TURBO: A POWER RANGERS MOVIE
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1997 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *
At what point does a film get so bad that it becomes good? Where does sloppy workmanship end and parody begin? One could argue that a film can only be classified as a parody if that was the director's original intent. TURBO: A POWER RANGERS MOVIE tests these definitional limits to the fullest.
Let's establish a benchmark. The first Power Rangers movie, MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS: THE MOVIE, was a fairly poor movie, but it did have a minimal plot, a few memorable snippets of dialog, and some likable teenage stars. TURBO: A POWER RANGERS MOVIE, the second, and we can only hope last, of the Power Rangers movies has almost no plot, an awful script, and lifeless acting. It ranks way below the first in quality.
(TURBO attempts to mimic the STAR WARS trilogy, especially RETURN OF THE JEDI, and thereby ride its wave of success. The opening credits roll by in the same fashion, the new wizard character called Lerigot looks like a cross between an Ewok and a Smurf, Lerigot lives in the woods like the Ewoks, turbo power thrusts the new Zords forward like a jump to light speed, Alpha 5 antics are similar to those of C3PO, Divatox's skimpy outfit is like Princess Leia's harem outfit, and the list goes on.)
As soon as you see the wizard, you will become convinced this must be a parody. His small torso has a huge head with splotchy lavender and gold hair and beard. His hands and feet look like something from a cheap Halloween costume. Overall, the outfit would be rejected as too unrealistic even for a theme park character. To top it off, his walk consists of little more than a rubbery waddle.
To keep the attention of the upper end of the intended demographics of the Power Ranger audience, the prepuberty set, the film has women in revealing outfits and men with bulging muscles. The female Power Rangers wear skimpy shorts, and the lead evil woman, Divatox, has a bulging bosom combined with a low-cut outfit. One could argue that the costumes are to keep the adults awake, but knowing how much my 8-year-old liked the aforementioned harem outfit, I suspect the filmmakers were going after the preteen group.
Since the Power Rangers are rumored to be paid minimal wages, the cast keeps changing. This time the teenagers, who look in their 20s now, are: Adam Park (Johnny Yong Bosch), Tanya Sloan (Nakia Burrise), Rocky DeSantos (Steve Cardenas), Katherine Hillard (Catherine Sutherland), and, the longest running member of the series, Tommy Oliver (Jason David Frank). Coming back for a special appearance this time are Jason Lee Scott (Austin St. John) and my favorite Kimberly Hart (Amy Jo Johnson). As always, Eugene 'Skull' Skullovich (Jason Narvy) and Farkus 'Bulk' Bulkmeir (Paul Schrier), return as the heroes of the terminally stupid.
The Power Rangers main purpose lies not in saving the world but in moving merchandise. To that end, the show has the obligatory new Zords. This time they are Turbo Zords that are fast automobiles with rocket ship interiors. They can go on land or sea and can, undoubtedly, be purchased at your local toy store.
There are exactly two interesting parts of the film. First, they let a 10-year-old, Justin (Blake Foster), become a Power Ranger. This lets the young audience identify more with the story. Second, Jason and Kimberly are put under a spell and become bad for a bit. Since this is one of the few times that they are permitted to escape their bland demeanors, it is a refreshing change.
The script by Shell Danielson and Shuki Levy has no imagination and little taste. The charm of the series is the focus on the teenagers, but they are lifeless in this movie version. With an audience of young kids, do we have to have Divatox say, "Hells Bells, what is going on now," and Justin say, "Come on - we got to get our butts in those cars." Were these added just to insure the picture would not get the believed to be less bankable G rating?
As the picture finally ended, I found myself musing about poor Amy Jo Johnson. I wondered if, when she was on the set, she was hoping that some producer would see this show, find her hidden talent and save her from having to do this anymore.
"Wow, this is fun," Justin tells us. Well, I'm glad he had a good time. Personally, I had hoped the picture would have been at least as good as the first Power Rangers film. Even that minimal request was not granted. Still, with a little editing and a few script changes, I could turn this picture into a great parody. Look out AIRPLANE!
TURBO: A POWER RANGERS MOVIE runs about 1:35. It is rated PG for cartoonish violence. Parents with kids under six should be warned that possible frightening scenes include a bloody wound, a fall off of a rocky cliff, a few monsters straight out of ALIENS, and a volcano. My son Jeffrey, almost 8, loved the picture, but I hated it. However, because it was merely boring but not painful to watch, I do give a single star.
**** = A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = Totally and painfully unbearable picture.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: March 21, 1997
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
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