The Toxic Avenger

When Troma Entertainment released The Toxic Avenger in 1984, the general public maintained standards of good taste and decorum—or at least the illusion of them—which the movie’s directors, Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz, completely obliterated. Their brand of underground exploitation and sleaze sought to offend every sensibility, transgress every boundary, and gleefully embrace taboos, resulting in a grotesque superhero comedy that enraged the uptight and delighted outcasts—even while containing a sly environmentalist message. Made on a budget of $500,000, it earned millions for the renegade studio at Midnight Madness screenings, prompting three sequels and the popularization of the Troma brand. That’s not to suggest the eponymous hero, Toxie, ever went mainstream, though not for lack of trying. Troma’s franchise quickly formed a devoted following that, bizarrely, led to a musical, an animated series for kids in 1991, a video game, and action figures. Still, The Toxic Avenger remains rooted in satirical bad taste, as all Troma productions are. So the notion of remaking the movie with Hollywood stars feels somehow wrong.

The full review is currently exclusive to Patreon subscribers. To read it, you can purchase individual access. Or you can join Deep Focus Review’s Patron community, where you’ll receive exclusive access to this and many other reviews, essays, and blogs published only on Patreon.

Patrons also get access to:

• Exclusive weekly blog posts
• Streaming recommendations every Friday
• Polls to pick the movies reviewed on Deep Focus Review and Patreon
• Access to the open AMA and DFR Community