The Toxic Avenger (1984)

The Toxic Avenger (1984)

Director Michael Herz and director/co-writer Lloyd Kaufman (as Samuel Weil) with scripter Joe Ritter put together this R-rated action-packed superhero comedy-horror cult film. It was a combination bully vs. nerd "revenge fantasy," teen sex comedy, superhero film, monster movie, and bloody splatter film - all in one.

It was dated 1984, although a delayed rating by the MPAA meant that the film wasn't widely theatrically-exhibited until the spring of 1986. It became a staple on the midnight-movie circuit, but its financial success was mostly due to home video (rentals and sales), earning estimates of 15ドル million. It became a pop cultural phenomenon, with the sale of related T-shirts, toys, a Marvel comic-book series, an animated Toxic Crusaders cartoon TV series in 1991, and a 1992 video game.

The cheesy, low-budget (at 475,000ドル to 1ドル million), 82 minute exploitational splatter cult movie, featured typical vulgar dialogue, black humor, general mayhem and bloody carnage (provided with gory special-effects). It was given a synopsis by the notorious Troma Entertainment Films, its NYC distributor. In the main plot - a bullied nerd dropped in toxic waste was deformed and misshapen, but then went on to battle crime and corrupt villainous bureaucrats in Tromaville, NJ as a superhero (known in the film as "The Monster Hero" but later nicknamed "Toxie") and found love (Beauty and the Beast-style) with a blind girl:

"Tromaville, New Jersey has a monstrous new hero! The Toxic Avenger is born when meek mop boy Melvin (Mark Torgl, The First Turn-On) falls into a vat of toxic waste after being relentlessly bullied by the jerks in the health club where he works. Now Toxie is here to serve and protect the people of Tromaville from evildoers out to destroy him and the town!"

The Toxic Avenger was considered Troma's most financially-successful and revered film. Its tagline was: "He was 98 lbs. of solid nerd until he became...THE TOXIC AVENGER. The first Superhuman-Hero...from New Jersey!"

There were three sequels and two remakes in the growing franchise: The Toxic Avenger: The Musical (2018), and the rebooted The Toxic Avenger 5 (2023) (aka The Toxic Avenger Unrated).

• during the opening title credits sequence, a Narrator (in voice-over) talked about the negative aspects of modern society (with panning shots of NYC and the neighboring, across-the-river town of Tromaville, NJ - the toxic waste dump capital, with a population of 15,000):
  • "New York City, the world capital of culture and industry. Here, among the towering skyscrapers, civilization is guided by men of progress and the wonders of technology. But for all this industrial advancement, there is a price to pay. Pollution. The unavoidable byproduct of today's society. Every year, millions of gallons of poisonous wastes, garbage, and radioactive chemicals are disposed of in nearby towns such as Tromaville, the toxic waste dumping capital of the world. Our story takes place at the Tromaville Health Club where a young man named Melvin Ferd works. Melvin's entire life, in fact entire being, was changed by toxic chemical waste."

