Review of Shock Treatment (1981) by Tim S — 13 May 2012

I unfortunately waited years after the first DVD release of Shock Treatment to see it, but now I've finally put that beast to bed. Shock Treatment is, for most people, a slap in the face to fans of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

The point of this movie was NOT to make a sequel to Rocky Horror, but to do something different and equally as entertaining. For me personally, I think they succeeded. I think I fully understood going into it that it wouldn't be Rocky Horror Part 2, and if you can do that before seeing it, I think you'll have some genuine fun with it.

In a lot of ways it feels superior to Rocky Horror. The design, execution, direction, color palette, musical numbers and social commentary, all of it, feels very fresh and not dated at all. The only place I think it fails is in the characters.

They're not quite as interesting this time around, but I think that has more to do with the over-the-top and magnetic performance of Tim Curry from Rocky Horror. Maybe, maybe not. In any case, I didn't feel as connected to the characters this time around.

Despite that, I really enjoyed it. It has a bit of a message to it to, which didn't interest me all that much. It's commentary on television, specifically reality television (before such a thing existed), isn't hitting you over the head with its obviousness, which I think is much more clever.

I prefer the subtlety and satire over bluntness when it comes to those kinds of things. Obviously this movie wouldn't exist without Rocky Horror, but I don't think it's required now and it stands fine on its own.

I think it's about time that people give this a chance again or see it for the first time. It feels very modern in a lot of ways but at the same time it's enjoyable as hell.