By Tristan Bishop
Aren’t we all a bit sick of new films looking like old films yet? The likes of Hobo With A Shotgun, Death Proof & Machete all tapped into a nostalgia for the gritty 70s & 80s heyday of politically-incorrect exploitation, at once a compliment and an alternative to the never-ending stream of remakes of originals from the same period that have collectively infuriated horror fans over the past decade, trying to capture some of the magic that can be found alongside scratchy prints and practical gore effects. Some work better than others, of course, and in more recent years there have been a slew of attempts so second (and third) rate that the whole ‘grindhouse’ term is starting to turn off some horror fans- not helped by DVD labels who should know better applying the term to older films which never saw the inside of a theatre (let alone an actual grindhouse) during their original releases. So it was with some surprise last weekend that I watched (and thoroughly enjoyed) two brand new films with a slavish retro feel: the remarkably convincing giallo Francesca, which looks like it was made from off-cuts from mid-seventies Argento movies; and Turbo Kid, which looks just like the post-apocalyptic world looked back in 1983.
Our hero is The Kid (Munro Chambers), a scavenger in a post apocalyptic society who spends his days riding around on a BMX and reading comic books which he has found amid the rubble. The Kid and his fellow scavengers trade desirable items that they find for water, as water is in very short supply. In fact, there’s a bad guy called Zeus (the wonderful Michael Ironside) who controls the water and, as such controls the people who need the water (yup, it’s the Fury Road/Rango plot again), along with some scary henchmen, including a guy called Skeletron (although his name isn’t mentioned in the film), a mute dude in a metal mask who fires circular saw blades at people. The Kid is wise enough to avoid these people, until he meets an overly-friendly young woman called Apple (Laurence Leboeuf) who decides to tag along with The Kid in his scavenging (much to his chagrin) and manages to get herself kidnapped by Zeus’ mob. In time-honoured tradition, The Kid must become the kind of comic book hero he daydreams about, to save the girl and free the water from those who exploit it.
As we’ve already seen, the story of Turbo Kid is nothing new at all, harking back to the golden days of the western (which is, after all, what all post-nuke films are, give or take a mutant or two), so the pleasure here is all in the detail – and what detail. Although the world of comic books, BMX bikes and cassette tapes is a universal one recognisable by all, the film takes the spot-on eighties feel and then turns it up to 11 – primary colours splash bright against the barren landscape, giving the film a sense of unreality that is diametrically opposed to, say, the grim realism of The Road (2009). The visuals are aided by an awesome soundtrack by electro-fetishists Le Matos (whose 2013 album Join Us I highly recommend if you enjoy their work here) which had me grinning from ear to ear.
However, if you’re expecting the tone of, say, a Mad Max film, you’ll be slightly confounded. At its heart, the film is closer to a mumblecore romance than an all-out action picture, with Apple as the ultimate example of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope – and this is where I have a slight problem with the film. Although the love story element is very sweet and charming, I found the character of Apple intensely annoying. I understand not everyone will feel the same as me, however – and I detected a note of parody and understanding of the aforementioned Dream Girl trope (thanks to a character revelation in the second half) which eventually softened me to her somewhat, but it did mar my enjoyment of the first half. However, all was soon forgiven when the film kicked into some glorious splatter sequences that seem inspired by the work of Yoshihiro Nishimura (Tokyo Gore Police) as much as, say Lucio Fulci – much of the grue on show is practical (although occasionally augmented with the obligatory disappointing CGI) and it’s certainly excessive and amusing.
Turbo Kid is certainly an audacious, enjoyable debut feature for writing/directing trio Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard & Yoann-Karl Whissell, and whilst some viewers may be put off by the clash of styles on offer, get a couple of friends and a few beers together and you have perfect party viewing for romantic, gore-loving eighties obsessives.
Turbo Kid is available now on DVD, Blu-ray and Download in the UK from Lionsgate.