Surf Nazis Must Die

The "surf nazis" are a kind of biker-punk gang who live in a post-cataclysm Los Angeles. They have swastika marks on their faces and clothes and go by the names of famous Nazis, ie. "Adolf" and "Mengele". They are barely seen to surf, and the scenes in which they do seem uncannily like they were filmed by someone else, for something else... and somewhere else. They barely even go to the beach.

There is some rubble and abandoned buildings around the surf nazis, as you would expect in a big city after an earthquake. But there are also some interior shots of domiciles that look like they could be in "Better Homes and Gardens". Did the earthquake miss them?

The movie's lack of consistency with its locations means it fails at creating a believable world, post-apocalyptic or otherwise.

There are other gangs in the movie, and ones that seem like they might have been a little more interesting, like a group of young skateboarders who call themselves "the earth surfers - riders of the hard wave". A character who comes out of left field is the African-American mother of a young man who was supposedly killed by one of the surf nazis.

There is also barely any violence in the film, or effects of any kind, though there are a few flashes of bare breasts. The movie has one undeniably violent scene toward the end, where a girl is hit with a speedboat. The collision isn't particularly bloody, but then we see her decapitated head floating in the water.

However unrealistic, at least it gave me something to write about here in an otherwise boring film. It took me until the end of the movie to realise that the surf nazis were supposed to be the bad guys. The film is an alleged exploitation classic. It's statements like these that the word "alleged" was invented for.

Surf Nazis Must Die is one of the best films to be distributed by Troma and sadly, one of the least appreciated. The IMDb voters who briefly put the film in the bottom 100 should be strapped down and forced to watch Driving Miss Daisy until they come to their senses. I even disagree with the reviewers who lump the film in the "so bad it's good" category. I think Surf Nazis Must Die is simply good.

In comparison to many of its low budget contemporaries, the writing in SNMD is positively Shakespearian. The film has some semblance of a plot, the jokes are actually funny and the action is well paced. Most surprisingly, the film has a bizarre feel-good quality, which could almost be described as wholesome (if you look past the violence, sex and foul language). This is largely due to film's sympathetic heroine, the awesome Eleanor Washington, who vows to single-handedly take out the members of an evil beach gang (the titular "surf Nazis") after they kill her beloved son.

In addition to Eleanor, the film's minor characters also have a lot to offer. Smeg's relationship with his mother is hilarious and the surf Nazis are wonderfully tasteless, with members being named after Nazi "luminaries". The director makes several very obvious references to A Clockwork Orange, but despite their eye make-up and swastikas, these gang members are about as chilling as the Goonies.

The inevitable bloodshed is rather low key and the gore effects are simplistic at best. However, the innovative use of hooks and speedboats more than makes up for any lack of carnage. Unlike many zero budget action films, SNMD does not rely on blood splatter or gratuitous sex to pass the time - which under normal circumstances I would consider to be a huge failing. However, SNMD is generally in such poor taste and overflows with sardonic humour to the point where the film becomes utterly irresistible.

Surf Nazis Must Die is a brilliantly conceived beach holocaust drama/revenge thriller that you can enjoy with the entire family. Forget about the low IMDb rating and brace yourself for this evocative masterpiece.

A great title leads you to great expectations. "Surf Nazis Must Die" is a title that DEMANDS a movie overflowing with needless sex and unnecessary violence. Characters should be killing and dying and stripping and screwing ceaselessly and pointlessly from beginning to end. It should be filled with bizarreness, crammed with oddities that were included not because they make sense, but because somebody in the cast or crew thought it was a good idea at the time. "Surf Nazis Must Die" should have been the cinematic equivalent of 'found art.' Alas, it isn't. Rather the filmmakers told a largely conventional story of revenge in a largely conventional manner. And when there wasn't enough content to fill out the movie, instead of throwing in some irrelevant bits of sex, violence or weirdness, they fluffed up the scenes carrying the main storyline, making them slow and dull, instead of quick and sharp. Even the sex and violence that IS in the movie is dull and forgettable. But this is common enough in the low budget world - and not a sin - where high quality is expected to be beyond the means and talent of the filmmakers. But they should remember that quantity is also a quality and that a pile of low-grade industrial diamonds can be worth more than a few gemstones.

...but the film fails to live up to it, unfortunately. No, not for the reasons that most other reviewers have stated. It's Troma...so I EXPECTED bad acting, thin plot, hilariously bad dialogue, etc. That's why I watch Troma flicks in the first place. No, the reason that Surf Nazis doesn't live up to its brilliant title is that it isn't outrageous enough. It's far too tame for a Troma film, as far as I'm concerned.

When I first heard about this movie, I was psyched up to see it. Why? Because when you think "Surf Nazis Must Die," in conjunction with the name "Troma Films," you just expect something completely twisted...full of sex, gore, and sick humor. You know...a TROMA movie. But the bulk of this movie just doesn't live up to the expectation that I had.

This is atypical Troma, and not even all Troma fans will appreciate it. But hey, I guess it's not that bad. But with a title like Surf Nazis Must Die, Troma should have done better.

This film is no better or worse than others have described. It's silly, its corny, we know that already, I mean I knew before even pressing play button..... I have had my fair in strange, extreme, original , unconventinal movies - nevertheless I was never a bad-film fan, I like b-films through the passion of the independent anti-artist, but i haven't done much research in the legendary 'best' bad films...

I have to add that I have only seen Toxic avenger 1 from Troma... not much else, but i plan to! I really can't describe the emotions and vibe this films awoke! The perfect musical theme, some kind of early post-electro , pre-techno tune stuck in my mind, this piece of 'art' is not easily labeled as comedy, nor horror. I liked the fact that it doesn't want to be anything much, and it knows its values... Little talking & meanings, lots of wanna-be (?)style , lots of amateurish passion, lots of great synthesizer music (i happen to be one of the hugest fans of them all!) and cheesy (?) editing ....

Easily my best bad film, not that I have seen a lot of them, and for what it is worth, it's because of the music ....

If you have a somewhat strange humour and happen to like electronic music and 90s synthesizers, give this a try... quite a different take on praising this piece of trash, isn't it??