The Banana Splits doesn't quite live up to it's potential, but still provides some solid entertainment as a children's show turned horror film!
Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided us with a free copy of this Blu-ray/DVD that we reviewed in this blog post. The opinions we share are our own.
“Nine-year-old Harley and his family attend a taping of his favorite variety kids’ show, The Banana Splits, unaware that its eponymous animatronic rock band just learned their show has been canceled – and the band’s not gonna let that happen. As the Bana Splits break from their programming and wreak havoc all over the soundstage, the body count rises. Harley, his mom and their new pals must escape the Splits or remain their audience…forever.”
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of this Blu-ray/DVD that I reviewed in this blog post. The opinions I share are my own.
The Banana Splits television show was a bit before my time, but my childhood nevertheless included animatronic rock bands every time my parents took me to Showbiz Pizza Place. Although I don’t think I was ever frightened of the possibility of them coming to life and massacring the pizza party, it’s an extremely interesting concept taking this obscure Hanna-Barbera property that was designed as a kid’s show and turning it into a horror film. It’s a great play on nostalgia for those who may have grown up watching the show.
The film itself, being a direct to streaming/airing on the Syfy channel, is about what you’d expect from a lower-budget horror film of this caliber. They do some really interesting things with it, most of all, getting the feel of the film pretty spot on. Although this does take place in present day as we know thanks to cell phones and streaming devices present in the film, the entirety of the sets, the décor, the costumes, all scream 1970’s. It’s a unique blend of two different eras that pay homage to the Banana Splits origins but also keep it modern. The film also has a pretty good tongue-in-cheek aspect to it as well, with the absurdity of a lot of the cartoonish violence of the show that gets taken to extreme proportions as the film progresses.
The biggest hurdle to get across is accepting that these things giant things are actually robots. They’re allowed to drive cars all over the lot with children present, left to walk around of their own free will performing complex tasks like opening doors, walking down stairs, etc. Of course this isn’t unheard of in robots constructed today, but for a children’s daytime show where they just dance around with instruments it takes quite the leap of faith to accept it, but if you’ve made it as far as deciding to watch the film you’ve already accepted some suspension of belief. Thanks to their mobility, however, this allows them to also perform some pretty gruesome and horrific kills, which all horror fans watching this are surely waiting for. While there are some very cool kills in The Banana Splits Movie, there are also some fairly dull ones, too, but they are done with practical effects and prosthetics, something rare these days. The mixture, combined with the atmosphere and the callback to the original song ends up making this aspect of the film enjoyable.
Where the film fails to materialize is in the presentation of the story. The main family dynamic is done decently, with a lot of the tension and conflict coming from the relationship between the kids and their mom Beth (Dani Kind) and their Step Father, Mitch (Steve Lund). While Beth encourages her son’s unconditional love of The Banana Splits, Mitch does nothing but question and belittle it, on the verge of bullying. Although it is a pretty paint-by-numbers dysfunctional relationship, it does work in favor of the audience wanting a swift and painful comeuppance. The secondary characters are perhaps the worst ones I’ve ever seen in a low-budget horror film. The father who wants his daughter to become ‘discovered’ on The Banana Splits show, the super-fan who is more interested in streaming live to his 218 followers than checking into reality is painfully embarrassing. These characters are paper thin and extremely one dimensional, a true detriment to the film overall. Despite this, there are a couple of exceptions: the kids, Harley (Finlay Wojtak-Hissong) and Zoe (Maria Nash) are actually decent child actors. Their roles don’t allow for much substance, but for what they’re asked to do, they do well. Dani Kind portrays Beth as a very strong character despite the jerk she’s married to, and Naledi Majola as Paige was also a pleasant surprise in an otherwise unimpressive list of characters.
Video
The Banana Splits Movie is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 1.78:1. The transfer is free of any defects and looks great. The tone of the film I mentioned earlier that has a 1970’s feel to it is maintained on screen, with a yellow/orangish hue to it that accentuates the tone. Colors are well balanced, and despite the majority of the film taking place in the darkness of a soundstage, things are well lit and quite clear.
Audio
The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. The track sounds exceptional, with a good balance between the surrounds and dialogue from the center channel. You’ll experience a good mix of it all, with several action/horror sequences and musical numbers that sound incredible.
Special Features
These very short featurettes take some interesting looks behind the scenes and the motivations for creating this film.
- The Banana Splits: Behind the Horror
- Terror on Set
- Breaking News! The Banana Splits Massacre
The Banana Splits Movie had a lot of potential to be something very creative, taking this old concept and turning it on its head into something completely different. Although it misses a lot of opportunities to be very unique and take it to another level, there are some aspects to it that were quite enjoyable. If you can look past the weak story and enjoy it for what it is, you’ll have fun with it.