The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Blistering performances.

RELEASED IN 1960 and directed by Roger Corman, "Little Shop of Horrors" stars Jonathan Haze as Seymour, a klutzy worker at a Los Angeles Skid Row florist shop. On the verge of getting fired by the owner (Mel Welles), the young man brings his weird hybrid plant to the store to spur business. Unbeknownst to Seymour, it requires flesh & blood to grow and live. Jackie Joseph plays the other worker at the shop and Seymour's potential girlfriend. A very young Jack Nicholson appears as a patient at a dentist office for about 8 minutes. Back when this was released I'm sure the black humor was almost scandalous (e.g. Seymour feeding body parts to the ravenous plant), but Corman got away with it because it's such an inane comedy. A lot of the humor didn't work for me and I personally don't like black & white. But there are enough amusing elements to make it worth checking out and Jackie possesses a winsome sweetness that's a pleasure to behold. Filmed in late December, 1959, the late 50s/early 60s ambiance is a highlight. THE FILM RUNS 1 hour & 12 minutes and was shot in Los Angeles. WRITER: Charles B. Griffith. ADDITIONAL CAST: Toby Michaels and Karyn Kupcinet are on hand as high school girls in need of flowers for a float. GRADE: C

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is another one of the Roger Corman quickies made on the cheap. This one was shot in just two days and it shows. It's got a one-trick storyline, takes place for the most part in a single set, and with a small group of actors involved, many of whom were Corman regulars. It could have been a load of old rubbish but it works and the major reason for that is down to the interesting, original storyline. Griffith's idea is about a sort-of Venus flytrap plant that feeds on human blood rather than flies; in essence this is a vampire story, but with a plant rather than a human. There were lots of 'killer plant' type stories being churned out in the pulp age of weird fiction and this is just like one of them. Corman chooses to play things for laughs and the result is a quirky comedy with lots of surreal humour involved.Many of the laughs come from the bizarre characters in the film. Jonathan Haze is very good as the dim-witted Seymour and Jackie Joseph shines as the beautiful object of his obsession, Audrey. Mel Welles has fun as the larger-than-life flower shop owner and there are great, minor roles for Corman regulars Jack Nicholson (hilarious as a sado-masochist) and Dick Miller (as a guy who loves eating flowers). The special effects of the killer plant are VERY limited but the ending, with the faces of the victims appearing in the blossoms, is imaginative and slightly disturbing. It's not a film that you'll want to watch more than once, and the musical remake vastly outclassed it in terms of budget and technical proficiency, but the skewed, off-kilter comedy and bizarre storyline make it worth a watch.

Roger Corman's low-budget classic about Mushnick's flower shop on skid row where inept Seymour creates a hybrid plant, named Audrey Jr. after Seymour's co-worker and crush. Audrey II is sickly at first but once Seymour accidentally gives it some human blood, it grows quickly and is a big hit with the public, bringing in lots of new business for Mushnick. But to keep Audrey, Jr. happy and growing, Seymour must find new ways of getting it blood.It's a brilliantly creative black comedy, with a script by Corman and Charles B. Griffith. There just wasn't anything else quite like this when it was released. It does owe a little to another fun Corman and Griffith black comedy, A Bucket of Blood. The cast is made up of mostly forgotten actors today but they're all wonderful. Jonathan Haze and Jackie Joseph are likable as Seymour and Audrey. Myrtle Vail is a hoot as Seymour's hypochondriac mother. Mel Welles plays Mushnick and steals every scene he's in. The two most recognizable faces in the cast are Jack Nicholson in his famous cameo as a masochistic dental patient and Dick Miller as an oddball customer who eats flowers. The film is limited by its budget and how quickly it was shot. But those same limitations add to the charm of it as well as making it perfect for adapting to the stage, which it was in the 1980s. That version, a musical, was eventually turned into a great movie all its own. That is also the one I grew up with, having seen it many times before I ever saw this original. This is often cited as Corman's best work. That's debatable, I suppose, but it certainly has to be considered pretty high on the list. Very few of his films have stood the test of time and resonated quite the same as this one. It's a unique and funny movie with colorful characters and a good script. Love that ending!

"Seymour Krelboyne" (Jonathan Haze) is a bumbling store clerk for a flower shop deep in the heart of skid row in Los Angeles. His boss, "Gravis Mushnick" (Mel Welles) finally gets tired of his incompetence and decides to fire him. But as luck would have it, Seymour has grown a brand new plant which is very rare and when people flock in to see it Gravis has a change of heart. What neither Seymour nor Gravis realize is that this plant feeds on blood. And Seymour only has so much to spare. At any rate, rather than spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it, I will just say that I first saw this movie as a kid about 50 years ago and I remembered it to this day. Back then I regarded it as a horror film, but having recently seen it again I can now appreciate it for the comedy it was all along. A "black comedy" to be sure, but a comedy just the same. I can now also appreciate Roger Corman's ability to take a shoe-string budget and make something out of almost nothing. Definitely worth a view.