Over the course of its 50-year existence, Troma has helped launch the careers of filmmakers like Trey Parker & Matt Stone (South Park), James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy), and Eli Roth (Hostel), along with countless actors who went on to long careers, but their biggest export by any internal metric — financial success, brand recognition, franchisability, fan base — is 1984’s The Toxic Avenger.
The film is preceded by an “extreme violence” warning. The gore is indeed graphic — the first kill features a kid’s head being run over by a car, firmly establishing that no one is safe and nothing is off limits — but it could use about a dozen more trigger warnings by today’s standards. If you can be offended, you will be offended by the boundary-pushing content that includes (but is certainly not limited to) racism, homophobia, ableism, and sexual misconduct — yet there is substance behind the sleaze.
The film is preceded by an “extreme violence” warning. The gore is indeed graphic — the first kill features a kid’s head being run over by a car, firmly establishing that no one is safe and nothing is off limits — but it could use about a dozen more trigger warnings by today’s standards. If you can be offended, you will be offended by the boundary-pushing content that includes (but is certainly not limited to) racism, homophobia, ableism, and sexual misconduct — yet there is substance behind the sleaze.
- 11/17/2023
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
The Toxic Avenger shared the first footage of its titular vigilante — armed with a mission and a mop — from the horror-comedy film starring Peter Dinklage.
Macon Blair’s feature reimagines the original 1984 cult-favorite movie and premiered this month at the Fantastic Fest in Austin. The Legendary Entertainment project, which has not yet announced a release date, stars Dinklage as Winston Gooze, a janitor whose employer refuses to cover treatment for his terminal illness. After robbing the company, Winston falls into toxic waste and aims to right society’s wrongs as the Toxic Avenger.
In the footage, a news anchor announces, “A group of armed extremists, the Nasty Lads — they’ve taken hostages at a Miss Meat lunchatorium downtown.” This leads to the introduction of the Toxic Avenger, a superhero who takes matters into his own hands.
Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Julia Davis, Jonny Coyne, Elijah Wood and Kevin Bacon also...
Macon Blair’s feature reimagines the original 1984 cult-favorite movie and premiered this month at the Fantastic Fest in Austin. The Legendary Entertainment project, which has not yet announced a release date, stars Dinklage as Winston Gooze, a janitor whose employer refuses to cover treatment for his terminal illness. After robbing the company, Winston falls into toxic waste and aims to right society’s wrongs as the Toxic Avenger.
In the footage, a news anchor announces, “A group of armed extremists, the Nasty Lads — they’ve taken hostages at a Miss Meat lunchatorium downtown.” This leads to the introduction of the Toxic Avenger, a superhero who takes matters into his own hands.
Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Julia Davis, Jonny Coyne, Elijah Wood and Kevin Bacon also...
- 9/29/2023
- by Ryan Gajewski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The power of Lloyd Kaufman, Michael Herz, and Joe Ritter's "The Toxic Avenger" is truly remarkable if you really think about it. Troma Films' 1984 low-budget, superhero-splatter comedy launched a franchise that included an animated series, an off-Broadway rock musical, three film sequels, and now a remake from Macon Blair for Legendary Pictures. We know that production on the film wrapped sometime in 2021, the film is stacked with film fanatic favorites, and that "Game of Thrones" star Peter Dinklage would be picking up the mop as the new Toxie. But today, after the wild and wonderful weirdos at Fantastic Fest announced that "The Toxic Avenger" would be opening this year's festival, even more exciting news came to the surface regarding the film.
"Let's start with the headline grabbers," Fantastic Fest tweeted. Opening night: 'The Toxic Avenger.' Peter Dinklage wields the mop. Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Elijah Wood, and Kevin Bacon rule.
"Let's start with the headline grabbers," Fantastic Fest tweeted. Opening night: 'The Toxic Avenger.' Peter Dinklage wields the mop. Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Elijah Wood, and Kevin Bacon rule.
- 8/16/2023
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
Longtime readers of Arrow in the Head will probably remember the article series The Test of Time. Now The Test of Time has been revived as a video series, and you can check out the new episode in the embed above! With this one, we’re looking back at Troma’s 1984 cult classic The Toxic Avenger (watch it Here). Does it still hold up nearly forty years after its initial release? Find out by watching the video embedded above.
Directed by Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman from a screenplay by Joe Ritter (based on a story by Kaufman), The Toxic Avenger has the following synopsis: What’s faster than a spreading germ… more powerful than Mr. Clean… and more lethal than nuclear waste? Is it a floorcleaner? Is it a waste site? No… it is the Toxic Avenger, the first super hero from New Jersey! He french fries his foes…...
Directed by Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman from a screenplay by Joe Ritter (based on a story by Kaufman), The Toxic Avenger has the following synopsis: What’s faster than a spreading germ… more powerful than Mr. Clean… and more lethal than nuclear waste? Is it a floorcleaner? Is it a waste site? No… it is the Toxic Avenger, the first super hero from New Jersey! He french fries his foes…...
- 2/28/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
New Jersey’s first superhero is being recycled, and it seems like only the truest fans are going through the trash. Legendary Pictures is remaking Troma Entertainment’s 1984 superhero splatter comedy, The Toxic Avenger. Directed by Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman, who wrote the screenplay with Joe Ritter, the original is a campy and violent low budget B-movie which became a cult phenomenon after midnight showings at the West Village’s Bleecker Street Cinema. It spawned a franchise, a cartoon, a Broadway play, and a legion of dedicated fans. Legendary’s remake was first announced in 2019 with Peter Dinklage attached.
“The movie has been shot,” Troma co-founder Lloyd Kaufman tells Den of Geek. “I went over to Bulgaria, and it looks like they did a great job.” The co-director of the original, and co-founder of the iconic shoestring-budget Troma studio, found immediate improvements too.
“The Toxic Avenger reimagining script is...
“The movie has been shot,” Troma co-founder Lloyd Kaufman tells Den of Geek. “I went over to Bulgaria, and it looks like they did a great job.” The co-director of the original, and co-founder of the iconic shoestring-budget Troma studio, found immediate improvements too.
“The Toxic Avenger reimagining script is...
- 5/4/2022
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
Stars: Mark Torgl, Mitch Cohen, Andree Maranda, Cindy Manion, Gary Schneider, Robert Prichard, Pat Ryan, Dick Martinsen, Patrick Kilpatrick | Written by Lloyd Kaufman, Joe Ritter | Directed by Michael Herz, Lloyd Kaufman (as Samuel Weil)
For those who haven’t seen The Toxic Avenger, first of all why not? (stop reading this review and go pre-order the Blu-ray now), it is essentially the film that made Troma. Having picked up numerous films for distribution and being predominantly known for sex comedies such as Squeeze Play, Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman decided to lense their own horror film and thus The Toxic Avenger was born; in turn Troma became known for campy, over the top, “horror” movies and the rest, they say, is history.
The film tells the story of Melvin Junko, a health club janitor who is the butt of a cruel joke that goes horribly wrong after he is tricked...
For those who haven’t seen The Toxic Avenger, first of all why not? (stop reading this review and go pre-order the Blu-ray now), it is essentially the film that made Troma. Having picked up numerous films for distribution and being predominantly known for sex comedies such as Squeeze Play, Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman decided to lense their own horror film and thus The Toxic Avenger was born; in turn Troma became known for campy, over the top, “horror” movies and the rest, they say, is history.
The film tells the story of Melvin Junko, a health club janitor who is the butt of a cruel joke that goes horribly wrong after he is tricked...
- 7/25/2014
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
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