Shock Treatment
I’ve been dying to see this ever since I was overwhelmed by The Rocky Horror Picture Show (and, particularly, Little Nell Campbell), found this site and downloaded the remixes bootleg CD of this, then elusive, sequel. Well, it finally came out as part of a new Rocky Horror set, and though the print isn’t great and they haven’t done much with it (the only extra being a trailer), at last the wait is over.
Needless to say, the songs here by Richard O’Brien are pretty fab. And while the movie as a whole isn’t quite as polished as Rocky Horror (the opening scene immediately called to mind the music video for Toni Basil’s “Mickey” ...), it lacks nothing in the toe-tapping, happy buzz department. There’s some kind of message in here about television and fame, just as there was some kind of message about being yourself in Rocky Horror; but most of all, as with Rocky Horror, it’s just a rockin’ good time.
Tons of ideas come to mind as always for double, triple, umple bills – Repossessed is the closest match, I think, but of course you could throw in Network, To Die For, The Truman Show (which by coincidence happened to be on TV right after I finished watching this, therefore it’s on now :)), Mad City, Stay Tuned ...
I think on repeat viewings (and believe me, there’ll be plenty) this might become a lot like Grease 2 for me. I haven’t watched Rocky Horror in a long, long time, yet when I did first watch it, I kinda overwatched it and I would never get as much out of it now as I did then. As a sequel, I find Shock Treatment almost exactly like Grease 2 – it’s cheaper, tackier, but most importantly, less well-known. There’s some kind of innocence about it while still retaining something of the spark of the original. Okay, I lost my train of thought there, I admit, but I wanted to mention Grease 2 anyway. Rocky Horror is a great great movie, but between the songs and Little Nell flashing her panties every time she’s on screen, this one would probably get my vote. It’d be nice if the camera moved a bit more and the costumes looked less like a school’s stock play wardrobe, but hey, that’s all part of what it is. And what a great last line: “The sun never sets on those who ride into it.”