• the title character Melvin Ferd Junko (Mark Torgl) was introduced within the Tromaville Health Club, to the tune of Sandy Farina's "Body Talk" as he was clumsily mopping the floors with a wheeled bucket and long-handled mop; muscular and well-toned bodies of some of the vain patrons were working out in an aerobics class and in the weight room, or making out in the jacuzzi next to the indoor swimming pool
• the low IQ, thin, 98 pound weakling, and gawky "mop boy" was an object of continual ridicule, harrassment and teasing by two bullies: angry psychopath Bozo (Gary Schneider) with his blonde bimbo friend Julie (Cindy Manion), and Slug (Robert Prichard) with his sexy brunette girlfriend Wanda (Jennifer Babtist) insultingly called Melvin "stupid," a "creep," and "retarded"
• Bozo and Slug made a regular habit of vehicular homicide -- driving fast and randomly running down pedestrians and then engaging in "hit-and-run"; Slug became ecstatically excited as he talked to Wanda about their past-time: "I love the sound of breaking bones!...All that beautiful blood!"; turned on by talk of violence, as they began to have sex on a locker room bench after-hours inside the club, Melvin spied on them and interrupted their privacy; the two were furious and threatened Melvin with a switchblade: "Get out of here, you pervert! Or I'll kill ya!"
• in the evening, the two sadistic couples (with the crazed Bozo driving Julie's car) went out for a joy-ride while drinking from a whiskey bottle; Julie reminded Bozo of their points system: "Jews, whops, n-----s and ch-nks, they're all worth twenty-five points. But Puerto Ricans, they're worth thirty points. Now kids under twelve they're worth double points"; the film's most controversial, disturbing and intense scene witnessed them running down "a kid on a bicycle" - worth 28 points; after the young boy "Skippy" (Dominick Calvitto) was targeted, hit, and severely injured, their car backed up over his head and crushed it to ensure his death, and then the two females, with no remorse, took Polaroids of the bloody carnage in the middle of the street
• another day at the health club, Julie shared an idea with her three friends about how "to fix that mop boy's wagon"; in the next scene, she instigated her cruel plan by first apologizing to Melvin and getting him to agree to privately meet with her in the girls' locker room at 7 o'clock; meanwhile, two workers in the cab of a truck hauling open barrels of "radioactive chemical waste" from a nearby plant pulled over and parked in front of the Tromaville Health Club, to snort cocaine and drink cans of Budweiser

• in the locker room, Julie sweet-talked Melvin into believing that he was "irresistible" and that she had tired of her "immature" boyfriend Bozo; she promised to "do it" with him, but required that he wear a pink tutu to turn her on; she lowered the top of her pink bikini to entice him further, and follow her to the pool area; in the dark, she instructed him to put his arms around her, and then when the lights were turned on, the tutu-wearing Melvin had been tricked into caressing and hugging a sheep wearing a red bra; he was humiliated in front of a group of onlookers; he ran from the indoor pool area up to the second floor of the club, where he was pursued; he crashed through a glass window and landed head-first in one of the toxic barrels, and immediately began to writhe around and have seizures as his body was transforming and decomposing

• as a crowd gathered around him, he spontaneously caught on fire and ran down the street to his home, where he immersed himself in a bathrub to try and rinse off the deadly chemicals; his burned skin bubbled up on his arm, sores developed all over his distorted body, and his hair began to fall out; outside the door, Melvin's mother Mrs. Ferd (Sarabel Levinson) kept knocking and asking: "Are you alright? My little Melvin! He must have finally reached puberty"; Melvin began to transform into a superhuman brute in strength and size
• that evening in Shinbone Alley, a thuggish trio of drug dealers led by crime boss/gangster "Cigar Face" (Dan Snow) was with his two minions: brutish "Knuckles" (Doug Isbecque) and cross-dressing trans-gendered "Nipples" (Charles Lee Jr.) wearing a blonde wig; they attempted to harrass and bribe an investigating policeman named Officer O'Clancy (Dick Martinsen) by offering him five big bills from the "boss"; when O'Clancy refused, Cigar Face burned his forehead with his lit cigar, and the other two tag-teamed and bloodily beat him up
• they also threatened to shoot him in the groin, when the transformed Melvin, now a monstrous creature known as the "Toxic Avenger" (Mitchell Cohen) emerged from the dark to come to his rescue; "Knuckles" was elbowed in the face, and "Nipple's" eyes were gouged out; he grabbed "Cigar Face" and shoved him into a barrel; to finish off the two minions, their two heads were bashed together, revealing their bloody brains; he stuffed mops into their faces as his 'calling card'; injured but alive, "Cigar Face" fled and vowed revenge; the 7 foot-tall "Toxic Avenger" (voice of Kenneth Kessler) calmly told the rescued cop that he didn't intend to hurt him: "I don't know what came over me. I just couldn't control myself. I've never done anything like this before"

