Review of The Stuff (1985) by Tim S — 07 May 2015

Like the product in the film, The Stuff leaves you hungry for more. Larry Cohen's zany look at consumerism in the 1980's wasn't a box office hit when originally released but it became a cult classic, managing to still hold up these many years later.

While Dawn of the Dead took an external look at consumerism in the 1970's, The Stuff went internal, literally. Overall, it's not a particularly good film in the sense that it's well acted and gripping.

What makes it entertaining are the oddball performances mixed with unusual dialogue, as well as the special effects which sometimes venture into schlock territory. It's also memorable because of how much it beats you over the head with the effects of consumerism on society, and how we will all basically fall for anything if it's marketed well.

The Stuff, as a substance, is basically a disgusting white goop that is taken straight out of the Earth and put on store shelves. The point of the film is that even with something like that, our naiveté will always triumph over good sense.

With obvious allusions to Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Larry Cohen's masterpiece of cheesiness is a sci-fi horror comedy classic. Like Dawn of the Dead, the overall theme of the movie never overrides its fun factor.

Nowadays, films like it spend too much time making their point that the entertainment value is often lost in the process, which is why movies like The Stuff hold up much better. And while it isn't a movie that's quite deserving of the title "so bad that it's good," it's of a similar ilk and fans of movies like that should find this one to be a gem.