Ten Days of Terror!: Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Film: Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
Format: Streaming video from Tubi on various players

There are a few movies that I think are litmus tests in the sense that if you don’t like them, there’s either something fundamentally wrong with you, or you are dedicated to being a contrarian for the attention. One such movie is the 1986 version of Little Shop of Horrors, by far the more famous of the two versions of this story. The original, a weird little Roger Corman project, is entertaining for what it is, but the Frank Oz version from 1986 is the film adaptation of the off-Broadway stage production based on the original movie. If you can’t find something to like in this, you should probably contact a therapist.

I don’t say that lightly. While Little Shop of Horrors isn’t going to be everyone’s favorite movie, I find it difficult to believe that there are people who could watch this and not find themselves entertained by it. The characters are fun, the premise is a great one, and the songs are, to quote the kids of today, bangers.

If you’ve lived under a rock for the last forty years, I’ll give you the quick and dirty on the plot. Orphan Seymour Krelborn (Rick Moranis) works in a Skid Row flower shop that is hanging on by its fingernails. The shop is run by Mr. Mushnik (Vincent Gardenia), who is the man who rescued Seymour from the streets, but is also the man who treats Seymour like little more than a slave, or at least an indentured servant. Also working in the shop is Audrey (Ellen Greene, who originated the role on stage). Seymour is not-so-secretly in love with Audrey, who likes him back, but is convinced that he is too good for her. Instead, Audrey dates Vincent Scrivello, DDS (Steve Martin), a sociopathic and sadistic dentist.

During a total solar eclipse, Seymour discovers a new plant that he dubs Audrey II. Desperate to bring people into the shop, he puts Audrey II in the window, and suddenly Mushnick’s is awash in customers. But Audrey II is a sickly plant and Seymour can’t figure out what is wrong with it until he finds out by chance that what Audrey II wants is blood, and lots of it. You can see where this is going, right? At first, Seymour keeps Audrey II fed by pricking his own fingers and dropping the blood into the plant’s gaping maw, but soon Audrey II is too big to feed that way and Seymour starts to get desperate.

When I say that there’s nothing about this film that doesn’t work, I mean that sincerely. It’s cast within an inch of its life and every role is perfect. This includes cameos from John Candy, Jim Belushi, Christopher Guest, and an epic turn from Bill Murray. Audrey II is a creation that needed a director like Frank Oz, someone who had spent a career working as a puppeteer with the Muppets. Audrey II is an entirely practical effect, and I’m still not entirely sure how all of it was pulled off. The plant is voiced by Four Tops veteran Levi Stubbs, and I’m not sure that the voice could be better cast. Stubbs is pitch perfect, and matched with the puppetry, Audrey II seems really alive.

What also helps make the movie is the trio of backup singers played by Tisha Campbell, Michelle Weeks, and Tichina Arnold. The singers (called Chiffon, Ronette, and Crystal respectively) appear as a sort of Greek chorus throughout the film, sometimes commenting on the story and at other times actively participating as both characters and singers. It seems like an odd conceit to include them, and yet the film would be far less without their constant presence.

And, of course, the songs are fantastic. There’s not a song in the whole show that is a low point, and Steve Martin’s dentist song, Audrey’s song about the life she wants to live, and a few others are as good as you’re going to get in any off-Broadway production.

I had forgotten just how good this movie is until a rewatch, and I can’t believe that I had forgotten how much fun it is. I appreciate that the movie changed the ending from the stage musical, a rare case where even a deviation from the original story works, and I think works better than the original.

If you haven’t seen this, what are you doing? If you’re not singing the song about life on Skid Row or being a sadistic dentist for a few days afterward, seriously, go see a therapist.

Why to watch Little Shop of Horrors: This is the quintessential horror/comedy/musical.
Why not to watch: You don’t enjoy things that are fun.