Audience Member
You know, some great Mad Max-style poster art was enough to get me into this movie, despite the nauseating strains of the Troma opening, which has been enough to get me to shut off numerous films.
The funny thing is the real leader of the cult of lunatics is Paul, but Paul and the Lunatics just doesn't have the same zing I guess. So Igor got pushed to the front despite just being a foot soldier in this army of goofballs who like to use giant saws to cut women in half.
Anyways, the gang all goes to jail and somehow gets probation fifteen years later because I guess you can atone for using a giant saw to slide a woman in half. And then we get to see it twice, because hey, this movie is barely edited.
The bulk of this movie was directed by Billy Parolini and then years later, Thomas Doran and Brendan Faulkner would go back and direct the horror, action and suspense sequences.
This movie is, charitably, a mess and is saved by the really great posters. I mean, Tom -- the former gang member gone legit -- has come back to town just in time for Paul to get out of jail, which leads to that maniac ripping out a woman's heart and killing Paul's old girl -- now a prostitute because this town is pretty much where I grew up -- and making a tape recording of it. And oh yeah -- Tom has a kid who has been raised by a Native American who lives in the woods.
If the names Thomas Doran and Brendan Faulkner are familiar to you, that's because they made part of Spookies. Just like that movie, this has numerous continuity issues, plus even more weirdness like characters suddenly getting new names.
It's an interesting watch. Not a good one. But hey, you have to do the work if you want to find the good ones.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
02/06/23
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Audience Member
Some people might think was a cult classic, but I found it pretty stupid and boring.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
02/09/23
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Audience Member
The plot is too simple, and we don't get to know enough about the characters, but it does have a bit of suspense. It's okay, not good, but not too horrible.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/22/23
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Audience Member
This movie looks like something H.G. Lewis made in the sixties but forgot to release in theatres because he didn't like it. Not that this movie is really awful or anything, it's just not great, but it is different.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/16/23
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Audience Member
It's unbelievable to see how many amazing films Troma has put out in the past 30 years. I'm not going to pretend that every film they've ever touched has been golden (see I Was a Teenage TV Terrorist, Deadly Daphne's Revenge, Blood Hook, etc...), but more often than not they're always at least worth a watch... and this film is definitely amongst their better productions.
First of all, this is not high-brow entertainment. The whole film is a mess; in fact, the actors in the second half of the film are completely different than the first half (but playing the same characters). Second of all, there isn't much gore in this film (despite the back of the box saying that the film climaxes in the most violent bloodbath in the history of film).
But if you like a little bit of humor, some silly violence, and plenty of Charles Manson homages (which, in all reality, is all that John Water's early films were), then this is for you. The whole film is played very straight and not for laughs, which makes it even better. Trust me, this film is completely hilarious, one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. And there's some rape and torture for those that like that kind of stuff too -- but, again, not too much.
I appreciated the murky, backwoods surrounding of the whole thing, and the hippie atmosphere. And, really, there's not a boring moment to be had in the whole film. So, yeah, of course I recommend it... if you're looking for a serious horror film, though, you won't be pleased.
Alas, to let you know what you're getting into here, the leader of the group isn't even named Igor -- he's just a member of the group.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/05/23
Full Review
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