I am among the few that saw it during the initial week or two that it was in theatrical release, I am also privileged to own a copy of the media kit and a bootleg of an editors cut with additional footage.
This is a film that had the difficult task of creating a superhero whole-cloth with 100 minutes to do it in. All other hero films (Tarzan, Superman, Batman, The Phantom, The Shadow, Doc Savage) already had their mythos firmly established in print: not so with Buckaroo. They had to start at ground zero and explain everything in as little time as possible while giving you the film's own story: a very formidibal task.
Then the money behind the pic got insulted. He (whoever he is) felt that the theatrical release slammed him and was personally insulting: that's why the film was in the theatres for all of a week or so. No PR, no theatre run time: miserable flop.
I'm unapologetic: I think the story is great. An fantastic take on Orson Welle's War of the Worlds radio broadcast, a truly all-star cast, alien Rastafarians, the jet car, some pretty good blue screen work on the cobbled-together Lectroid ship, and true love triumphing over death itself, not to mention one of the coolest end title sequences I've ever seen! (I will fault the lighting on the parachute sequence)
I think it was quite commendable, and a film truly worthy of the cult status it has attained with the science fiction fans. I attend San Diego ComiCon every year, and every year I see Banzai t-shirts for sale along with all sorts of other merchandise.
I only hope that the Fox series pilot is accepted, broadcasted, and becomes a moderately successful series, as that would give me a slight chance of someday getting the movie on digital media.
Tanno Banzai!