THE BANANA SPLITS MOVIE (2019)

Who would’ve thought taking an old kids show made up of giant animal creatures could’ve been rebooted into a modern day horror movie? Imagine if twenty years from now, they make a Barney movie but with all the characters going on a bloody rampage. That’s the premise of THE BANANA SPLITS MOVIE. A real show from the 60s (about music playing people in large animal suits) is updated but turned into a horror flick. I don’t know how they convinced the rights holders to do this, but I say bravo. While the story is pretty formulaic, it doesn’t make it any less fun. We get the main family: a young kid who is the show's biggest fan, an older brother, the d-bag stepfather, and mother. They all get tickets to watch a live viewing of the Banana Splits show in person, where they are able to do a meet ‘n greet after. Meanwhile, these robotic, giant creatures are causing their own mayhem backstage in bloody and wonderful ways. They nailed the tone on this one; instead of just having silent giant robots stumble around; they inject their own sarcastic humor when running amok and talk back to the hapless people. Whether or not this was in line with the original show, still a smart move to go this route. Maybe the tone just struck right with me, but we need more of these kinds of flicks: Giant animatronic creatures running amok with gonzo action and gore galore. Ever wanted to watch a live-action version when the Simpsons go to Itchy and Scratchy land? This is it. Hopefully the future Five Nights at Freddy’s film won’t disappoint either. Check it out for a wild time.

SLASH SCENE: Throwing pies at two unwitting participants during the ‘game show.’

SLASH SCORE: 4.5/5