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The Little Shop Of Horrors
How long does it takes to create a movie and turn it into a "Cult"?. Multiple responses. Much or little. As for the King Roger Corman and his shop of horrors, only two days, plus some re-shot posthumously.
And
here is a film that eventually became a classic and rose to the rank of
"cult" inspired an eponymous musical, and a popular 1986 movie. Corman is a sort of damned genius, we know, and in this case he succeeded in creating a work whose "black humor" is exemplary.
Of course, the path followed by "The Little Shop Of Horrors" was not easy. We are in the early sixties and Corman has in mind a story about a private investigator. The
trusted B.Griffith Charles with whom he wrote such masterpieces of
"Not of This Earth" "Bucket Of Blood" "Attack Of Crab Monsters," writes a
script that is a little 'horror and a bit' funny and has as
a critic-vampire theme. Corman doesn't like it. Griffith writes another
one about a chef who cooking his customers. Corman likes it, but the
idea is too out of the norm. Uh. So always Griffith pulls out
the idea of a plant that eats men. "OK" is the response of Corman, though
it seems that the two were drunk, as Griffith himself says in this
interview. Anyway here is: "The Passionate People Eater".
The actors are more or less than those already used in other Corman movies. They are joined by small parts of Griffith that itself involves close relatives. And especially the participation of a young actor that before had participated in only a couple of films: Jack Nicholson.
Between lines forgotten by Griffith and improvised scenes between studied in a
hurry, extreas paid in wine, and prays to the personal of the
"Southern Pacific Railway," Corman runs in two days, Monday and
Tuesday, this crazy comedy by adapting the set of another
film present at the "Chaplin Studios", taking two cameras in opposite
corners and with a budget of $ 30,000 even if someone tells that was more.
On
14 September 1960 is released the film titled "The Little Shop Of
Horrors", which has as its protagonist, the employee Seymour Krelboin who works with
Audrey Fulquard at the flower shop "Mushnick" of Mr.
Gravis Mushnick.
The
store goes bad and except Mrs. Siddie buying flowers for his dead,
Mr. Fouch who buy them to eat them and the dentist Farb, there are no
other customers.
Seymour is a bit messy and he gets fired, but he tries to change
the decision of Mushnick bringing him into the store a very strange
tree. His dismissal were delayed for another week, Seymour square in storehis creation
that he called "Audrey Jr." and will soon figure out it needed blood
rather than water. Seymour feeds her, the plant
grows and begins to talk (the voice is Griffith) asking blood and even human flesh. It grows, it grows enormously and many clients come to see this wonder. In the shop comes the police and the association of growers too who wants to award the prize to the store. And "Audrey JR." is always there and it eat, nurtured by Mushnick also. But this trail of blood ends up ruining everything and come to a end incredibly bitter and more horror than all the rest.
The
characters are perfect for film like that, according to Griffith is
farcical, but it seems that they are also the cause for which Corman did
not find a distributor. Mushnick
is a turkish-jew, while Mrs Siddie Shiva apparently owes its name to a
Jewish funeral rites "Sitting Shiva" consistent with what the number of
relatives who die in the film. Both might offend the various religions.
More fun is the legend instead of the surname Krelboin. In the closing credits wasn't clear to anyone the true name of Seymour, often
written as "Krelborn", "Krelboyn" and "Krelboined". In his book Corman removed the doubts: Krelboin.
The
film didn't find distributors as we said it thought a year later
Corman, as usual, which distributed it all with his "Filmgroup Inc".
"The
Little Shop Of Horrors" began touring as "Double Bill" with "Black Sunday" by Mario Bava and later with
"The Last Woman on Earth".
Over
time and with numerous television appearances the film became a "cult"
that is still, celebrated by the critics as well as universal and colored
version of 1987, a series of animated films since 1991, and of course
musical by Frank Oz, not black as the original comedy, which counts many Hollywood stars including Bill Murray, Steve Martin and Rick Moranis.
Technical
Original title: The Little Shop of Horrors
Alternate
Titles: The horror of Tiendita (Argentina), A Loja dos Horrores, A
Pequena Loja dos Horrores (Brazil), Little Shop of Horrors, Little Shop
of Horrors (Italy), Kleiner Laden voller Schrecken (Germany), La pequeña
tienda de los horrores, La tienda de los horrores (Spain), La petite boutique des horreurs (France)
Full kauhukauppa (Finland), Rémségek kicsiny boltja (Hungary), The Passionate People Eater USA (working title)
Year: 1960
Country: USA
Director: Roger Corman
Duration: 70 '
Starring: Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph, Mel Welles, Dick Miller, Myrtle Vail
Production Company: Santa Clara Productions
