I've always had a soft spot for Little Shop of Horrors. Based on an ultra-cheap Roger Corman B-movie and an off-Broadway Musical inspired by said film, this film is a unique blend of musical, dark humor and horror. With a winning and catchy Musical score by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken and a fantastic cast, this has always been a favorite for me.
Down on his luck Seymour Krelborn (played by Rick Moranis) works at a Flower Shop in a slum neighborhood known as Skid Row owned by Mr. Mushnik (played by Vincent Gardenia). Also working in the store is Audrey (played by Ellen Greene), who is in a relationship with her abusive boyfriend Orin Scrivello (played by Steve Martin) and also Seymour's crush. With sales down at the store and not a single customer, Mushnik threatens to close the store. Audrey is able to talk him out of it by suggesting Seymour display a strange plant he found in the shop window. It is a strange little plant, named Audrey II by Seymour, a sort of Venus Fly Trap. Almost immediately, new customers flood the store with new business. But the plant starts to wither and while trying to nurse it back, Seymour learns his exotic new plant feeds on human blood. Initially, Seymour feeds the plant some of his blood to get it to grow, but as the plant grows bigger, so does its appetite.
There is a lot of love about Little Shop of Horrors. First off, it's a fantastic musical, with great lyrics and music written by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken crafting some very catchy and memorable songs. The film makes a successful transition from the Broadway stage to the big screen by director Frank Oz, who does a great job of opening up the film and keeping it from feeling too stagey. The actors do a great job, especially Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene, who created two characters so lovable the filmmakers had to change the ending (more on that later). Levi Stubbs (of The Four Tops) provided the voice of the plant Audrey II and does a phenomenal job as well, giving that plant so much personality. There is also our Greek chorus of sorts that work their way through the film, known as Crystal (played by Tichina Arnold), Ronette (played by Michelle Weeks), and Chiffon (played by Tisha Campbell), and named after famed 50's/60's girls groups, The Crystals, the Ronettes and The Chiffons.
I also have to give props to the Special Effects team who brought Audrey II to life so convincingly. Played by several puppets at various stages of growth through the film, the way they made it work in the later stages to look so natural is an impressive feat of practical effects work. What they did was film the puppet at a slower speed and then when played back at normal speed would appear to be talking at a natural speed. Of course, this meant anytime an actor, usually Moranis, was in the same shot as the talking plant, they had to act out the scene in slow motion or mouth singing in slow motion. The fact that it looks all so seamless on screen is a testament to both the effects department and Moranis for pulling it off so well.
The other big thing with the movie is the issue of it's ending. Now, if you don't want to know how it ends, you should leave now. Everyone who doesn't want spoilers gone? Good. Now, initially the movie ended just like the stage show. Audrey II eats everyone and the plant, as well as the plant's off spring, grow to monster size and take over the world in an extravaganza of model effects that still look impressive today. However, test audiences recoiled at an ending that saw their beloved Seymour and Audrey getting devoured by the plant and the film in turn received dismal scores. Realizing the stage show ending wasn't going to work, they re-shot the ending with Seymour triumphing over Audrey II and having his happy ending with Audrey. But, now with the wonders of Blu-Ray, we can have it both ways with the theatrical cut or the restored Director's Cut with the fully restored original ending. As for which one I prefer, it can vary. I enjoy the happy ending, but also the effects work on the original ending is genuinely impressive, if also a bit horrifying.
Little Shop of Horrors never quite reached the cult film levels of say Rocky Horror Picture Show, but remains a fun musical all in it's own with some great performances and some genuinely catchy music that has actually been stuck in my head since I watched the movie.
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