THE RETURN OF THE KILLER TOMATOES
US, 1988, 98 minutes, Colour.
Anthony Starke, George Clooney, John Astin, Steve Lundquist, Karen Mistal.
Directed by John De Bello.
Who would have thought? George Clooney in his initial role, his appearance, usefulness, hair, his dialogue, his acting abilities – and the scope for improving? His transition within 10 years was quite marked, appearing in televisions’ ER and then moving into films, becoming a celebrity as well as involved in political and social causes.
The original The Attack on the Killer Tomatoes, which had when released 10 years earlier in 1978, was something of a cult movie. The film makers have put tongue firmly in cheek to make this sequel. It is often quite amusing parody of all kinds of films and has plenty of movie references including posters of the wall, the theme music from The Godfather, and a sendup of mad scientists and science fiction, communal paranoia about an enemy infiltrating, and gung ho reaction against the tomatoes…
The film is also very self-conscious, opening with a sendup of the beach bingo and bikini girls movies and then moving on to a television quiz – which is re-introduced right at the end, at a crucial moment, when the mad scientist gets a phone call and wins the competition!
At times during the film, there is a focus on the filmmakers, especially with the issue of financing and the director exasperated with the lack of funds, the extras standing by, the union advice that they be paid if they spoke, everybody being asked if this was all right and them all replying okay!
The other funny theme, especially for its being introduced in the 1980s, is that of product placement. This is the suggestion that will get the film made – and, what follows, is very obvious but very funny inclusion of all kinds of product placement, George Clooney doing advertisements (as he would do decades later for coffee), with Pepsi-Cola? everywhere, even on the back of the white coat of the mad scientist, people drinking Pepsi, eating candy bars, discussions about particular goods and packets of cornflakes randomly appearing.
John Astin is the mad scientist, working on tomatoes in his laboratory, creating warriors that look like Rambo, able to control the tomatoes by playing music. He has created his lab assistant, a mutant, who seems the dumb blonde, but who has all kinds of complex emotions, especially regarding sex, love for her pet mutant tomato, her interactions with the hero, Chad (Anthony Starke). She is particularly interested in food, wanting meat rather than vegetables, and particularly interested in goods which foster gardening.
Chad is employed and his uncle’s pizza bar, where they make extraordinary mixtures of traditional pizza with all kinds of sweets, candies and coconut, German peanut butter… His associate is Matt, George Clooney.
There are flashbacks to the invasion of the killer tomatoes, the combat, the uncle being a veteran, some of his old comrades turning up, the preparation for the attack on the tomatoes again.
Some of the film is very silly, intentionally so, but if one is in the mood, one enjoys the parallels and parody, some of the smart dialogue, the deadpan jokes, and the film’s drawing on all the traditions of the movies.
Direction is by John De Bello who also appears in the film as well as writing a theme song. The film is generally far cleverer than the many parodies which were about to come to the screen including the range of Scary Movies, also inviting comparisons with the mini parody stirring Leslie Nielsen.
There was a third in the trilogy, 1991, The Killer Tomatoes Strike Back! With John Astin returning as a scientist and Steve Lundquist as the would-be television interviewer and lab assistant, Igor, who resembles rocky the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
