Kaboom
In the press notes which accompany Kaboom, we’re assured that “youthful existentialism has never seemed so fun”. While we here at DDHQ didn’t realise that youthful existentialism had a reputation for being particularly dull, there is admittedly no arguing with the fact that this is, if nothing else, a fun film. A curious mixture of drama, comedy and sci-fi, its adventurous spirit is to be commended, but in the cold light of day, it emerges a little short on substance.
The story centres on Smith (Thomas Dekker), an 18 year old bisexual college student. Haunted by a series of mysterious dreams involving both strangers and people in his immediate circle of friends, his visions become increasingly vivid and disturbing, and as he desperately tries to assemble the pieces, fact must be separated from fiction and dream from reality as Smith’s dreams begin to point towards a devastating, apocalyptic conclusion. Throw in a lesbian witch, special operatives decked out in animal costumes and overarching themes of sexual awakening and identity and the end result is an intermittently compelling, bizarrely entertaining and unapologetically insane film that you probably won’t enjoy quite as much as you’d like to.
Kaboom‘s endless barrage of intense sexuality and frenetic, disorientating dream sequences mean that the pace never slows over its 85 minute runtime. Ultimately, this is probably a plus simply on account of the fact this level of sensory bombast goes a long way to providing a distraction from the fact that there isn’t a great deal of substance existing at the film’s core. The musings on the end of the world are undeniably reminiscent of Donnie Darko – a comparison made all the more prominent when James Duval makes an appearance. Playing a stoner guidance counsellor known only as The Messiah here, his portrayal of nightmarish rabbit-headed prophet Frank in Darko is a million miles from his character here, but when the two projects are awash with so many similarities as it is, it still jars a little.
Of course, Kaboom is the weaker of the pair. An entirely superfluous subplot involving Smith’s best friend Stella (Haley Bennett) and her relationship with cinema’s first romantically insecure lesbian witch Lorelei (Roxane Mesquida) is arguably the film’s critical failing. Stella is an almost impossibly grating presence, with her dialogue seemingly dreamt up by a focus group of middle-aged men and women tasked with compiling a list of MTV-generation one-liners. Meanwhile, the sub-plot’s inherent ridiculousness robs these scenes of most of their suspense, but any lingering trepidation is well and truly blown away by the fact that Lorelei’s voice bears an uncanny resemblence to Tommy Wiseau. As a result, it’s difficult to be swept away in her more intimidating scenes when all that’s brought to mind is Wiseau’s hilariously inept posturing in The Room.
Kaboom is a film boosted by its staunch refusal to stop for breath, but ultimately let down by a shaky script, a preposterous closing third and its shameless use of vivid, psychadelic imagery as a substitute for cinematic intelligence. An oddly endearing near miss, this is a peculiar, innovative film that is ultimately beaten by its various flaws.
