While the original poster looks like an epic sci-fi novel painting, the actual movie Battletruck (1982) is a bit more low budget and muted in colours and dimension. It’s another Mad Max knock-off from the Eighties but shot in New Zealand, using that scenery well before LOTR ever did and also featuring a lot of extras sporting beanies and sweaters. In the post apocalyptic future, general Straker (James Wainwright) commands the titular Battletruck, an armoured ten wheeler that leaves all to waste in its wake, his soldiers on a quest for gasoline and taking spoils from any agrarian villagers they come across. Running away from Straker is Corlie (Annie McEnroe) who is saved by the knight in a shining dirt-bike, Hunter (Michael Beck, Swann from The Warriors) whose loner status is challenged by the villagers he must help defeat the Battletruck. This was pretty entertaining with great long helicopter shots of the dirt bike running wild over the NZ landscape while synth-y rock music plays. For every American character actor in the mix (hey John Ratzenberger), there’s also a bunch of recognisable NZ actors (hey Bruno Lawrence). Future director Lee Tamahori is also listed as a grip in the credits. Alternative film title in the US release by New World Pictures: Warlords Of The Twenty-First Century. Definitely an influence on Turbo Kid.
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