The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989)

I thought for today that I would check out a film from Troma Now which is only $4.99 a month and I realized that I had never seen any of the The Toxic Avenger sequels and it was definitely time to start watching them. So for today's film, we are checking out the 1989 sequel The Toxic Avenger Part II which was once again directed by Lloyd Kaufman (Class Of Nuke 'Em High) and Michael Herz (Troma War). Things in Tromaville have definitely changed since the events of the first film and not just in the sense that things improved in Tromaville since the arrival of Toxie (Ron Fazio). The only problem is that a lot has changed for Toxie in the sense that he has no evil to fight so he feels like he has no purpose. so as an evil corporation starts to move in , they have his shrink trick him into going to Japan to find his dad while they take over. The film also stars Phoebe Legere (King Of New York) as Claire, Rick Collins (Class Of Nuke 'Em High) as Apocalypse Inc. Chairman, Rikiya Yasuoka (Black Rain) as Big Mac Bunko, Mayako Katsuragi (Angel To Be Sacrificed) as Masami, Jessica Dublin (Fellini Satyricon) as Mrs. Junko, Erika Schickel (Aaahh!!! Real Monsters ) as the Shrink, Joe Fleishaker (Tromeo & Juliet) as Apocalypse Inc. Employee, Michael Jai White (Spawn) as Apocalypse Inc. Thug, Dan Snow (Return To Nuke Em High Volume 1) as Cigar Face, Paul Borghese (The Family) as Lou Sipher, and Benny Nieves (The Devil's Advocate) as Apocalypse Inc. Employee.

What can I say about this film that probably wasn't already said before other than the fact that it was fun to sit back cracking a couple of cold ones and just enjoying the show. One of the best sequences of the film is the opening fight scene which is just epic in my opinion because it's literally one guy after another and each one is as interesting as the last. My only problem with it is that I wanted a full fight with Michael Jai White and we never got that through out the whole film. They teased us at the beginning of the film, but they never followed through because the rest of the return to America is spent with him chasing after the motorcyclist. The film has everything you would love about a Toxic Avenger film from the outrageous stunts, kills, and even all of the breasts, but this one kicks up a notch and takes us to Japan. One of the things I loved was seeing the Japanese people and their reactions to Fazio dressed up as Toxie because some of them seemed generally surprised and amused while others were told to act scared, but I feel that not everyone in Japan was aware of him. That was definitely a fun aspect of the film, but I have to be honest in saying that the parts in Japan were cool to have, but it doesn't top the first film. I definitely want Michael Jai White to be in the next film, but I am not sure if he actually is, but nonetheless I am going to give the film an B- for a final grade.

Return To Nuke 'Em High Volume 1 (2013)

One of the longest active reel independent film companies in the world is none other than Troma Entertainment who has been making films for well over 40 years. After talking briefly to longtime president of the company Lloyd Kaufman, I decided that I would sign up for Troma Now (watch.troma.com) and check out Return To Nuke 'Em High Volume 1 as today's film which was released in 2013 and was directed and features Kaufman in the film. A lot of time has passed since the disastrous events of Class Of Nuke 'Em High 3, but has Tromaville really learned since then? A group of students begins investigating things at a local dairy when weird things start happening to students who ate the tacos. The film stars Asta Paredes (Shades Of Blue) as Chrissy Goldberg,  Catherine Corcoran (Terrifier) as Lauren, Clay von Carlowitz (The Shadow Scarf) as Eugene, The late Lemmy Kilmister (Tromeo & Juliet) as The President, Zac Amico (Amityville: Vanishing Point) as Zack, Babette Bombshell (Grindsploitation 4: Meltsploitation) as Principal Westly, Tara E. Miller (Cool As Hell) as Rachel Ruysch, Stefan Dezil (Shadow Of A Gun) as Slater, Debbie Rochon (Slime City Massacre) as Coach Kotter, Dan Snow (The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie) as Cigar Face, Mark Quinnette (Battle) as Michelangelo, Reiki Tsuno as Rembrandt, and Jim Sheppard (Battledogs) as Raphael.

What is there to say about a Troma film that hasn't already been said before? I love Troma films because it's the very embodiment of creative freedom without the pressures of Hollywood telling you what is acceptable and what is not. The film has all of the schlock moments that you would expect from a Troma film like the penis creature that melts a couple who are having sex or what about this sequence featuring our two main girls with one who is pregnant (thanks to the toxic material) and shoots milk out of her breasts as a weapon while the other one grows a giant penis that she beats people with. I also love how when the cretins were normal they sucked at singing, but since mutating they become the glee team they wished to be. The film also has it's ear to the ground of current events with Coach Sandusky who is also a priest that loves... well you know what. Troma has always been ahead of the curve (sorta) when it comes to the real social issues as they do a great job exploring it in every film. The film is the right amount of cheese that is just so easy to enjoy and as you just immerse yourself in all of the schlock that makes them who they are. The cinematography is great and I laughed at one point because they are still using the car flipping scene from Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. which by the way is an epic one, but it's funny how they try to make it blend with the rest of the film. I loved the casting in the film and I definitely look forward to Volume 2 which is why I am going to give the film an B- for a final grade or in the terms of Cheeseball Cinema grading I am giving it an 4 for a final grade (1=A-List Hollywood, 5= Cheesiest film of all time).