• the headlines on the 'Daily News' newspaper read: "MONSTER MOPS UP MOBSTERS" - a "Monster" had emerged to clean up crime, and subdue bullies; meanwhile, the current mayor of Tromaville Peter Belgoody (Pat Ryan Jr.) was running for re-election, and couldn't figure out the identity of the "Monster" that was cleaning up crime; it was revealed that the Mayor was secretly the leader of the crime gang, who considered "Knuckles" and "Nipples" his "two best producers" that were financially supporting his candidacy
• back in the Health Club, Wanda ventured over to the sauna after-hours wrapped in a large pink towel; under her towel, she was wearing a skimpy blue bikini; her goofy boyfriend Slug joined her, pretending to be like the "Elephant Man" ("I am not an animal") - the deformed "Mop Boy"
• upon the 'Toxic Avenger's' return to his home, his frightened and terrified mother took one look at him, screamed, and refused to unlock the front door and let him enter; the lonely creature wandered off to the local toxic waste dumpsite/junkyard where he built a makeshift home for himself
• with his cronies, the Mayor declared that the zoning board had announced that the old Rawlins Chemical Plant had been designated as the new toxic waste dump site; although it was entirely contaminated and close to the reservoir for the entire area, the corrupt Mayor revealed plans to profitably develop the location as a waterfront property (he toasted: "Here's to better living through chemistry")

• at the local Mexican restaurant in the afternoon, an armed hold-up was in progress, led by knife-wielding black leader Frank (Larry Sulton), with his two gang buddies: face-painted and tattooed Leroy (Pat Kilpatrick), and karate-expert Rico (Michael Russo); Leroy threatened: "All right everybody, drop your tacos or I'll blow your brains out"; there were mostly family groups or teens in the restaurant, who Leroy terrorized with his sawed-off shotgun; Rico began to sexually-assault the female restaurant manager as he robbed the cash register; one innocent young male (Xavier Barquet) who attempted to bargain with Leroy was mercilessly shot and murdered point-blank in the chest; panic broke out amongst the patrons

• the gang members then proceeded to harrass a young blonde blind girl named Sara (Andree Maranda) with her golden retriever seeing-eye dog named Gary; her loyal dog barked and growled at Sara's attacker, and was also shot dead by Leroy; Frank threatened to rape Sara by introducing her to "Ben" ("Ben Dover") - he draped her over her table and was going to assault her from behind when suddenly, the "Toxic Avenger" appeared and fought off the gang members; Frank's right arm was ripped off and he half-bled to death; in the kitchen, Leroy's open mouth was engorged and smothered with milk, ice-cream, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream (with a cherry on top) before his head was stuffed into a blender to make a milk-shake; Rico's hands were shoved in boiling oil and deep-fried; mops were left at the scene of the brutal deaths; and finally, Frank was shoved into an oblong pizza oven (off-screen)
• the Toxic Avenger saved Sara; she begged for his assistance since she was helpless without her dog, and as he reassured her that he wouldn't hurt her, he led her back to her home
• shortly later at the Mexican restaurant, investigative officers viewed the dead bodies, and with their mouths full of tacos, revealed their findings: (1) "a nice crispy taco supreme," (2) "a strawberry thickshake," and (3) "a pizza with the works to go"; one of the restaurant workers described the face of the super-hero 'Avenger' - "It had an eye up over here, His nose was twisted to the side"
• in Sara's home, she asked to touch Melvin's face, but he declined saying he had a "rash" (or acne); she took his strong and big hand to tell his fortune, and predicted: "A lot of good things coming to you in the future"; and then as she reached for his other hand, she accidentally touched his groin

• the next day's headlines in the Dispatch were: "MONSTER HERO SAVES THE DAY AT FAST FOOD RESTAURANT!"; at the Tromaville Police Station before an audience, expert German psychologist Dr. Snodburger (Reuben Guss) from the Garden State Cerebral Reflex Research Center was asked about the "Monster's" victims; he deduced that the monster was only attacking "bad people"; after being exposed to toxic waste, he was somehow programmed or compelled to attack and destroy evil
• at the Health Club in the mens' locker room, Dennis (Dennis Souder), a Mexican-American drug dealer who was in cahoots with the Mayor, sold Bozo 50ドル worth of drugs, and also handed out heroin hypodermic needles to another teenaged female buyer (Dianna Flaherty); in the weights room as Dennis was doing backward leg curls on a cabled weight machine, the Toxic Avenger's growl was heard - he had sensed that Dennis was an evil and bad guy; everyone else fled, but Dennis didn't see him coming; he was grabbed, held under a pile of weights, and impaled in the face when they were released above him

