Most cult movies don’t set out to be cult movies. They’re either misunderstood masterpieces, auteur-driven oddities only appreciated by fellow weirdos, or train wrecks so bad they loop back around to being entertaining. It’s a status that’s earned over time, granted by an audience rather than declared by the filmmakers. Uwe Boll, take note.
Within the grand scheme of pop culture, it’s a consolation prize for a very long game – usually the movies are rediscovered and reappraised by a new generation of hipster cinephiles.
Return of the Killer Tomatoes (1988) doesn’t wait for any of that nonsense. From its first frame, it demands to be seen as the cult movie that defines cult movies.
The gags stay a half-step ahead of Troma’s brand of intentionally lowbrow slapstick, but it still revels in its own absurd ridiculousness. And yet, for all the winking and nudging at the camera, it seems to make the classic mistake of trying very hard to be a cult film.
Or maybe that’s just what it wants us to think.
So is ROTKT intentionally and ironically bad? Is it a loving satire of unintentionally bad movies (think Mars Attacks)? Or is it a genius piece of performative meta pop-art?
The answer to all three questions is… Yes?
This is a film that knows what it wants to be, even if we don’t. It’s also an early film role for George Clooney, who somehow manages to look like he’s in on the joke while secretly auditioning for something better. Even with this material, his confident delivery and timing are sharp enough to feel out of place. But true to form, it’s John Astin who steals the show with his patented wide-eyed manic lunacy.
Still, everyone involved looks like they’re having a blast, which counts for a lot.
It’s the best in the series, though that’s not saying much. Ranking Killer Tomatoes films is like ranking Ed Wood’s work – quality isn’t really the point. But if you’re building a shelf for truly committed, no-holds-barred self-aware sequels, this one sits comfortably next to Gremlins 2 and 22 Jump Street.
-Pop