Review of New Kids Turbo (2010) by Caesar B — 07 Apr 2012

New Kids Turbo follows a long tradition of three minute sketches being drawn out into, sometimes, unwieldy feature length proportions. The difference being that at least this time it didn't come from the fetid stable of Saturday Night Live.

Now, I'm not sure if I'm the preferred target audience for this film. Not that that stops me from watching. Give me English subtitles and I'll watch pretty much most low culture comedies.

The plot, for what it is, follows a group of lads who all lose their jobs on the same day. After being cut off from the dole after a shopping spree of fast food, petrol and porn, they decide not to pay for anything else ever again. In life, they are numbskulls robbing take away places by breaking in and then cooking the food the police can arrive. In the media spotlight they unknowingly become leaders of a new-world revolution. Seen as a threat to social decency by the authorities, the Government make the decision to take out not only the five guys, but also their hometown of Maaskantje.

What I loved most about this film was that there was no attempt to make the protagonists more human for a larger audience. They are Viz characters come to life. Sacha Baron Cohen watered down Ali G for his cinema debut, making him a lovable rogue who only wants to save his local leisure centre. The New Kids shoot Nazis and steal babies, albeit accidentally. They are unaware that their actions are the catalyst for everything that is happening around them, so caught up in their beliefs that they are right.

The direction is reasonably tight and the jokes come thick and fast. Some do outstay their welcome though. The homicidal truck driver was funny twice, but it feels like you're pushing it after six times. Another bum note is the ten minute gap in the film where they 'run out of budget' and its left to the New Kids to reenact the scene until more money can be found. It just seemed like a laboured excuse to throw in a pedophile joke they had hanging around.

All in all, whilst this is not the greatest comedy in the world, it is by no means A Night at the Roxbury and, as such, deserves a wider audience then it is presently getting,.

Gaan zitten en wacht het, kut!