The year is 2023, and I keep on reading about an upcoming "Toxic Avenger" reboot starring Peter Dinklage and Elijah Wood. I might want to see that, but I haven't seen the original Troma "classic" in nearly 20 years, and the sequels ...well, never! Five minutes into "The Toxic Avenger Part II", however, and I'm painfully reminded why that is...
Strictly talking in Troma Film standards, the original "The Toxic Avenger" is almost like a true masterpiece! It's a fast-paced and immensely entertaining smutfest, stuffed with grotesquely gooey make-up effects, politically incorrect situations and ridiculously absurd toilet-humor that somehow puts a giant smile on your face! The sequel attempts to achieve the same but fails miserably. Every sequence is unspeakably irritating, overlong, and not the least bit funny. To make things worse - insufferable, even - the gore & splatter is terrible as well. With the notable exception of someone in a wheelchair getting squished to tiny proportions, I didn't count one splatter-moment that made me grin. "Part II" is moronic, infantile, boring, and at least 20 minutes too long. And for the record, I think I'll pass for "The Last Temptation of Toxie" (Part III) and "Citizen Toxie" (Part IV).
Strictly talking in Troma Film standards, the original "The Toxic Avenger" is almost like a true masterpiece! It's a fast-paced and immensely entertaining smutfest, stuffed with grotesquely gooey make-up effects, politically incorrect situations and ridiculously absurd toilet-humor that somehow puts a giant smile on your face! The sequel attempts to achieve the same but fails miserably. Every sequence is unspeakably irritating, overlong, and not the least bit funny. To make things worse - insufferable, even - the gore & splatter is terrible as well. With the notable exception of someone in a wheelchair getting squished to tiny proportions, I didn't count one splatter-moment that made me grin. "Part II" is moronic, infantile, boring, and at least 20 minutes too long. And for the record, I think I'll pass for "The Last Temptation of Toxie" (Part III) and "Citizen Toxie" (Part IV).