Feeding the Trolls
Best Worst Movie: A Post-Mortem of the Non-Classic Troll 2
by Erik Henriksen @erik_henriksen
BEST WORST MOVIE Not to be confused with Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work.
"THEY'RE EATING HER! And then they're going to eat me! Oh my GOOOOOOODDDDD!" screams one of the many unlucky actors in 1990's Troll 2, a ridiculous horror flick that earned its so-bad-it's-good cred before The Room was even a glimmer in Tommy Wiseau's lazy eye. An upstanding example of video shlock, the bewildering Troll 2 follows little Joshua Waits (Michael Stephenson) as he teams up with the ghost of his dead grandpa to fight vegetarian goblins.
Now a cult hit, Troll 2 is unintentionally funny—but in an age of ironic fandom for Birdemic and The Room, it's hardly remarkable. What's more notable is Best Worst Movie, a documentary directed by Troll 2's now-grown star. Nineteen years after Troll 2's tragic release, the good-natured Michael Stephenson not only examines the film's cult status, but also tracks down his costars and accomplices. Some, like the loveable George Hardy (a dentist/wannabe actor who played Joshua's father) are happily proud of their part in trash cinema; others, like Troll 2's huffy director, Claudio Fragasso, are stung by people's reactions. (Troll 2's screenwriter, Fragasso's wife Rossella Drudi, insists the film is "a ferocious analysis of today's society.") Unexpectedly touching, Best Worst Movie is a fantastic reminder that for an audience, a shitty movie only lasts a few hours—but for those involved in the making of something as terrible as Troll 2, the experience can last a lifetime.
95 min. | Rated PG-13
Writer: Claudio Fragasso
Cast: Michael Stephenson, George Hardy, Margo Prey, Connie Young and Robert Ormsby
93 min. | Rated NR
Director: Michael Stephenson
Writer: Michael Stephenson
Producer: Mary Francis Groom, Brad Klopman, Jim McKeon, Lindsay Rowles Stephenson and Michael Stephenso
Cast: George Hardy, Michael Stephenson, Darren Ewing, Jason Wright, Randall Colburn, Adam Deyoe, Patrick Gibbs, Paul Gibbs and Eric Gosselin
RSSGoing to Seattle?
