelli
Cinematography	Joe D'Amato (as Federico Slonisco)
Edited by	David Framer
Distributed by	New Line Cinema
Release date	February 15, 1984 (U.S.)
Running time	92 min
Country	Italy
Language	Italian

Ator 2 - L'invincibile Orion (aka Ator 2: The Blade Master) is an Italian film that was made in 1984. The movie was written and directed by Joe d'Amato. It stars Miles O'Keeffe as Ator, a man skilled in not only fighting, but in many other arts as well. It also stars Charles Borromel as Akronas, a wise ruler and teacher who is also called the Great One. Lisa Foster stars as Mila, the daughter of Akronas, and David Brandon as Zor — the principal villain of the film. The film was released in theaters as Blade Master.

It received the name Cave Dwellers on television after it was re-edited by distributor Film Ventures International. It is the sequel to 1982's Ator, the Fighting Eagle and was followed by 2 other sequels, Iron Warrior and Quest for the Mighty Sword. The movies were made to capitalize on the popularity of the Conan movies which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger. The films were all directed by Joe D'Amato with the exception of Iron Warrior, which D'Amato never considered part of the canon since it was made without his cooperation by director Alfonso Brescia.

The movie was released in English under various titles: Ator the Invincible 2, The Blade Master, Ator, the Blade Master, Cave Dwellers and The Return. It was featured in the premiere episode of the third season of Mystery Science Theater 3000, under the title Cave Dwellers. O'Keefe was reportedly amused by the show's take on the film and called Best Brains (MST3K's production company) to personally request a copy of the episode. It is one of the most popular episodes of the series. The MST3K version of the movie is available in both VHS and DVD formats.

Akronas has discovered the Geometric Nucleus during the course of his research. The Nucleus is a device of incredible power that could be a terrible weapon. Akronas feels that the Nucleus must be kept from evil men at all costs. When he learns that the evil Zor and his army are approaching his castle, he asks his daughter Mila to bring his former student Ator back to help defeat Zor. Mila runs away to find Ator. Zor's soldiers enter and begin beating Akronas, but Zor angrily sends them away to maintain the image of a man who would only use violence if needed.