REVIEW: Kung Fury

Trapped in the mind of every cinema-freak man child of the 1980s movie scene is a kaleidoscope of tropes, scenes, and sequences that typified the decade but never dared to pair along side one another in a single film.  Well the impossible has now come to life in David Sandberg's Kickstarter funded short film, Kung Fury.  It may only clock in at half an hour, but it is more homage packed and crammed full of action than anything from the library of Chuck Norris.  That's right, I went there.

Sandberg stars in the film as a cop who has been imbued with ancient Kung Fu powers after being simultaneously struck by lightning and bitten by a cobra.  He fulfills the long held prophecy as the one who will bring the most awesome techniques of the martial art into form, and the mean streets of Miami are all the safer because of it.  He must deal with having a new partner as well as travelling too far back in time, to an era where raptors shoot lasers out of their eyes, to conquer the biggest threat to both Kung Fu and society.

While the film is a complete joke, it is a joke with terrific energy and a great example on the micro scale of correct story telling.  The whole thing is a gimmick, and the smartest side of Sandberg comes out in never playing on one gag for two long and maximizing the script for the half hour run time.  There was a hope that it would be created into a feature film if it had gathered one million dollars from its Kickstarter campaign, but I think missing that mark was to its benefit.  Keep the jokes and references quick, keep them concise, and then cram the audience in a Lamborghini Countach and launch us towards the next one.

It is this precision that not only makes the film keep from getting stale, but makes it watchable.  After the first few gags, while I did most hearty a chuckle, I wondered if it was possible for it to keep it up for a half hour without me getting bored.  Most definitely it does, is the answer.  Heads explode, Thor wields awesome pectorals, and vikings ride giant wolves while carrying mini-guns.

There is also a charisma to the performance of Sandberg's that keeps it interesting.  He plays a cop that is a loose cannon and is too cool for school, talking in the menacing monotone voice that was popularized by Clint Eastwood.  It's not particularly easy to mimic that style and still have personality.  Just look as far as Adam Sandler's performance in The Ridiculous 6 to see how easy it is to cock up such a style and make it boring as hell.

If you don't lay in bed at night dreaming of all the cliches of 1980s cinema, mostly the love for cop movies and martial arts films, then there is a decent chance that you may ask what the hell was so special about Kung Fury.  It is probably best to just take a pass on it, if that sounds like you.  However, if the trailer posted below revs your engine to the redline of excitement, then get off your ass and check out the movie.  I promise that you won't be disappointed.

Rating - 3.5 out of 4 stars