“Death Race 2000” is notable, not only for being one of the best cult action films ever made, but for the amazing foresight it showed in being one of the many fictional tales predicting the entertainment of the twenty first century. Sure, video game violence and reality television were established before the twenty first century, but it didn’t become prevalent and common until much later, when the extremes for entertainment were established as norms for amusement. “Death Race 2000” is a prophetic and darkly genius action thriller that pinpoints the very nature of human illness and how we view violence as nothing more than a mortal hurdle we can ignore in the face of rewards.
It’s always nice when animators aren’t always interested in appealing to the whimsical and fantastical elements of animation. Sometimes, animators want to be bizarre, and “Murgi Keno Mutant” is about as bizarre as it gets. Even the animation recalls the work of Ralph Bakshi at certain points. In the near future, food is in short supply and the only meat available come from giant mutant chickens, which they survive on.
I guess with the not so stellar ratings of the fantastic “Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes,” Disney figured it’d be a good idea to lay the ground work for another “Avengers” vehicle. This time, “The Avengers” are much closer to their cinematic counterparts, taking off from the first movie, and including superhero The Falcon, who is slated to appear in the upcoming sequel. What’s sad is, when you think about it, “Avengers Assemble” is actually a spin off of “Ultimate Spider-Man.” Marvel has laid the ground work for this new series with guest spots from the movie versions of the Avengers since the show started, with appearances from Iron Man, Thor, and the sun glasses donning Hawkeye.
Watching this almost twenty years ago, and again a few days ago, I am still left pondering: Who exactly did this movie appeal to? What was the niche audience? Director Tim Burton bases an entire science fiction film on specialty trading cards from the sixties, he creates a meta-alien invasion movie that throws comedy and menace at every turn, and then piles every moment of the film on with big celebrities and actors. Who exactly did this movie appeal to, but Burton?
