Street Trash 4K 2024 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

By 2050, global economic upheaval has wiped out Cape Town’s middle class, leaving the city divided between the ultra-rich and the destitute. Ronald and his homeless friends uncover a plot by the local government to “eradicate” the homeless population using a sinister chemical known as “V.”

Review 4K Movie

Produced by boutique label Vinegar Syndrome and shot on 35mm, that's where the positives end.

From director Ryan Kruger, who made the artificially weird "Fried Barry (2020)", comes a "sequel" to a charming little cult film with a very Brooklyn vibe from 1987.

The original worked as both a time capsule of 1980s New York and a sincere dramatization of homeless people living on the streets—occasionally melting because they got their hands on a stash of "Viper" bottles from a pawn shop. And yes, penis-tossing was among their pastimes. Another factor that made the original film memorable was talented improv actor James Lorinz, who made enough of an impression as a doorman to land the lead role in Frank Henenlotter’s "Frankenhooker (1990)".

This sequel (reboot, remake, what is it?), however, lacks James Lorinz, moves the setting to South Africa, and makes the circumstantial melting of hobos the main "event." It replaces the endearing homeless characters with forced, painfully unfunny caricatures who try so hard to be quirky and weird that it becomes embarrassing. The "Viper" bottles are now part of a corrupt government official's plan to "clean" the streets of homeless people in a dystopian city, deployed as gas via drones.

There’s also a poorly animated blue imaginary muppet, voiced by the director, annoying fourth-wall breaking, and a general feeling of watching a workprint rather than a finished product. Even compared to Kruger’s previous film, this is technically subpar, featuring a sound mix with uneven volume levels, ADR that often doesn’t sync with lip movements, four uses of the Wilhelm Scream, and practical melting effects that look incomplete—like they slapped something together from whatever footage they had and called it a day. The melting effects are less gruesome and less effective than the original, and the infamous penis-tossing scene has been "updated" in a way that will make your eyes roll out of their sockets.

Gary Green, who starred in "Fried Barry", essentially plays the same character here. Meanwhile, the rest of the cast spouts irritating slang in a desperate attempt to seem cool and funny. The film is so self-aware and smugly full of itself that I couldn’t even enjoy the final act of carnage.