Lori Petty And Ice-T's Cult Classic '90s Sci-Fi Comedy Is Streaming For Free

"Tank Girl," based on the comic of the same name, is one of the more infamous box-office bombs in history, pulling in $6 million against a $25 million budget and being deemed a stinker by critics at the time. However, the film has since garnered a cult audience. If you haven't yet experienced the madcap action of "Tank Girl," you're in luck: it's now available on Tubi, streaming for free in the U.S. 

The film has a surprisingly stacked cast, including Lori Petty as the titular Tank Girl, Malcolm McDowell, Ice-T, and Naomi Watts, very early in her career, as Tank Girl's sidekick, Jet Girl. It also notably features props and effects for the film's Rippers (mutant human-kangaroo hybrids) from Stan Wilson's studio (which also worked on "Predator"). Winston is best known for his on-screen work, including terrifying '80s visuals, and worked on a variety of movies, including "The Terminator" with James Cameron and "Jurassic Park" with Steven Spielberg. He worked on other comic book films, receiving an Oscar nomination for "Batman Returns"  and working with Marvel on 2008's "Iron Man," but died the same year.

Once you sit down to watch "Tank Girl," you'll get why it has retained a cult audience. In more modern critical analysis, it holds up for its feminist undertones and themes. That said, you should absolutely hunt down the comics if you can, as they're an absolute blast to read.

The movie centers on Tank Girl (Petty), who, in the far-off year 2033, finds herself at the center of a plot over the limited water supply. After killing her boyfriend and kidnapping her, even using her as bait for the mutant Rippers(including T-Saint, played by Ice-T), the villainous Kesslee (McDowell) finds himself having to fend off a now tank-equipped Tank Girl and her partner, Jet Girl (Watts).

Roger Ebert gave the film two out of four stars, describing its manic energy as something that wore him down. But it's not a dull film, as other reviews at the time led you to believe. Once "Tank Girl" kicks into fifth gear and swivels its tank barrel, it truly becomes a unique comic book movie, even thirty years on.

After reading the behind-the-scenes details, it'd be fascinating to see the movie as originally envisioned. "Tank Girl" as a comic was very much punk, with a no-holds-barred attitude. Tank Girl herself was rash and rough around the edges, something movie studio executives seemingly didn't want back in 1995. It's unfortunate it turned out this way, because a film that matched the energy of the "Tank Girl" comics would have been even more interesting. 

The "Tank Girl" comics, created by writer Alan Martin and artist Jamie Hewlett, became very popular during the 1980s and '90s, as comics began to display a darker side and artists got more experimental with the medium. Since then, Hewlett joined Damon Albarn of Blur to start the band Gorillaz, while Martin brought the character back in 2007, with Ashley Wood and Rufus Dayglo on art.

The success of those early comics led to the 1995 film, but it seems no one was happy with it. That includes director Rachel Talalay, who has since said studio executives who didn't understand the material trampled the movie. One sequence that was reportedly an audience favorite during test screenings, in which the villain tortures Tank Girl, was cut because executive John Calley thought actress Lori Petty looked "too ugly" during the torture. The studio removed almost an hour of footage from "Tank Girl," leaving the original vision for the movie on the cutting room floor. 

Today, "Tank Girl" exists on the outskirts of pop culture, with a Margot Robbie-led reboot seemingly on indefinite hold. "Tank Girl" on the big screen might be limited to this bizarre little mess of a movie, but you can't deny this cult classic is laden with incredible talent.