Top Knot Detective takes a look at the origins and legacy of a mythical TV show from the early 1990s.

Billed as an ultra-violent kids TV show, Top Knot Detective is essentially Monkey (1978-1980) with the gory special effects of Peter Jackson’s early work – Bad Taste (1987), Braindead (1992).

It is comic and chaotic, but takes us to some very dark places. Presenting the star/writer/director/etc of the show, Takashi Takamoto as a controlling, egotistical maverick, obsessed with his own “artistic vision”. A younger, feistier Neil Breen/Tommy Wiseau type.

Directors Aaron McCann and Dominic Pearce have excelled in producing artefacts around which they build their story. Censored photos, CCTV footage, newsreel, and lots and lots of videotape with dodgy tracking. Using the tried (tired?) and tested talking heads documentary format to create a patchwork effect, Top Knot Detective moves at a satisfying pace. The narrative only comes apart at the seams a handful of times (Wolf the Ripper is a step too far).

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The story is inspired by the programmes McCann and Pearce enjoyed during the latter quarter of the 20th Century. It’s the kind of nostalgia that prompts directors to create hyperreal representations of times past. For example, in Stranger Things, the Duffer Brothers create a time that is more 80s than the 80s itself. McCann and Pearce have taken a very different route from the Duffer brothers, artistically speaking, but their nostalgia is very much the driving force.

Top Knot Detective pays homage to an era of television that embraced wooden acting and wonky sets so beloved by the likes of Matthew Holness, Matt Berry and Richard Ayoade. I recommend pairing it up with Dunyayi Kurtaran Adam (Turkish Star Wars, 1982) for a delirious double-bill.

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