• in the next sequence, Wanda was back in the sauna, already turned on by the sight of her Polaroids taken of their bloody road-kill victim: ("The reds are so red. It really gets me hot"); this time when she pulled down her pink towel, she revealed her bare breasts and began to pleasure herself; the Avenger tracked her down and startled her as he entered; she grabbed his head covering, believing it was Slug playing his "Elephant Man" joke on her again; when the figure was unmasked, the Avenger's face was seen in full for the first-time; she screamed as he grabbed her and placed her bare bottom on top of the sauna's heated hot rocks as he warned: "Let this be a lesson to you, hot ass!"; she screamed as her flesh sizzled
  [Note: She died in the "Theatrical Version" of the film, but survived in various other cuts or versions.]
• outside after the crime-fighting "Toxie" had urinated in the alleyway (green toxic sludge came out in a stream), he was approached by two pimps (with an underaged, kidnapped 12 year-old girl being solicited for prostitution); when attacked by a larger gang of enforcer-pimps, he slit one assailant's throat and stabbed the original pimp in the stomach; he then warned the others:
  • "You can tell all your scum friends that things are going to change in this town! I'm not just another pretty face!"
• shortly later, "Toxie" also saved two young boys from being run over in the middle of the street by Bozo; the latest edition of The Tromavilla Times heralded: "MAD MOP MONSTER IS REALLY A MONSTER HERO"; he also assisted a shaking, older Lady (Margaret Riley) crossing the street from being killed, and performed other acts of kindness for a distressed mother; fan clubs developed, and T-shirts celebrating him as a hero were being hawked: "I LOVE THE MONSTER HERO"
• the criminally-corrupt Mayor increasingly heard reports of the Monster's protection of the local people ("This monster has cleaned the streets of every criminal"); Mayor Belgoody feared being exposed and vowed to kill the avenging hero: "We're going to kill him. Because if we don't kill him, he's going to kill us"; in the darkness of night, a group of the Mayor's hired goons led by Cigar Face surrounded "Toxie" and threatened to shoot him: ("So now we're going to give you six new assholes. Compliments of me, Cigar Face"); as they fired their weapons at him, he lept up to an overhanging fire-escape, and they ended up suicidally killing each other
• "Toxie" also saved Sara from being assaulted on the street; they began a romance with a picnic, walks, and physical touching (Sara: "It's been two years since I've touched a man"); as "Toxie" became aroused, his body began to smoke and he told her: "I've never felt like this before"; they kissed and made love; she moved into his junkyard accommodations to live with him
• however, "Toxie" still had unfinished business; he returned to the health club to take care of his other tormentors; he approached Julie in the womens' locker room to "teach her a lesson"; he semi-strangled her and then pursued her into the basement where he attacked her with a pair of scissors and threatened - her fate was left undetermined

