THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE 8th DIMENSION [1984]

THE ODDBALL DIMENSION


1984, USA
W.D. Richter
8 // 10

Is being well entertained a bad thing? Did Peter Weller lose out on a potentially bigger franchise than Robocop? Is there any chance I could get some of the Perfect Tommy's outfits? There's only one way to find out!

You know that American school of concise journalism, where you simply delete all of the adjectives from the text? Bloody hell, BUCKAROO BANZAI! feels like someone deleted every second line of dialogue to keep it brief. And I mean brief in today's terms, the film lasts perfectly standard (80s standard that is) an hour and a half. It is an hour and a half of fairly wild ride I must admit. Wild both as in speed and sheer madness. In a way it reminds me of Marx Brothers films or the ZAZ trio where gags would be fired with such a speed that the viewer's mind wasn't able to keep up and fully comprehend the enormity of absolute nonsense pouring out of the dialogue. BUCKAROO BANZAI! seems to operate on the same principle although the comedy gags have been replaced with pseudo-scientific garble. Which works perfectly fine, since it all seems to make perfect sense for the characters. And not just the terminology but the total outrageousness of the whole setting. It doesn't take awfully long before you realise that BUCKAROO BANZAI! is simply a live action version of all those 1980s cartoons we've watched as kids. It has the same aesthetics, the same pace, structure and plot ideas. And at the same time, what is absolutely brilliant, everything does seem to feel coherent somehow. Yes, it's over the top but not too much. It's so 80s it could make even Duran Duran feel like London Philharmonic Orchestra and yet it is still most definitely cool. It's senselessly wacky but not ludicrous. It is (a little bit surprisingly perhaps) still rather good.

Which is, in no small part, thanks to a fantastic cast. The uber-cool Peter Weller, charmingly goofy Jeff Goldblum, ever so slightly underexposed Christopher Lloyd and utterly mad John Lithgow are the most visible examples but every other role shines just as much. Maybe it's that cartoonish feel that does it, with all the background characters being maybe a little bit short in the depth department but each equipped with some distinctive prop or property that make them stand out and be recognisable. And no matter what sort of insane nonsense is being thrown at them all the actors keep it together giving it a 100% which contributes to the characters being still believable and fleshy despite the whole caricatural appearance.

Of course, this dish is not for every palate. BUCKAROO BANZAI! is whimsical, surreal, silly and requires from the viewer not only a suspension of disbelief but also some of the expectations. It may be dressed up as a sci-fi but only for a fancy dress party. In fact it's probably less scientific than JABBERWOCKY was medieval. But it doesn't matter. The 8th dimension is a pure nonsense, the aliens pretextual and Buckaroo's skills have a throwaway feel to them but it really doesn't matter. It's not a Harold Pinter at West End, it's a roller coaster ride with your arms up. Not for everybody, but for those who like it, pure and unstoppable fun. A film that will likely become a part of my collection as I can see myself coming back to it every now and again.

I also feel that my brief review really doesn't fully give it justice, so have a look at the clip below (published by Film Society of Lincol Center). But be advised that you'd do better watching the film first, then you'll know why that event was so incredibly special.