⚠ Spoiler Warning: Repo Man (1984) & Time Bandits (1981)

At first glance, Repo Man and Time Bandits seem worlds apart, but they share more than a few thematic and stylistic connections. Both directors—Alex Cox and Terry Gilliam—were shaped by 60s counterculture and their time in 80s England, infusing their films with critiques of consumerism and disengaged parents. Otto and Kevin, both raised by TV-obsessed parents, seek out alternative role models who lead them into wild, unpredictable adventures. It’s hard not to see a common inspiration for these parent scenes in A Clockwork Orange, where Kubrick also portrays parents so absorbed in their own lives and consumer culture that they overlook their children entirely.

One recurring theme in both films is how the protagonists jump from one flawed role model to another. In Time Bandits, Kevin initially looks to Napoleon as a potential role model but quickly finds him lacking. He then turns to Robin Hood, only to find him disappointing too, and finally settles on Agamemnon as a suitable father figure—before being unwillingly taken away again, leaving him to deal with the time bandits and their dubious life lessons, especially when their leader advises Kevin on the Titanic. Similarly, in Repo Man, Otto encounters various repo men, each offering contradictory life advice, leaving him to navigate between conflicting philosophies.

Both filmmakers have a talent for staging detailed background action, such as the hazmat crew in Repo Man or Robin Hood’s thieves in Time Bandits, where background characters engage in specific actions and mutterings that enrich the world without overshadowing the protagonists.

At the heart of both stories is a supernatural MacGuffin—an alien car in Repo Man and a magical map in Time Bandits—driving the characters on their bizarre adventures. Both Otto and Kevin are searching for direction and meaning, a theme highlighted by the cartographic imagery in the opening credits.

By the end, both characters remain adrift: Otto floats off into the unknown in a glowing car, while Kevin is left alone in an uncertain reality. Both films, through their quirky backgrounds and surreal plots, explore the absurdity of life in a way that’s simultaneously humorous and unsettling.

For fans of richly detailed, anti-establishment cinema, these two films are a fascinating double feature!

P.S.: Interestingly, not many comments mention the clear similarities between Repo Man and Kiss Me Deadly. The radioactive trunk in Repo Man bears a striking resemblance to the glowing MacGuffin in Kiss Me Deadly, and both emit a bright light when opened. Both films also share a nihilistic streak and feature backward-running credits, further tying them together.

Sidebar: A lot of commenters seem to be focusing on the story or other concerns, but I think it’s more of a vibe thing with these films. Both directors come from a 60s counterculture that was reacting to the conformist culture of the 1950s—something depicted in films like Pleasantville. The 50s used television as a means of spreading conformist messaging, just like how parents in Repo Man and Time Bandits stare at their TVs. If these films were made today, you could replace the parents with people staring at their phones, reflecting our modern social media-driven culture. That specific counterculture vibe may not resonate with earlier or later generations. Just as the generation before Cox and Gilliam didn’t vibe with their films, we’re now seeing that the generation after them, growing up in a social media-driven, conformist culture, might not either.