I’ve watched and written about Macon Blair’s The Toxic Avenger numerous times this year. It was one of my most anticipated films for years, and for a moment, I doubted it would ever see the light of day outside of its premiere at Fantastic Fest. Luckily for us, it received the theatrical release it deserved this year and is now available on glorious 4K physical media. See every drop of blood, urine, and ooze in the detailed beauty it was intended.
What is The Toxic Avenger about?
Winston Gooze (Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones) is a janitor and single father to his stepson (Jacob Tremblay, The Life of Chuck). When an accident with toxic waste transforms him into the Toxic Avenger (or Toxie), he uses his newfound powers for the good of his family and city while fighting to take down the evil Bob Garbinger (Kevin Bacon, Stir of Echoes).
The Toxic Avenger review
Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze
Jacob Tremblay as Wade (left) and Taylor Paige as J.J. (Right)
Luisa Guerreiro as Toxie
Elijah Wood (left) and Kevin Bacon (right)
Elijah Wood as Fritz Garbinger
Luisa Guerreiro as Toxie
Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze
Luisa Guerreiro as Toxie
I had the privilege of speaking with director Macon Blair ahead of the physical media release. During that conversation, Blair expressed that to him, the remake was a comedy first and foremost. That sensibility is abundantly clear, especially upon multiple viewings. The jokes fly fast, a mix of in-your-face silliness and subtle, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it background gags. It’s a style of comedy reminiscent of the ZAZ (Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker) movies of the 80s, primarily Airplane!
The re-watchability of this movie is what makes it the perfect one to own on physical media. It’s grotesque, absurd, and entertaining from start to finish. I was first introduced to Macon Blair in Blue Ruin, a modest revenge thriller from 2013. Since then, I’ve found his work both on the screen and behind the camera captivating. His directorial debut, I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore, demonstrated his keen ability to intricately weave a fascinating story through an unconventional narrative.
The Toxic Avenger is even more unconventional, leaning heavily into its Troma roots to pay respect to its predecessor while simultaneously feeling like something new and original. That separation was important to Macon Blair, as he explained during our conversation, he didn’t want to attempt to recreate Melvin Ferd or his version of Toxie. Instead, he wanted to reinterpret the heart of the story and bring a new insight to the world that Troma had created all those years ago. And he accomplished that masterfully.
The special features
A Toxic Environment: Best of Behind-the-Scenes
Director Commentary with Macon Blair
Tock Shock with Tiffany Shepis
40th Anniversary of the Toxic Avenger
Trailer
Is it worth watching? Yes. It’s one of my favorite movies of the year.
Is it worth a blind buy? It would certainly make for a surprising blind purchase. If you know Troma and you know what you’re getting into, yes.
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