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| I present to you the 80's in a single image. |
For those not in the know, Kung Fury is a Swedish comedy film written, directed, and starring, only one person, David Sandberg. Standing as equal parts parody and homage, Kung Fury is steeped in 1980's Americana, lovingly recreating the tropes of martial arts, and cop movies of that period. Last year it took the web by storm with it's immensely over-the-top trailer, and ever since then, many of us (myself included) have been waiting with bated breath for this bad boy to drop in our collective laps.
After it's fairly successful crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, we finally have the movie made available for all to see for free on youtube. I've gotta say that this short film doesn't disappoint either. Kung Fury not only whole heartily delivers on its promises, but simply is everything I wanted it to be. A mindless, yet fun send up to everything that was great (and stupid) about 80's action movies. There are witty/goofy one-liners, ridiculous fight scenes, and enough testosterone to fuel a military submarine for the next century. It's made evident from the movie's opening five seconds (that includes vhs tracking lines) Sandberg and his merry crew of creators love this style of film more than anything else. I am a staunch believer in the notion that passion and dedication shine above all things, and not since Iron Sky have I seen a film with this small a budget have this big a heart.
The year is 1985, and Miami-Dade Police Department detective Kung Fury plays by his own rules. Having been bitten by a cobra and struck by lightning at the same time, he is blessed with extraordinary kung-fu powers, and has been cleaning the streets of crime ever since. Little does Kung Fury know though that he is about to face his greatest foe ever, Adolf Hitler (aka Kung Füher) as he has traveled through time to kill Kung Fury and become the ultimate martial arts master himself. Can Kung Fury defeat one of the greatest criminals of all time?
Just on that premise alone this movie should have your attention. Right from jump-street, Kung Fury's goal is clear. This movie is here to crotch-thrust its machismo rhetoric directly into your face. Within the first three minutes alone we're thrown into our inaugural action beat, and I've gotta say that seldom have I witnessed such an amazing statement of intent within an opening scene. Even with its paltry thirty minute run-time, it does in a half-hour what most modern action films fail to do in two. We know who the hero is, what he's capable of, and the core conflicts of the plot all within the first five minutes. While that may seem a like a lot to take in very quickly, it's actually expertly paced and made easy to digest. The beauty of a more silly story like this is that you don't really have to exercise a whole lot of brain-power to enjoy it. The big take-away from Kung Fury is really just watching a lot of the old tropes and cliches that defined the era get lampooned, while simultaneously get saluted. It's a fine balance to say the least, and one that is damn entertaining to watch.
It isn't entirely perfect though. While there is a lot to love about Kung Fury's passion, the overall script does leave one thing to be desired. Tragically, there really isn't much of a fight with Hitler come the end of the short, and after seeing all of the promotional material hyping Kung Fury vs. Adolf Hitler, I kind of wanted to see some more out of that final battle. Sure, what we have in the end is still hilarious, but I can't help but feel like there should have been a hilariously epic final fight between the two that would rock our socks off. I would like to think that this is simply where the limitations of the budget and run-time of the movie ultimately come into play. With only so much time and money to make this flick happen, we've essentially gotten the best piece of cinema Laser Unicorns could muster. Perhaps if Kung Fury actually got a full-length film treatment, along with a much bigger budget, we could see David Sandberg and the Laser Unicorns studio really spread their wings and fly. Thankfully (as of this review) Kung Fury has been optioned to become a feature length film!
Of course some will find the acting to be quite cheesy in Kung Fury, and to those people who are criticizing that aspect of the short, I say that you're missing the entire point. I do think that a couple of the one-liners fall a tad flat, but at no point should we forget that Kung Fury is a parody of action cliches. Performance of the actors isn't exactly the overall goal of an action flick; it's always been the action itself, which Kung Fury delivers in spades. I also would like to point out that this IS an amateur effort as well, which means that a lot of the actors on screen don't exactly have the most experience. For a first go though, I think this is still pretty impressive and professional looking. If this is the sort of stuff we can expect out of Sandberg and his crew in the future, I'm more that happy to continue watching them perform.
Visually Kung Fury is an 80's style feast for the eyes. Even though it's a micro-budgeted amateur film, it's a damn impressive one to say the least. Most of the movie is built around composite shots, green-screen effects, and CGI. While I normally adhere to the notion that CGI should enhance a movie, not make it, Kung Fury stands as one of the very few exceptions in my book. With the addition of VHS and CRT screen filters, Kung Fury looks and feels like the most awesome 80's action flick we never got see until now. Witnessing the fight sequence with a renegade-arcade-machine-robot sets the benchmark for the film's effects early on, and as we continue towards the climax it only gets better. There are so many gags and parodies thrown in just through the visuals alone that it's almost mind boggling. From 80's product placement bits, to a full on lampooning of 80's Saturday morning cartoons, Kung Fury does it all with much aplomb. Eventually we watch Thor (not the one from the Marvel films) two hot viking babes armed with heavy machine guns, a hacker who can turn himself into a robot, a Triceratops cop (known as Triceracop) and a talking Tyrannosaurus Rex take on the entirety of Hitler's Nazi army in a fight to the death. For those reading that last sentence I can assure you that this scene alone is as awesome as it sounds. I also implore you to read that sentence aloud because how often do you honestly get to say something like that?
