Turbo (film) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Turbo
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	David Soren
Produced by	Lisa Stewart
Screenplay by	David Soren Robert Siegel Darren Lemke
Story by	David Soren
Starring	Ryan Reynolds Paul Giamatti Michael Peña Snoop Dogg Maya Rudolph Michelle Rodriguez Samuel L. Jackson
Music by	Henry Jackman
Cinematography	Chris Stover
Editing by	James Ryan
Studio	DreamWorks Animation
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	June 24, 2013 (2013-06-24) (CineEurope, Barcelona) July 17, 2013 (2013-07-17) (United States)
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$127 million
Money made	$282.6 million

Turbo is a 2013 American computer-animated sports comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is based on an original idea by David Soren, who also directed the film in his feature debut. Set in Los Angeles, the film features an ordinary garden snail named Turbo whose dream of becoming the world's fastest snail comes true. The film was released on July 17, 2013. The film stars the voices of Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Michael Peña, Snoop Dogg, Maya Rudolph, Michelle Rodriguez and Samuel L. Jackson.

The film was met with mixed to positive reviews. Despite earning $282.5 million on a $127 million budget, the studio had to take a total of $15.6 million write-down on behalf of the film. A television series based on the film, titled Turbo Fast, with only Ken Jeong and Mike Bell reprising their roles, was put into production a year before the film's release, and it first aired on Netflix on December 24, 2013.

The film was dedicated to animator Nicholas Sanger Hoppe, who died of brain cancer before the film was released.

Plot

In a suburban San Fernando Valley tomato garden in Los Angeles, Theo, self-named "Turbo", is a garden snail who dreams of being the greatest racer in the world, just like his hero, five-time Indy 500 champion Guy Gagné. However, his obsession with speed often makes him an outcast in the slow and cautious snail community, and a constant embarrassment to his older brother, Chet. One night, Theo wanders onto a freeway to admire the traffic and wishes upon a star, later revealed to be an airplane, that he was fast. Suddenly, he is sucked into the supercharger of a Chevrolet Camaro drag racer, fusing his DNA with nitrous oxide. When he wakes up, he possesses superspeed and some characteristics of a real car. However, his first attempt to try out his new powers ends with him crashing a boy's tricycle into the garden in which many other snails work, resulting in him and Chet getting fired from the garden crew.

Chet angrily scolds Theo and ends up being snatched by a crow, but is pursued and rescued by Theo at a run-down strip mall called Starlight Plaza. There, they are captured by Tito Lopez, a Mexican taco truck driver, and are brought to a snail race held by him and his co-workers. Theo wins the race, astounding both humans and snails alike, earning the respect of the snails, led by Whiplash, and firmly establishing the name "Turbo" as his own. Tito dreams of reviving Starlight Plaza, in which his taco business is set up, with Turbo as an attraction, much to his brother and coworker Angelo’s annoyance. The snails eventually manage to divert and strand a tour bus, bringing impressive business. At this success, Turbo convinces Tito to enter him in the Indianapolis 500 as a competitor. The neighbors agree to put up the entrance fee and accompany them to Indianapolis.

Tito is initially refused entry into the race, but a chance meeting with Gagné gives Turbo a chance to show off his speed, astounding the audience and the racers by qualifying for the race via achieving a speed of 226  mph, becoming a sensation on social media and forcing the CEO of IndyCar to reluctantly let Turbo compete. The night before the race, after a heated argument with Chet, Turbo sneaks out to meet Gagné, who reveals his true colors by demoralizing him. In the race, the racetrack and the more experienced competitors leave him trailing in last place. At a pitstop, Whiplash and the crew give Turbo a vital pep talk, advising him to stop racing like a car. Turbo uses his small size to his advantage and rapidly gains ground, but Gagné resorts to cheating and knocks him against the wall, damaging his shell and weakening his superspeed.

In the final stretch with Turbo in the lead, Gagné, refusing to lose to him, inadvertently causes a pile-up involving most of the competitors, including Turbo, who wakes to find his shell punctured and his superspeed gone, so he falls into deep despair. Alarmed at seeing his brother losing hope, Chet, with a change of heart, braves several dangers to meet with Whiplash's crew. Seeing Chet and the crew arrive on crows to encourage him to continue, Turbo resumes the race. Gagné single-mindedly pursues him, dragging his wrecked car, but Turbo narrowly wins and Gagné is assaulted by one of the strip mall business owners for trying to harm him.

Starlight Plaza thrives from Turbo's fame; all the businesses become spectacular successes and hold elaborate snail races. Whiplash's crew are given special propulsion aids for their shells, while Chet is content with his new job as the track referee and paramedic. As for Turbo, he discovers that his shell has healed, and with it, his superspeed has returned.

In a mid-credits scene, one of the snails from Turbo and Chet's garden is finally able to tuck into his shell, only to realize that he is too big to come out.

Voice cast

• Ryan Reynolds as Theo/Turbo, a garden snail who dreams of becoming a racer and the next Indianapolis 500 champion and obtains superspeed during a car race.
• Paul Giamatti as Chet, Turbo's older brother.
• Samuel L. Jackson as Whiplash, the leader of the Starlight Plaza Snail crew.
• Michael Peña as Tito Lopez, a "Dos Bros" taco truck driver who finds and befriends Turbo.
• Luis Guzmán as Angelo Lopez, Tito's brother and a "Dos Bros" taco truck driver.
• Bill Hader as Guy Gagné, a French-Canadian Indy 500 champion.
• Snoop Dogg as Smoove Move, a flexible snail.
• Maya Rudolph as Burn, a red snail.
• Ben Schwartz as Skidmark, Whiplash's "feisty #2".
• Mike Bell as White Shadow, a white snail.
• Ken Jeong as Kim-Ly, an elderly manicurist at Starlight Plaza.
• Michelle Rodriguez as Paz, a car mechanic at Starlight Plaza.
• Richard Jenkins as Bobby, a shopkeeper at a hobby store in Starlight Plaza who makes custom snail shells.
• Kurtwood Smith as Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO
• Dario Franchitti as Scottish Anchor, Male Tourist
• Will Power as Australian Anchor
• Mario Andretti as Indianapolis Motor Speedway Traffic Director
• Paul Page and Chris Parnell as Announcers
• Paul Dooley as Snail Foreman
• Chris Miller as Tour Bus Driver
• Lloyd Sherr as Spanish DJ

Animated series

A flash-animated television series, titled Turbo Fast, debuted exclusively on Netflix on December 24, 2013, when the first five episodes of the first 26-episode season were released, with subsequent episodes following around holidays throughout 2014. As the first original Netflix series for children, it is available in United States and in the 40 countries where Netflix offers its service. Picking up where the film has left off, the series follows Turbo and his crew on their worldwide exploits while mastering new stunts and competing with villains. A total of 56 eleven-minute episodes will be produced by DreamWorks Animation Television, with production services provided by Titmouse. A large part of the production is outsourced to South Korea, which marks the first time for DreamWorks Animation to outsource to the country. The series is directed by Mike Roush, executive produced by Chris Prynoski, and features Reid Scott as the voice of Turbo, John Eric Bentley as Whiplash, Grey DeLisle-Griffin as Burn, Phil LaMarr as Smoove Move, Amir Talai as Skidmark and Tito, Eric Bauza as Chet,Ken Jeong, who reprises his role of Kim Ly, and Mike Bell, who also reprises his role as White Shadow.

See also

In Spanish: Turbo (película) para niños