
It seems so clichéd doesn’t it? If I were to tell you that a bullied character was involved in an accident and toppled head first into a vat of toxic sludge becoming deformed, you’d know what were to happen. You’d know that the character would rise up against his tormentors, right? Classic villain stuff. Wait, what if I were to tell you that the character actually becomes the hero and is the ultimate protagonist in an otherwise gore filled movie? That’s right, I’m talking Cult Classic’s here and I’m talking, The Toxic Avenger.
The Toxic Avenger is about Melvin, a 98lb weakling janitor who works at a health club in Tromaville. Daily, poor Melvin is subjected to insults and is bullied by his customers. These people; Bozo, Slug, Wanda and Julie are the lowest of the low. They wreak havoc on the town and even relish in running over a young boy and taking pictures of their crime. When an assault on Melvin causes him to tumble head first into chemicals, Melvin becomes hideously transformed. No longer a weakling, he becomes bigger and stronger, rising up against crime within his town including Mayor Belgoody. Although initially rejected by his loved ones, Melvin, or The Monster Hero, soon sparks interest within the townsfolk. Soon enough, he falls in love, enacts the ultimate revenge and is accepted as the towns very own Toxic Avenger.

And one of the many reasons was due to its intensely gruesome deaths. Alex Doust recently wrote a piece on the top 13 most gruesome horror film deaths, filled with blood and guts and featuring TWO scenes from this very film! Fans of latest torture porn movies such as Saw, meet the one of the first movies that splattered corn syrup around like there was no tomorrow. Those with a nervous disposition can crawl away from this movie. Because there are deaths with include; decapitation, testicle smashing, burning, squashed insides, children being mercilessly gunned down, guts being pulled out and that is just the tip of the iceberg. Our villains are sadistic and our hero is just as sadistic to them. Reportedly, they all had a laugh filming this movie despite the fake intestines being thrown around the shop. It will make your stomach woozy as another character bites the dust all set to the latest pounding eighties soundtrack.
The Toxic Avenger is a horror comedy so while the gore is plentiful, it is surprisingly in good spirits and apart from a few scenes, you can appreciate the hilarity as well as the blood sport. It is incredibly cheesy but it is great fun to watch. It is as though someone gave Quasimodo steroids and he raged his way through Paris. And let’s not forget the sweet, happy ending that our deformed hero gets. It is toxic but it is brilliant.
TTFN,
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