Perhaps one of the most important pieces to making Kung Fury work is its amazing score. The combined work of Swedish synth-muscians Mitch Murder, Lost Years, Highway Superstar, Christopher Ling, Patrik Oberg, and Betamaxx is audible 80's snyth bliss that congeals the whole experience. I can't even begin to articulate how much I love the retro-grade vibe the music provides. Throw in a David Hasselhoff number written specifically for this movie, and you honestly can't go wrong. Even the music video to Hasselhoff's single "True Survivor" is ridiculously awesome, and you'd only be doing yourself a favor by watching it right this instant.
Overall I can't really complain when it comes to Kung Fury. It's easily one of the most amazing parodies I've seen in a while. I can only hope that with the full-length film being set to be made now that they can recapture this same 80's infused guitar lightning in a bottle. As a fellow creator, I find this movie to be downright inspiring to behold. This was a group of extremely passionate film enthusiasts who came from simply having an idea on a couch to making one of the coolest short films to come along in years. Kung Fury if anything else reminds me of why the internet is truly one of the greatest inventions mankind has ever made, because it was the internet that made this movie possible. Having taken all of this in since watching Kung Fury about five times now, it only further strengthens my resolve to get something done myself. The folks at Laser Unicorns have shown that if you have a good idea, and are willing to put enough hard work and dedication to what you're passionate about, you could essentially win the internet for a day!
It isn't entirely perfect though. While there is a lot to love about Kung Fury's passion, the overall script does leave one thing to be desired. Tragically, there really isn't much of a fight with Hitler come the end of the short, and after seeing all of the promotional material hyping Kung Fury vs. Adolf Hitler, I kind of wanted to see some more out of that final battle. Sure, what we have in the end is still hilarious, but I can't help but feel like there should have been a hilariously epic final fight between the two that would rock our socks off. I would like to think that this is simply where the limitations of the budget and run-time of the movie ultimately come into play. With only so much time and money to make this flick happen, we've essentially gotten the best piece of cinema Laser Unicorns could muster. Perhaps if Kung Fury actually got a full-length film treatment, along with a much bigger budget, we could see David Sandberg and the Laser Unicorns studio really spread their wings and fly. Thankfully (as of this review) Kung Fury has been optioned to become a feature length film!
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| We need some action! |
Visually Kung Fury is an 80's style feast for the eyes. Even though it's a micro-budgeted amateur film, it's a damn impressive one to say the least. Most of the movie is built around composite shots, green-screen effects, and CGI. While I normally adhere to the notion that CGI should enhance a movie, not make it, Kung Fury stands as one of the very few exceptions in my book. With the addition of VHS and CRT screen filters, Kung Fury looks and feels like the most awesome 80's action flick we never got see until now. Witnessing the fight sequence with a renegade-arcade-machine-robot sets the benchmark for the film's effects early on, and as we continue towards the climax it only gets better. There are so many gags and parodies thrown in just through the visuals alone that it's almost mind boggling. From 80's product placement bits, to a full on lampooning of 80's Saturday morning cartoons, Kung Fury does it all with much aplomb. Eventually we watch Thor (not the one from the Marvel films) two hot viking babes armed with heavy machine guns, a hacker who can turn himself into a robot, a Triceratops cop (known as Triceracop) and a talking Tyrannosaurus Rex take on the entirety of Hitler's Nazi army in a fight to the death. For those reading that last sentence I can assure you that this scene alone is as awesome as it sounds. I also implore you to read that sentence aloud because how often do you honestly get to say something like that?
Perhaps one of the most important pieces to making Kung Fury work is its amazing score. The combined work of Swedish synth-muscians Mitch Murder, Lost Years, Highway Superstar, Christopher Ling, Patrik Oberg, and Betamaxx is audible 80's snyth bliss that congeals the whole experience. I can't even begin to articulate how much I love the retro-grade vibe the music provides. Throw in a David Hasselhoff number written specifically for this movie, and you honestly can't go wrong. Even the music video to Hasselhoff's single "True Survivor" is ridiculously awesome, and you'd only be doing yourself a favor by watching it right this instant.
Overall I can't really complain when it comes to Kung Fury. It's easily one of the most amazing parodies I've seen in a while. I can only hope that with the full-length film being set to be made now that they can recapture this same 80's infused guitar lightning in a bottle. As a fellow creator, I find this movie to be downright inspiring to behold. This was a group of extremely passionate film enthusiasts who came from simply having an idea on a couch to making one of the coolest short films to come along in years. Kung Fury if anything else reminds me of why the internet is truly one of the greatest inventions mankind has ever made, because it was the internet that made this movie possible. Having taken all of this in since watching Kung Fury about five times now, it only further strengthens my resolve to get something done myself. The folks at Laser Unicorns have shown that if you have a good idea, and are willing to put enough hard work and dedication to what you're passionate about, you could essentially win the internet for a day!
Positive Factors
- Equal parts parody and homage to the 80's action films that inspired it.
- The concept alone is enough to justify watching it at least once.
- All the gags being made are great if you know what they're lampooning, and still funny even if you don't.
- Even with its micro-budget, the effects are topnotch, and it feels authentically 80's.
- One of the coolest scores to come along in a long time. Can't go wrong with the Hasselhoff!
Negative Factors
- The limited run-time and small budget do hold it back from becoming the absolutely perfect 80's parody film.
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