(ThyBlackMan.com) One thing great about May 2015—yes, very specific time, I know—was the awesomeness that was Kung Fury. This 30-minute film hit El Rey almost a week after its debut and no one really knew what to think. It was surprising and weird to some and for both 80s kids and 90s kids who grew up on those 80s martial arts and cop films, this was love letter to action fans.
The True Survivor: Kung Fury
First off, we get this outrageous setting. Obviously, it takes place in Miami during the 1980s. Kung Fury is a cop who doesn’t play the rules. Like this guy isn’t even uniform or expected dress for a detective. He looks like he just looks like some dropped a quarter in for player one at the arcade.
As a matter of fact, Kung Fury is a 30-minute ‘90s beat ‘em up set
in the ‘80s. It’s wild. The chief of police is a triceratops—excuse me, he’s the Triceracop. I’m almost certain 75-percent of you rolled your eyes but I was grinning ear to ear with that being his actual name.
Thor appears—partially because it’s a Swedish film and there’s two Viking warrior women using guns. There’s also a hacker because there has to be. Ninjas, fascists, the robots, and the Kung Fuhrer are all foes in this. It’s a lot to fit into a half hour but David Sandberg did it, he told the story he aimed to tell in a small amount of time.
The movie also shines thanks to the soundtrack featuring some of the best synthwave led by Mitch Murder. Everything here was just a perfect fit. While the genre didn’t just pop up in the last decade in anticipation for Kung Fury, the two brings out visuals of one and the sound of the other. Sure, Mitch Murder led this soundtrack but the headliner was David Hasselhoff—on a Mitch Murder track. Again, it was a perfect match.
However…
I think the film could’ve been longer. Even an hour would’ve worked for me. I was really enjoying watching it and before I knew it, it was over. While it didn’t end with a cliffhanger, it was obvious the door was being left open for a sequel. I just hope it’s longer than the first. It doesn’t have to go feature length but there’s a lot that could be done in the 1980s alone with Kung Fury.
I mean, surely those ninjas are going to want a piece of Kung Fury and we haven’t gotten to him fighting cyborgs, dinosaurs, or anamorphic creatures. He wasn’t even in a life or death martial artist tournament with Michel Qissi or Bolo Yeung. There’s a lot of mileage left in the film to become a series.
Verdict
Outside of the one main fault in the film, Kung Fury is a fun comedy-action movie. You’re not going to blow a ton of time watching it since it can be completed in the period of a cartoon or Judge Judy. Also, it’s not hard to find. You can catch it on Netflix, it pops up on El Rey sometimes, and it’s available on YouTube.
I suggest giving it a watch, if you loved all that cheesy stuff from the ‘80s and early-’90s then Kung Fury is right up your alley. If you dig just weird stuff that wouldn’t go together in any reality, again: this is your film.
RATING: 9/10 (Highly Recommended)
Staff Writer; M. Swift
This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.