Do you remember the kids' show The Banana Splits? It's well before my time as it was at it's most popular in the late 60's, but I'm sure I saw re-runs when I was little. It's certainly one of those shows that has entered pop culture. Anyway, the company that has aquired the rights to the show has made a Horror move based on it. I'm sure that this has pissed off plenty of humourless boomers, which only adds to my enjoyment.
The story is based around a kid who is obsessed with the Banana Splits TV show. His Mum buys his family tickets to go to the studio and be part of the live audience watching The Banana Splits being filmed. Unfortunately the show gets cancelled, and we find out that The Banana Splits are actually robots. In their programing "the show must go on", and the robots go on a murderous rampage.
Yes, it's ridiculous, but it's also self-aware. I really enjoyed the black comedy aspect of The Banana Splits. It's dark, hilarious, and boasts some brutal gory death scenes.
Believe it or not, this is a very well made movie. The cinematography is excellent, and it's obvious that a decent amount of cash has been thrown at this. What sets it apart from many a ludicrous Horror film is that there is some genuinely great character development very early on. The actors are fantastic too, which makes the world of difference to something like this.
As with all good Horrors, there are plenty of annoying characters who get what they deserve, such as the Instagram obsessed narcissists, the man who is desperate for his child to get noticed by a producer so she gets famous, the cheating husband, the list goes on! The malevolent Banana Splits give us the show we really want!
The script is tight, the pacing is spot on, and the whole thing is over in just under an hour and a half. It never drags and is great fun throughout. If you love silly, violent Horror films like Chopping Mall and Demonic Toys, then this is definitely a movie that I'm sure you'll enjoy as much as I did.
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