Surf Nazis Must Die

Folks, eat your heart out. I know Rand Hogen, who plays Teeth. His death-scream still resonates throughout Hollywood — and Bollywood, for that matter — as the model scream for all on-screen dust-biting. As for Rand himself, I know that from his incomparable acting you'd expect him to be a glitzy, world-traveling, supercilious snob, but he's actually quite a nice guy. (Thought the same can't be said about his brother, Rory, who, while no actor himself, fancies himself God's gift to the unevolved.) The rumor through the grapevine is that two rainmaking produces in Hollywood are bruiting about a project called Surf Nazis Are Fixin' to Die II, but it hasn't got enough funding yet. It seems to be a prequel filmed in the South on the Gulf of Mexico. I think they need to raise about $200. I sure hope that Rand gets the opportunity to reprise his role as Teeth, though by now he'll probably go by the sobriquet Dentures, which more befits a superannuated man. An Oscar awaits him, no doubt. Or at least a Reynaldo.

...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.

When I first heard about this movie, I thought it would be the greatest movie ever made. First of all, it's called Surf Nazis Must Die. Second of all, it's about an old fat black lady seeking revenge against a gang called the surf Nazis who killed her son. Third of all, it was released by Troma. It seems nearly impossible for somebody to screw this movie up, but they did. It was just one big boring scene after another and Momma Washington didn't do too much fighting with the surf Nazis. Somebody with talent needs to remake this would be tromasterpiece. This would be the end of my review but I need at least 10 lines. I don't understand why they think you can only describe a movie in 10 or more lines. And I have seen reviews that have been far less the 10 lines. How did they do that?

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.

Bad acting, writing, and directing sinks this garbage from Troma about a group of fascist punks who have taken over a beach. One by one, they are picked off by a vengeful black woman (Gail Neely) whom she holds responsible for her son's death. My evaluation: (no stars).