RKSS (Roadkill Superstar) are a group of Canadian film makers from Montreal, Quebec consisting of Anouk Whissel, François Simard and Yoanne-Karl Whissel. The group have made a number of underground films including a well-received short called Bagman. Turbo Kid started as another short film made for a contest in an anthology called The ABC's of Death where all the shorts in the collection begin with every letter of the alphabet, in this case Turbo Kid was called T is for Turbo Kid. That short was transformed into a full length feature film with the help of Canadian filmmaker/executive producer Jason Eisener (Hobo With A Shotgun, Treevenge) who saw serious potential in RKSS and the Turbo Kid idea. Thus, Turbo Kid was born and all praise its creation because this reviewer considers it to be one of his favorite films of 2015 and it should not be missed.

After several viewings this review was born and I urge anyone into humorous sci-fi/80's and 90's nostalgia and old Peter Jackson gore films to pick it up, especially this beautiful steelbook Blu-ray/DVD collector’s edition. It comes with a plastic slipcase and a sweet steelbook case, enclosed with a nice little booklet with different story boards, sketches and origins of the film. The Blu-ray is pristine and a pleasure to watch. Beautiful packaging and a flawless transfer for this Canadian/New Zealand co-production.

What makes Turbo Kid work so well is the sheer fun the creators and actors/actresses seemed to be having while making it. The cast for the movie and the crazy practical gore effects are a delight to behold. Playing the lead role as "The Kid" we have Munro Chambers, who in true Canadian style had a stint on the TV show Degrassi: The Next Generation. Munro gives a great performance as a vulnerable boy on his own, scavenging through the wasteland. We get a sense of his innocence which is tested when he faces the different challenges that cross his path and we see his character evolve by the climax. The one character that everyone mentions and steals the whole movie is Apple, played brilliantly by Laurence Leboeuf. Apple's screen presence and the relationship she develops with "The Kid" is hard not to smile at. The two characters are one of the best things about Turbo Kid, it’s fun, awkward and cool. The next major character is the badass Frederick "The Arm Wrestler" played in a true tongue-in-cheek fashion by Aaron Jeffery. He has the action hero persona, foul mouthed, tough but with a soft center. One of the most memorable and the poster boy for Turbo Kid is Skeletron played by Edwin Wright. He has a screen presence so strong that the fact that he has no dialogue means nothing, and dialogue in a film can offer nothing for some characters. It’s all in action and movements. Let’s take, say, Jason Voorhees(!?) for a little example. Finally the legendary Canadian veteran Michael Ironside lends his talents in a juicy bad guy role as Zeus, the ruler of the wasteland. A great role that must have been fun for him to play with all the great puns and one liners.

The plot of Turbo Kid is simple, the year is 1997 and the earth has ended. Much like in the style of most post-apocalyptic thrillers such as Mad Max, society has turned into scavengers searching for a clean water source (not fuel as in Mad Max mind you), while tyrannical ruler Zeus (Ironside) holds sadistic "Pool Parties" where participants kill each other for sport. Zeus has also come up with his own twisted plan to cure the wasteland's water shortage by inventing a machine that literally grinds up people and extracts their water content! Enter "The Kid" (Munro) who is alone and scavenging to survive. The Kid occasionally drops in to see local trader, Bagu (Romano Orzari who gives another great performance), hoping to get something to exchange for his scavenging goods such as water or the occasional "Turbo Rider" comic book. The kid eventually stumbles upon Apple (Leboeuf), who seems a little crazy and over-the-top to him, practically attaching herself to the kid from the start, even when they hardly know each other.

Turbo Kid is one of the best of 2015 and I support fellow Canadians making superb horror/sci-fi in this great fashion. The movie has one of the best soundtracks done exclusively by synth maestro's Le Matos, who have released a soundtrack for the film which I also urge you to pick up. The music, for me, made a big impact on my enjoyment of Turbo Kid as well. This whole retro, throwback 80's and 90's culture vibe in Turbo Kid has a fresh feel to it. We get BMX bikes galore (no motorized vehicles in this wasteland, everyone rides bikes), everything from walk-mans to undressing fountain pens, to the power glove, "The Kid" uses which resembles a familiar Nintendo power glove I once had growing up. It’s all style and substance and it’s crafted so well it works! BMX bikes were such a big part of the movie, they even had a BMX consultant.

I could write on and on about all the cool shit Turbo Kid is filled with. The crazy practical gore effects work is outstanding and plentiful. The sauce flows liberally in this and it has this Peter Jackson Braindead feel with dancing torsos, body exploding turbo blasts, one of the craziest eviscerations ever by compliments of a pedal bike and blood and guts spraying everywhere. Very impressive effects work by Oliver Xavier and crew. The cinematography by Jean-Philippe Bernier is out of this world. He makes old warehouses and ruins look beautiful and stunning. Turbo Kid won an audience award at SXSW, was an official selection at The Sundance Film Festival and was featured at The Fantasia film festival. Independent Canadian movie making gold right here.

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 DVD SPECS:
 Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 16:9 1080p HD MPEG-4 AVC
 Region: A
 Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English: Dolby Digital 5.1, English: Dolby Digital 2.0, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 2.0

 SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL:
 – Bloody Wasteland- The Making Of Turbo Kid
 – T Is For Turbo short film
 – Web Clips: Apple, The Kid, Zeus, Fantasia, Gore, Stunt and Funny
 – English and French commentary
 – French Dub
 – Limited Edition Collectors Production Booklet