• without Julie's car available, Bozo (with a compulsion to drive) and Slug clubbed to death an old lady (Mary Ellen David) and then stole her "Japanese import" for another deadly joy-ride; "Toxie" was determined to seek vengeance on his arch-enemies; they attempted to plow into him, but he avoided them by jumping up onto the vehicle's roof, and then dragged and choked Slug by the neck and threw him onto the pavement at high speed; he then crawled into the car, and struggled with Bozo as the vehicle collided with numerous objects and avoided a number of potentially-deadly crashes; finally, "Toxie" followed Bozo's request literally: "Give me the wheel!" - and ripped off the steering wheel; he sent the uncontrollable vehicle over a cliffside; the car crashed head-first and then exploded with both "Toxie" and Bozo inside; "Toxie" survived the fireball although Bozo was incinerated; "Toxie" emerged unscathed from the wreckage
• in the next scene in a dry cleaners' business, "Toxie" menacingly attacked an older short-statured woman Mrs. Haskell (Norma Pratt); sensing she was evil, he chased her and picked her up; she screamed before he stuffed her into a giant, industrial-sized dryer; he joked with a fake Japanese accent: "No ticky, no washy"; afterwards, her dried-out corpse was laid out on a table; the owner Mr. Wilson (Joe Zarro) reported the death as a murder; the newspaper The Record decried: "MONSTER HERO KILLS INNOCENT WOMAN"
• afterwards, "Toxie" had doubts and second thoughts about his killing rampage and confided in Sara:
  • "Everything is wrong....I think I'm out of control....You don't know who I am. I'm really the Monster Hero you heard about. And everyday I go out and I mash people. I tear them apart and I can't stop. You better move back to your apartment. I don't think it's safe for you to be around me."
• to escape further scrutiny, the two decided to leave the garbage junkyard and relocate at the secluded spot near Millers' Farm - a tent campsite in the woods
• it was revealed that Mrs. Haskell wasn't as "innocent" as reported; the German-accented Chief of Police Himmel (David Weiss) told Mayor Belgoody that the lady - although the parent of two sons and a member of the PTA - was the "head of an international white slavery ring... And she had a police record a mile long"; the Mayor realized that he must cover up her criminal connections, that ultimately would lead back to him and end his re-election bid; Belgoody ordered Himmel to cover-up, and to find and shoot-to-kill the "Monster"
• during a press conference, the Mayor called the "Monster" a real "menace," and announced a "massive search" that was already underway to find and destroy it; the Mayor refused to call the "Monster" a human being: "It is an it. You kill an it"; with the Chief of Police, O'Clancy tried to speak up and defend the "Monster" for having saved his life: "I'd be dead right now if it wasn't for the monster! Don't you think you're being a bit hasty?", but he was overruled and threatened with losing his job if he didn't fall in line
• in the local ice-cream shop, young Johnny (Ryan Sexton) passionately begged for O'Clancy and the business owner to save the Monster: "Why would the Mayor want to destroy something that does more good than the entire police force?", but they were powerless; police with dog units were called out to scour the town
• when the two were eventually spotted outside of town in a tent, the Mayor also phoned and asked the Governor to call in the National Guard, but was ordered to only "capture" the "Monster"; Johnny cried out to defend his hero: "We can't let him die, let's go!"; inside their tent, the two were surrounded by the "full force" of armed Guardsmen and tanks, with the Mayor and Chief of Police insisting on killing the "Monster," although it was disturbing to many of the residents; several of the citizens of Tromaville refused to let him be slaughtered and stood in the line of fire, including Melvin's mother who identified the "Monster" as her own mutant son Melvin; the authorities were convinced to back down and lay down their weapons

• resisting calls to stand down, the Mayor emptied his gun at the "Monster"; he received his come-uppance - Melvin/the Monster approached the Mayor, who sank to his knees and begged for his life: ("Look, I'll make you a deal! I'll give you 10%, anything, just leave alone! Don't hurt me! I'm too young to die!"); the "Monster" responded: "You fat slob, let's see if you have any guts!"
• the Mayor was punched in the midsection, and then disemboweled; the Monster reached into his internal "guts" and ripped them out of his body; the Mayor attempted to stuff some of his gooey intestines back inside the gaping hole in his abdomen before falling over dead; O'Clancy was ordered by the Monster: "Officer O'Clancy, take care of this toxic waste"; Sara was reunited with Melvin/the Monster as the townsfolk and Guardsmen applauded them
• the film concluded with the official heroic protector of Tromaville, "THE TOXIC AVENGER," patrolling the streets to fight crime; the Narrator summarized:
  • "(voice-over) So, Melvin, the monster hero, rid Tromaville of all of its evils, so the good citizens could live their lives in peace and happiness. And the next time you're in danger or in need to help, look to the horizon and maybe, just maybe, The Toxic Avenger will be there."