Critic Doctor (Herb Kane) - DVD review by Peter Sobczynski: Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (1980)

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ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES (DVD) - 1980

In the good old days of laserdisc, a special edition of a movie, complete with bells and whistles, would set you back a pretty penny (the Criterion laser of "Boogie Nights" cost $100) and the high price would force people to really consider the pros and cons of owning the set before making the purchase. With DVD, on the other hand, the combination of affordable pricing and the tendency nowadays to load up even the most marginal titles with the kind of extras that used to only appear on the most important/popular films have probably led to more than one case of buyers remorse as people snatch up the latest bonus-filled disc without even thinking about the relative quality of the film itself. For example, take the new release of "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Special Collector’s Edition". To the naked eye, it appears to be the bargain of the year; it is chock-full of special features (commentaries, deleted scenes, trailers, old 8mm films shot by the makers and-provided that you buy it at the right electronics superstore-some copies even contain a CD of the songs featured in the film), packaged in a sturdy cardboard box and even the list price is pretty reasonable. I would be willing to bet that a lot of people will pick this title up without thinking, bring it home and only then will it hit them that they have just spent their hard-earned money on "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes".

Happily, the buyers remorse shouldn’t last too long because the film, an affectionate and deliberate (this fact sometimes gets lost) of cheesy monster movies in which nature runs amok, is actually not that bad. Of course it is silly, fairly stupid and astonishingly cheap (it probably cost more to produce the DVD than it did to make the original movie, even without factoring in inflation) but as half-assed horror-movie parodies go, it is actually reasonably funny. There are times, in fact, where it is genuinely clever and witty (including a funny bit in which a character is loudly and badly dubbed for no other reason than the fact that he is Japanese and that is how Japanese people always sound in this genre of film) and even though there are about a zillion dumb parts, it never quite wears out its welcome (at least until the lesser sequels emerged). Plus, it features one of the catchier theme songs in horror-movie history, including the priceless couplet: "I know I’m gonna miss her./A tomato ate my sister!"

Written by Costa Dillon, Steve Peace and John DeBello. Directed by John DeBello. Starring David Miller, George Wilson, Sharon Taylor and "Rock" Peace. 1978. Rated PG. 88 minutes. A Rhino Home Video release.

-- DVD Review by Peter Sobczynski

CRITIC DOCTOR DISCLAIMER

While the views expressed by Peter Sobczynski do not necessarily reflect the views of Criticdoctor.com, the Critic Doctor will occasionally examine Mr. Sobczynski's film reviews to bring forth an honest examination of those views expressed.

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