A family attends a live taping of the popular long-running children's variety show "The Banana Splits." Things go nightmarishly awry when the animatronic robots who play the main characters on the show all blow a gasket and start killing folks in assorted brutal and gruesome ways.

Director Danishka Esterhazy relates the delightfully warped story at a brisk pace, ably crafts a sinister off-kilter atmosphere, delivers a handy helping of nasty gore, further spices things up with a wickedly funny sense of pitch-black humor, and pulls out the creepy stops for the spot-on macabre climax. Moreover, it's acted with zest by a game cast: Dani Kind as perky mom Beth, Steve Lund as jerky stepdad Mitch, Finlay Wojtak-Hissong as excitable little boy Haley, Celina Martin as the perky Poppy, Sara Canning as harried producer Rebecca, Romeo Carere as rebellious teen Austin, Maria Nash as the sweet Zoe, Naledi Majola as enthusiastic page Paige, Richard White as alcoholic series regular Stevie, and Kiroshan Naidoo as obnoxious fan Thadd. The filmmakers get extra points for using gnarly old school practical splatter f/x as well as for having the admirable audacity to put a deliciously dark horror spin on a beloved kiddie program with an avid cult following. A twisted treat.