Customer Reviews

The Little Shop of Horrors

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Yes, this is the original LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, with the original talking carnivorous plant known as Audrey jr. Produced and directed by schlock-meisterburger Roger Corman, LSOH is about the trials of poor Seymour Krelboined (Jonathan Haze) and his interesting life in and around Mushnick's florist shop. Seymour works at Mushnick's, where a steady stream of eccentric characters happen through (including Dick "Bucket Of Blood" Miller as a guy who loves to eat flowers). Seymour is growing his own new type of plant, which he names Audrey jr. after his cutie pie co-worker (Jackie Joseph). Well, Audrey jr. doesn't seem to be very healthy, until Seymour accidentally cuts himself, getting some of his blood in Audrey jr.'s soil. The little plant responds and begins growing big and strong. The little green monster starts talking too, demanding more FOOD! Soon, Seymour is bringing in the bodies of people he's met, who just happen to have fallen victim to a series of unfortunate accidents. LSOH is hystrically funny and dark as well. Seymour's mom is unforgettable, as are Mr. and Mrs. Mushnick, and of course, the great Jack Nicholson in his debut role as a masochistic dental patient. Buy this one right now! Highly recommended...

Your review of Roger Corman's low-budget "Little Shop of Horrors" by James G. Mack actually reviews the musical version, made many years later. You need to correct that.

As every film buff knows, this is the schlock horror movie that later became the hit Broadway musical of the same name. Like the musical, this was never intended to be a scare -- it was done tongue-in-cheek and is really a spoof .

I had heard of this movie, but did not see it until after viewing the musical. What surprised me was the amazing amount of Jewish humor in the original. Mr. Mushnik, the flower shop owner, speaks with a decidely Yiddish accent, and is constantly making puns like "Aloha -- OY!" Then there's Mrs. Shivah (her name refers to a Jewish funeral custom), who is always buying flowers for some relative who died. Never mind that traditional Jewish funerals don't use flowers -- it's a good gag. So is Seymour's hypochodriac mother, who is the exact opposite of the usual Jewish Mother -- she DOESN'T want Seymour to get married, but if he does, he should at least get a girl with a really serious disease, not this healthy Audrey he brings home. The dinner at Mom's is hilarious -- everything she serves is some sort of home remedy. Cough syrup liquers, cod liver oil soup.... kosher, but YECCCCH!!!!

All of this gets lost in the musical rewrite, which went from Yiddish theater mode to Motown. That was funny, too -- but if you are into collecting old Jewish humor, then the original "Little Shop" should definitely be on your shelf. I give it five stars, not because it's a great cinematic acomplishment (it's not!) but because I see it as a part of Jewish-American cultural history. And besides, it's funny!

I didn't realize there were other versions of "Little Shop of Horrors." This one is kind of creepy if your looking for the Rick Moranis version. This is an interesting movie to watch.

I actually found myself drawn to the TV, because unlike the funny movie, this one have the 'old school' king of twists that make it confusing.

It also has some of the same things (the dentist being fed to Audrey). You should just watch this movie, because it's not what you think it is.

If you've never seen Little Shop but love humor on the edge, this is more than worth the money (though I bought the same copy from another source for a dollar less).

But, if you love film, this copy is abysmal, not even close to Corman's original. There's dirt on the film, contrast is limited (though the movie is watchable) and detail is definitely compromised. It's recorded in VHS EP mode.

Corman made some great films, this title is arguably the best of its genre, and I hate to think that the original may be lost or missing, and this is all we have left.

It may have been shot in two days, but it was excellent B/W not so long ago.

This movie needs better acting and special effects. It also needs color to make it more interesting. It wouldn't hurt for a better score or if it was longer to add detail. At the beginning, the narrator needs to put some expression into what he is saying and the actors need to do that over all. I actually think the best actor from this movie was the plant and the guy who ate flowers.

I haven't seen this version, so the stars are "just because".

Every review of this movie refers to Rick Moranis, whom was probably a child of 10 or less when this movie was produced. Please keep the reviews to the correct versions of the movies.

I recently watched the musical remake of Little Shop of Horrors and enjoyed it immensely, and my curiosity about the genesis of that film lead me to its progenitor. I hadn't realised that Roger Corman's original was intended as a comedy--I'd thought that it was a cheapie horror film with camp humor arising from its unintended absurdity. This is absolutely not the case, and I was very pleasantly surprised. The absurdity of Little Shop, and there is plenty, is all fully intended. At times it is almost as if the Monty Python troupe is doing a black-and-white horror spoof, it is so good. I find it impossible to say whether the musical remake or the original is "better"--they are simply different, and each amusing in its own way. I prefered Rick Moranis's Seymour to that of Jonathan Haze, but Jackie Joseph's Audrey had funnier lines and was less pathetic than Ellen Greene's. But what really surprised me was that the comic touches I had thought were signatures of the Saturday Night Live/Second City crowd were all in the original: the sadistic dentist and his masochistic patient; "Pain" magazine, "Feed me!", and more. Futhermore, the original had some more absurd characters that didn't make it into the remake, including a parody of the detectives from Dragnet and Seymour's mother, a hypochondriac whose home cooking is all flavoured with medicine! Although the sound and picture quality of the version I watched was poor, it was worth sitting through if you enjoyed the more recent version. Also worthy of note was the spiky, xylophone-timpani-and-baritone-saxophone-laden score by Fred Katz.

Didn't know what to expect from this one. I was pleasantly surprised. I remember fondly how much I laughed when I first saw this. The dialogue is wonderfully messed-up, and the situations are totally oddball. Favorite scene is when the two cops talk to each other about their kids. I don't want to give it away; buy this video already and see for yourself!

This is Roger Corman's FLOWER POWER epic. It has something for everyone:Jonathan (Purple)Haze plays Seymour K (like Kafka's great Post-Modern hero)who falls into the existential trap of your basic Vampire Plant. Jackie Joseph (an Audrey Hephburn "ringer")essays "Helen of Skid Row" role as Audrey Fulquard. Mel Wells brings depth to underrated Dostoyevskian role of Little Shop of Horror's proprietor, Gravis Mushnik. Much has been said about how this Corman classic influenced directors like Coppola and Scorsese. But its budgetary excess(2 days and a night, to knock-off a typical, blood-devouring daffodil drama)probably offended artistic propriety. Remember: it took Francis Ford C. 10 years to complete APOCALYPSE NOW!...

Technically, art direction and production values of this proto-work have to be studied to be appreciated. The sequence where hapless Seymour K is pursued by police agents Fink and Stoolie through a junk yard full of tires and toilets belies unnecessary interpretation other than to observe the angst on Seymour's face when he pops-up through a broken commode. Finally, there's the celebrated role of Jack Nicholson who would come to fame in the Hippie saga, "Easy Rider". If you're a fan of DENTAL QUEST(who isn't?), LITTLE SHOP of HORRORS deserves its mythological repute on this segment alone.Fans of Gravis, Seymour K, Audrey I & II, unite to restore this archetypal film to the peerless status it deserves......