An extra dose of Gallic weirdness courtesy of Quentin Dupieux; a superhero flick-turned-shaggy dog story as the brave avengers Tobacco Force go on a camping retreat to strengthen their team cohesion.
A breath of fresh air and contains enough moments of invention and flawless comedy to amuse and charm.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2022
Smoking Causes Coughing 2022
Fumer fait tousser
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No one makes cinema like playful Gallic absurdist and musical magician Quentin Dupieux aka Mr Oizo, and that’s a good thing. Dupieux is a cine-ranconteur deep in love with the very nature of storytelling, whose work is a joyous amalgam of Buñuel, Monty Python and Spike Jonze. Prior festival hits like Deerskin (NZIFF 2019) and Mandibles (NZIFF 2021) mean we’re super-confident his latest two offerings in this year’s line-up will not disappoint (see Incredible but True).
For those who haven’t encountered Dupieux’s work, take a plunge into his mad universe with this, his latest pop concoction involving ‘Tobacco Force Five’, a group of snappily Daft Punk-coutoured superheroes who battle kaiju-esque monsters with their toxic powers. Their boss, Didier, a Hugh Hefner-vibing and drooling rat-puppet, informs them that dastardly Lizardin plans on destroying earth very soon and they must go camping to get their mojo back before battling their nemesis.
The film then evolves into a parody of portmanteau pics with the team sharing campfire tales, one involving a dimwit and farming equipment that is a hysterical showstopper. This celebration of the true power of whimsy is the perfect antidote to a cold, grey antipodean winter. Unrelentingly sweet and silly, this is the best hang-out flick in the entire NZIFF – BYO heroic squad to check out. — Ant Timpson