The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)

SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

People are voting emotionally.

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

In a struggling skid row florists, clumsy shop assistant Seymour Krelboyne (Jonathan Haze) manages to draw in the customers by showcasing a most unusual plant, Audrey Junior (named after his pretty co-worker Audrey, played by Jackie Joseph), unaware that successfully nurturing the plant requires a constant supply of human flesh and blood.Even though it's far from perfect, having been thrown together in a mere two days on a minuscule budget, I cannot help but have great affection for Roger Corman's dark comedy horror The Little Shop of Horrors: without it, I wouldn't have one of my favourite 'alternative' musicals, Frank Oz's superb 1986 remake (of which the Director's Cut is a 10/10 movie, IMHO).Although Corman's film doesn't come close to Oz's version in terms of cast (Jack Nicholson is the only 'recognisable' actor—Dick Miller doesn't count), production values, or special effects, it more than delivers in terms of sheer invention and boasts a quirky nature that makes it fun from start to finish. If like me, you're a huge fan of the musical, check out the original to see where it all began—you won't be disappointed.7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.

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.

Gravis Mushnick is a cheapskate flower shop owner in a poor neighborhood. Seymour Krelboyne is a clumsy worker. Mushnick wants to fire him but he claims to have a new kind of flower that could be a good money maker. Seymour's mother is a bed ridden drunk. He names the plant Audrey junior after his beautiful co-worker Audrey Fulquard. Then late one night, he discovers that Audrey junior loves blood. The plant becomes healthier overnight.This is one of the great contributions of schlock filmmaker Roger Corman. This is a completely weirdly original story. It is insanely quirky and odd. I wouldn't say it's laugh out loud funny. However it's quite watchable even though the quality of production is very low. For such a great original, I am willing to add one to my rating. Also watch out for a young Jack Nicholson as masochistic patient Wilbur Force.

I remember seeing the musical version of this classic movie back in my youth and did enjoy that, but never having seen the original 1960 movie, I made a super bargain at a local DVD store and picked it up.Now, keep in mind that this movie is 52 years old already and shot in black/white, but still it was a great movie to watch. A lovely dark comedy with a funny and good story.To shortly summarize what "The Little Shop of Horrors" is about, then Seymour Krelboyne (played by Jonathan Haze) works at Gravis Mushnick's (played by Mel Welles) flower store, and he is hopelessly in love with Audrey Fulquard (played by Jackie Joseph). Having a very unique plant, Seymour names the plant after his love, and he accidentally finds out that the plant needs blood to live. As the plant grows in size, which it does at an alarming rate, the plant grows more and more hungry and need more than just blood to satisfy it's ravenous desire.The storyline is very good, easy to follow and offer some funny moments. Being such an old movie, don't expect too much from the props and scenery, although I will say that the movie actually fares quite well with whatever meager props and scenery they made use of.And of course, Jack Nicholson, is in this movie as well, one of the first performances of his I have seen personally, but he is not the star of the movie. After his fame and success in Hollywood, of course, his name is one of the headliners on the DVD cover, despite him having a small role only."The Little Shop of Horrors" is a definite must watch movie, because it is a great comedy from that age, and probably a pioneer in its genre at the time. Well worth a watch and a great addition to any movie aficionado's DVD collection.