Terror Firmer

Is it possible to be juvenile, disgusting, and intelligent all at the same time? Yes, when it’s legendary Lloyd Kaufman – who doubles as an actor here – taking a stab at what’s arguably the greatest masterpiece ever put out by Troma Entertainment, the crudest and most irreverent of any independent American movie producer.

In fact, “Terror Firmer”, although extoling the company’s usual exasperating and licentious madness, manages to tell us something interesting about independent cinema and the burning passion of those who make it. It’s an authentic celebration of freedom of expression that doesn’t miss an opportunity to voice intolerance for any sort of restraint on human creativity (“…in order to be creatively free, you have to be spiritually free. And you can’t be spiritually free if you’re enslaved by the institutions of money, of society, of government, or religion, or corporations…“). Granted, the style isn’t particularly lofty (“I’m sorry. I don’t want us to suck the big, fat corporate dick“), but the message hits the mark and doesn’t spare any barbs aimed at a certain influential mainstream filmmaker’s haughtiness and greed.

Prominent metacinematic component: One of the more entertaining scenes along those lines sees new leading lady Jennifer specifically calling for a flashback sequence. The movie definitely isn’t aimed at those with a refined palate – or Steven Spielberg fans – who are duly advised to steer clear of this orgiastic potpourri oozing coprophagy, profanity, fetishism, dismemberment, castration, incest, masturbation, pickles, and tons and tons of vomit.