Now… the first thing that comes to mind when I think of this flick is that it’s very underrated and doesn’t seem to get talked about enough. The second thing I think of is the weirdness behind how the movie starts. What do I mean when I say that? Well, let me ask you this… would YOU look at a random white substance from the ground and think to yourself, “Hey, I should lick this bubbling white goo looking stuff!” and then actually lick said white stuff?
Yeah, I wouldn’t either. Nonetheless, that’s how this one starts out. Tonight, we’re taking a look at a movie that I’ve been wanting to review for a while. It’s one I watched probably five or six years ago, but has always stuck out as both an interesting and also fun horror film. Why do I like it? And what is it about The Stuff that makes it resonant even today?
Only one way to find out. Let’s do this!
~
The Stuff was released in 1985, and centers around a mysterious sweet substance that an old guy discovers, eats, then decides to sell it and make a fortune from. Soon, people across the world buy it up like crazy. They consume it to the point where the ice cream industry starts to suffer.
Not long after this, a young boy named Jason (no… not THAT Jason, ya silly goober) sees a container of The Stuff in his fridge start to move on its own. He then finds that everyone (including his family) is mindlessly eating it up without even questioning what it’s doing to their health. Meanwhile, an investigator named Mo Rutherford (played by Michael Moriarty) is hired by ice cream industry leaders to look into what The Stuff is and where it came from.
Eventually, David and Jason cross paths and decide to help each other, even gaining some help from others. From here, it’s balls-to-the-walls strangeness and craziness as they learn that The Stuff starts to mess with people’s brains the more they eat it. And the more they eat it, The Stuff eats their bodies from the inside and makes them look freakishly deformed.
And with that said… holy crap there are some really awesome effects sequences in the flick. The scenes where the Stuff is alive and moving around are really cool, and seeing how it messes with people’s physiology is also awesome. There’s one particularly memorable part where someone gets splattered with the Stuff as they’re pushed up a wall and towards the ceiling. This moment actually uses the exact same rotating room set that was used for Tina’s death in A Nightmare on Elm Street.
There are other fun things in the movie. For instance, there’s various commercials that appear throughout the film advertising The Stuff and they really add to the satirical nature. These commercials have clever cameos, including this one that has the late Abe Vigoda (of Godfather fame) and Clara Peller, best known for the famous “Where’s the beef?” commercials for Wendy’s.
Usually in this part of a review, I’d talk about attempts or news of a remake or reboot. But there actually has never been any sort of talk regarding a remake of The Stuff. And honestly? I feel like the charm of the 80’s really adds to this film’s theme of rising concerns of unhealthy sweets and rampant consumerism. Whereas now, the concern is already widespread and well-known among consumers. Sure, there are still lots of people who eat junk food, but they know it’s not good for them.
I feel like if you try to rewrite The Stuff in a more modernized way, it might not work unless you play up the commercialism aspect and write it from another perspective, like that of the guys behind it rather than from an investigative point of view. You could also probably remove the horror and/or satire element, but then it becomes a totally different movie and, in the process, may lose some charm just for the sake of doing something different.
Writer & director Larry Cohen created this film by taking direct inspiration from junk food, consumerism, and corporate greed from the time. He learned about unhealthy products being recalled and felt that would be a great idea for a film. Larry definitely had the right idea, because the way those elements play out in this make me think of The Stuff as both intriguing and entertaining.
Weirdly enough, Larry is actually kind of unhappy with how The Stuff turned out. New World Pictures, distributor of the movie, was wanting a gore-filled horror movie, but Larry wanted to make something that was more humorous and satirical. It did get good reviews at the time, and still has lots of fans, but I guess the way it was promoted rubbed him the wrong way.
Personally, I feel that the movie strikes a good balance of everything. I like that it works as a commentary on consumerism, and I also love the horror aspects of it. To me, it’s seamless. I enjoy all the other things about it too. The title itself is simple but oddly funny, I love how The Stuff warps people’s minds and behavior, Michael Moriarty is great as Mo, and the overall premise is very creative. I mean, living food that eats you up on the inside? It’s an unsettling concept, but man is it fun to watch. Plus, it’s got the most perfect tagline for any movie ever: Are you eating it, or is it eating you?
There ya go. The Stuff is one of those movies that definitely needs more love and attention. It’s clever, inventive, and makes for good entertainment if you want something different from your usual zombie or monster feature. And ya wanna know something really cool? You can watch The Stuff for free on TubiTV right now.
So until next time… be careful what you eat. I’ll see you soon!
Kasey Lewis - Actor, Writer, Creator 