Troma films.

[Skitch]

Last night I went to the premiere of the latest Troma film, Return To Nuke Em High: Vol 1. My horror-fiend buddy invited me to go. Lloyd Kaufman was in attendance, as were several of the cast. I enjoy horror, but I am not a Troma fan, by any stretch. That being said, this was part of the celebration of 40 years of Troma films, and I appreciate what that has meant to cinema as a whole.

We met Mr. Kaufman and chatted him up. He was a very nice fellow.

My official review of the film would be, "This is a Troma film."

After the film there was a short q&a. One guy in the back thought he was a comedian and asked how he could get a refund. As a not-fan...I still wanted to punch the guy. I mean, what the fuck? While I also felt the film was a collection of bad taste and total crap, what an asshole thing to do. I guess I will just never understand the motivation behind doing such a thing...buying a ticket for such a specific event and then doing that.

Anyway...I was curious what fellow MC-ers think of Troma and Lloyd Kaufman's impact on cinema and independent filmmaking.

[megladon8]

Like the impact of Kaufman and the label (similar to Charles Band and Full Moon, IMO) but I have never been able to appreciate the movies.

I blind-bought Poultrygeist due to rave reviews and found it nigh-unwatchable.

I would still really like to see the original Toxic Avengers flick(s) though.

[Skitch]

The original Toxic Avenger I recall semi-enjoying, but that was a long time ago.

[EyesWideOpen]

The fact that Toxic Avenger was so popular at its time that it got its own kids cartoon series and toy line is pretty bizarre. I had some of the action figures when I was a kid.

[Spun Lepton]

My opinions on Troma are pretty mixed. When I was younger, I admired their DIY-Punk-Rock attitude toward filmmaking, but Kaufman's adoration for corny and ultra-crude humor has grown really tired over the years. I think their last "successful" move was Terror Firmer, but it's definitely not something I would recommend to anybody.

[bac0n]

I think the last Troma film I saw was Ferocious Female Freedom Fighters, and that was close to 20 years ago. All I remember of the film was the running gag of "What's brown and has holes in it? Swiss shit!" Oh yeah, I also remember a limo rolling up, the window rolling down, and the person in back letting out a belch, before rolling up the window and driving off. Some classic Troma moments right there, my friends.

[Skitch]

Some of the jokes in Return were poor taste enough to make a Troma crowd gasp...and that was in a movie where a giant mutant cock eats a man's heart.

[D_Davis]

Toxic Avenger IV: Citizen Toxie is, perhaps, the ultimate trash film. It's so totally offensive on every level, and yet it's also undeniably entertaining and completely unflinching. It can easily stand up with the best from John Waters, and for my money it's better than anything he's done in terms of offensive absurdity.

[Bosco B Thug]

I have a strange amount of respect for the first Toxic Avenger and first Class of Nuke Em High (which is all I've seen). They're genuinely scrappy and funny, and weirdly inspiring in their creative capacity. The historical lineage is Hellzapoppin' (1941), Troma, then Adult Swim.

[Grouchy]

Toxic Avenger IV: Citizen Toxie is, perhaps, the ultimate trash film. It's so totally offensive on every level, and yet it's also undeniably entertaining and completely unflinching. It can easily stand up with the best from John Waters, and for my money it's better than anything he's done in terms of offensive absurdity.
This. The original Toxic Avenger is also an undisputed classic.

[D_Davis]

Troma films shaped my cinematic path as much as any others. Probably the first studio/group of filmmakers I started following. Toxic Avenger hit the video rental stores right around the time that I started to seek out unique and bizarre films, and I my juvenile self was completely hooked on the gross-out humor, nudity, gore, and crazy antics.

[Skitch]

Troma films shaped my cinematic path as much as any others. Probably the first studio/group of filmmakers I started following. Toxic Avenger hit the video rental stores right around the time that I started to seek out unique and bizarre films, and I my juvenile self was completely hooked on the gross-out humor, nudity, gore, and crazy antics.

Have you heard of a group of Canadian filmmakers called Astron-6? (http://www.astron-6.com/movies.html)

Edit: You can watch their short films from that link, even download some for free. :) Currently enjoying Goreblade: Warrior King of the Universe.

[D_Davis]

Have you heard of a group of Canadian filmmakers called Astron-6? (http://www.astron-6.com/movies.html)

Edit: You can watch their short films from that link, even download some for free. :) Currently enjoying Goreblade: Warrior King of the Universe.

I have not. I'll check it out, though.

Don't know if I have the capacity to get into stuff like this now, but some of those titles sound good.

Are they actually entertaining, or just bad?

[Skitch]

I have not. I'll check it out, though.

Don't know if I have the capacity to get into stuff like this now, but some of those titles sound good.

Are they actually entertaining, or just bad?

I watched a couple of em. Hit or miss, but hey, they're shorts. I've wasted 4 minutes in worse ways on youtube. :D

[D_Davis]

I watched a couple of em. Hit or miss, but hey, they're shorts. I've wasted 4 minutes in worse ways on youtube. :D

Yeah, it's great that they're shorts!

Most of these bad movies are just far too long. 45 minutes tops would be great for most.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I've seen only The Toxic Avenger and Class of Nuke 'em High out of their produced films. I didn't exactly enjoy them, but I have a lot of admiration for their punk-rock, unapologetic nastiness and grungy style. I didn't think too much of distributed films like Cannibal the Musical and Rabid Grannies. The latter was a real slog.