Troma Trauma: Poultrygeist Preview

Redneck Zombies

Apparently this is one of the "better" movies in the Troma canon. This makes us wonder about the "lesser" films. The sound's a bit off, the film quality is less-than-B, but from what has been flickering on the screen, this Bostonist can discern that a drum of military-owned radioactive waste has fallen into the hands of some back-wood folk in
who-knows-where Maryland. There's also a group of backpackers thrown in random scenes that we can only assume are in the movie as zombie fodder.

About 40 minutes into the movie and there's way too much plot. One too many half-assed redneck jokes take away time from actual zombies emerging. By the time a redneck clan sucks down toxic moonshine, this Bostonist was half asleep and bored. Eventually, there are random shots of guts, screaming, and what have you, but this Bostonist fell asleep, only to wake up with the movie still going and nothing so interesting occurring.

Grade: B-

Buttcrack

OK, so there is something worse than Redneck Zombies. This Bostonist would think that a company specializing in cult horror would know really terrible zombie films, and it appears they revel in it. Here, some "college student" (played by a dude who looks like he's 40) is plagued by his annoying, overweight roommate who can't seem to keep his pants up. This shouldn't be enough to fill up nearly an hour of
film, but it basically is. Eventually, the big guy craps out and his sister uses black magic to bring him back to life. And guess what? Even as a zombie the dude is still boring. Eventually, he begins to turn others into more eager zombies with his, yep, buttcrack. By that point, we really stopped caring. Good thing Buttcrack was less than 3 bucks.

Grade: B-

Sgt. Kabukiman, NYPD

For a second, we are confused. This movie was shot with real film and has an aura of something great. And it's a pretty good film, in general. Kabukiman is about a klutzy police detective that somehow receives the ancient powers of "The Chosen One" after an entire clan of Kabuki theater performers is killed off. This, like all great "B" movies, isn't so much a thinker, and is pretty entertaining. The characters are endearing, the blood and guts kept to a low, and even a few of the throwaway gags emit a chuckle or two. In the end, this is more of an endearing take on a Japanese tradition turned into a superhero flick, and superhero movies are pretty in right now.

Grade: B+

Toxic Avenger

Here's the movie that made Troma "reputable" (depending on one's definition of the word) and is one of the most well known cult films. So well known it spawned several sequels and a cartoon TV series this Bostonist is quite sure he saw as a child. As far as the viewing experience, it's rather... all right. Next to Sgt. Kabukiman, Toxic Avenger just sort of seems bogged down in too many ideas, at least in the beginning. But, once things get rolling and Melvin—the ultimate in nerd who works cleaning the Tromaville gym—falls into a vat of toxic waste, the movie runs it's course.

We were thankful for the warning at the start of the movie, one that said the content may be a bit "violent." The Toxic Avenger dismembers and disembowels bad guys in the most gruesome of ways. The story arc is unusual, and that's what Troma lives for, so it's no wonder this movie is the company's calling card. It speaks to the basics of storytelling and throws in some oddball parts while speaking to some weighty moral concepts, such as environmentalism. But, in the end, Bostonist can see why "Captain Planet" caught on better than "The Toxic Avenger" did.

Grade: B