It’s the early 60s, and Stepphy dreams of fame, fortune, and true love. Sounds like your typical movie musical fodder. Expect for the mutants. And poison clouds. And all the other weird, wonderful elements that make newcomer Jeffrey St. Jules’ musical Bang Bang Baby a strange, mostly delightful treat.

Stuck in a small town and caring for her alcoholic father (Stormare), Stepphy (Levy, TV’s Suburgatory) finds her dreams coming true when she meets and gets romanced by heartthrob du jour, Bobby Shore (Justin Chatwin, TV’s Shameless). But her perfect life is threatened when the town’s chemical plant leaks a harmful purple mist, turning the residents of this sleepy Ontario town into misshapen freaks.

Despite the wacky premise, Bang Bang Baby embraces its over-the-top 50s clichés without veering into camp. This is thanks to its star, the charming and adorable Jane Levy. As bizarre as this movie gets (and it gets pretty out there), Levy feels grounded in her role, bringing a nice counterbalance to Chatwin’s fun Elvis send-up or Stormare’s surreal (as always) drunken daddy.

St. Jules’ inexperience shows in the final act, when he takes away all the fun and leaves us with an overly long, overly dreary denouement. And though the songs are decent, none will leave you humming in the shower the next morning. Still, the first hour is fun and freaky enough to win me over. As far as low-budget Canadian musicals go, Bang Bang Baby is a winner.

Nimy Leshinski