‘I still don’t know what it’s about’: Buckaroo Banzai, the surreal 80s flop that became a cult classic

From left: Jeff Goldblum, Michael Santoro, Clancy Brown, Peter Weller, Pepe Serna, Billy Vera and Lewis Smith in The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. Photograph: Everett Collection/Alamy

There are several surefire ways to reveal someone’s character. Do they like pineapple on pizza? Do they think it’s acceptable to talk in the cinema? And finally, how do they feel about the 1984 cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension?

This misshapen, esoteric and utterly magical science-fiction romp made less of a splash on release than it should have, but since then it has become a kind of celluloid speakeasy; a real “if you know, you know” kind of movie. It all revolves around one man: Buckaroo Banzai, played by Peter Weller.