Turbo Kid hits DVD and Bluray Tuesday

When TURBO KID played Sundance last year it was hailed as a great throw back to 1980’s or 1990’s kids films. The film was the talk of every festival I attended last year as everyone wanted to know if I had seen it yet. The word on the film was so high that I felt bad for having missed the film at every turn. When the film finally got a release in late August the film still remained outside of my view because the release was so small it came and went much too fast for me to get to it.

Of course good things come to those who wait and the film is getting released this week on home video including in a super special collectors set. More on that in a minute.

Those who were describing it as a throwback to 1980’s kids films are right one except that they left out the film is very bloody in an a wild over the top manner to the point a pin prick results in a geyser of blood. And the film is full of f-bombs, which while probably in keeping with the way people talk, is going to keep the family audience away. I say this because as I was watching this I was thinking how much my niece was going to love the film until the blood started and then I realized her mom was not going to let her anywhere near the film.

The plot of the film has a comic fan kid called the Kid who lives in a post-apocalyptic 1997 finding a power suit finding a power suit like the one worn by his favorite comic character, Turbo Man. Using the suit he battles the evil Zeus and his horde in order to keep the wastelands, and his girlfriend Apple, safe. It’s all low budget fun where everyone rides bicycles and makes interesting use of discard. As someone said it’s a no budget version of MAD MAX.

The film is also a blast.

Seriously the film works on so many different levels that it’s a truly great film. First the film manages to perfectly mirror the kids films of the 1980’s that I’m guessing the writer/directors grew up with on cable. Films like EXPLORERS, KENNY & CO, GOONIES, LABYRINTH and THE LAST STAR FIGHTER all seem to have crept into the film in one way or another. I used to catch all of the films when channel surfing back in the day and I was reminded of so many of them.

What I love about the film is this is the sort of film that a 10 or 12 year old would have come up with. It really seems that if a kid could have made a film back in say 1988,  this would have been it. Having made films when I was a kid the twists and turns and ways of coping with short comings are exactly the sort of thing that I used to do- for example since we couldn’t drive we came up with a reason to use bikes. We loved comics so we’d have a super suit. We loved horror movies so we’d have blood soak everything. And when we wanted to act older so we’d curse. It’s everything that I would have done back when I was 12.

For me everything about the film just feels right, most importantly the world absolutely makes perfect sense unto itself. So what if a couple of post 1997 things drifted into the film, it still feels right for the world the film creates.

Of course none of that would matter if the story wasn’t compelling and it is. The story is constructed in such a manner that we want to know what happens next. What is great is the film is in no way cliché. I doubt very much if you could guess most if not all of the twists. I had no clue where it as going other than the good guys were going to win, but even then I couldn’t be sure who’d survive or in what condition because people die and limbs are lost.

I love this film and my 12 year old self absolutely freaking loves the this film.

You have to see this film.

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And now it’s coming to home video in a super 3 disc special edition. I've ordered mine- you should order one too.

Here's the details on the super special edition pictured above:

In addition to the main feature on both Blu-ray and DVD, the Ultra Turbo Charged Special Collector's Edition will include Bloody Wasteland: The Making of Turbo Kid, a making of the movie featurette, T is for Turbo, the original short that preceded that film, several mini documentaries, Fantasia, Gore, Stunt, Funny, The Kid, Apple, Zeus, film festival introductions from BIFFF (Brussels), Edinburgh (UK), Sitges (Spain) and 2 still Galleries including Design/On Set, Fan Art, and 'The Ride' booklet. The suggested retail price for the collection is $29.99; and is currently available for pre-order at http://turbo-kid.com at $19.99. The collection will be available exclusively on Amazon.com and directly from the filmmakers’ site: http://turbo-kid.com/store

The content included in the “Ultra Turbo Charged Collector's Edition” is:

Disc 1 - Turbo Kid - DVD - Main Feature + Commentaries

Audio Options: English 5.1 Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Dolby Stereo, French 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles English (SDH), Spanish, French
Commentaries English, French
Disc 2 - Turbo Kid - DVD - Bonus Features

Bloody Wasteland: The Making of Turbo Kid (24 min.)
T Is For Turbo (original short) (6 min.)
Mini Docs: Fantasia, Gore, Stunt, Funny, The Kid, Apple, Zeus
Festival Introductions: BIFFF (Brussels)*, Edinburgh (UK), Sitges (Spain)*
Still Galleries (3): Design/On Set, Fan Art, 'The Ride' booklet
Official Trailer
Trailers from Epic Pictures Releasing
Disc 3 - Turbo Kid - BluRay - Main Feature + Commentaries

Audio Options: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Dolby Stereo, French 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English (SDH), Spanish, French
Commentaries: English, French
Website: http://turbo-kid.com/
Facebook: www.fb.me/TurboKidMovie
Twitter: www.twitter.com/@TurboKidFilm , #TURBOKID
Instagram: www.instagram.com/TurboKid1997