In a crude parody of William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest,” Prospero lures a boatload of pharmaceutical executives to Tromaville, New Jersey.
If the title, “#ShakespearesShitstorm,” or even the box art doesn’t clue you in, the opening scenes will — this is a film with minimal appeal. Like most of Troma’s output, it doesn’t take itself seriously for a second; it’s purposefully tacky, tasteless, chaotic, and unpolished, pushing as many buttons as it can as quickly as it can. Lloyd Kaufman’s latest is an exercise in poor taste — and that’s precisely the point.
Reworking Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” with a very modern, aggressively non-PC slant, Kaufman tackles modern outrage culture. The film’s characters are caricatures, ‘snowflakes’ who are literally called to action by a snowflake sky beacon, ala Batman’s bat signal, or villainous corporate shills, billionaires whose sole intent (beyond making money) is partying. Despite its crudity and provocations, the satire often feels uncomfortably accurate, if over-exaggerated.
Kaufman stars in dual roles — mad chemist Prospero and his sister Antoinette. Prospero’s career has been ruined by Avonbard, a pharmaceutical company run by CEO Big Al (Abraham Sparrow) and his right-hand woman, Antoinette. In a plot device that’s as ludicrous as it is juvenile, Prospero seeks revenge by pumping the ocean full of whale laxatives, creating a literal shitstorm to wreak havoc on Avonbard’s investor cruise. He uses his crack whores, led by the wheelchair-bound ‘diversity hire’ Ariel (Amanda Flowers, whose off-kilter performance is one of the film’s highlights), to lure them to his Tromaville, New Jersey lair. There, Prospero tempts them with drugs and women to exact his vengeance.
It’s an assault on the senses, and Kaufman’s commitment is undeniable. While I feel that the film is successful in what it sets out to do, it’s not to my taste, making it difficult to rate. So, Troma fans, don’t take the star rating here to heart.
Troma releases this movie in a 3-disc combo pack — two Blu-ray™ discs and one 4K Ultra HD™ disc. The movie and commentaries are on both the first Blu-ray™ disc and the 4K disc, while the special features are on the second Blu-ray™ disc. I viewed the film on the 4K disc and thought it was, overall, a strong transfer, despite some issues, including banding and an unusual flicker in the color space at the end of the movie.
One thing to note, I initially tried watching this on a Sony UBP-X700 and had a lot of issues with the disc skipping, freezing, and stuttering. Playing it on my Panasonic UB820 was flawless, aside from the aforementioned issues. On the audio front, I have no complaints. I watched with the 2.0 soundtrack and thought everything came across well-balanced.
For those into extra features, the set is packed with bonus material. Among the features are multiple commentary tracks and featurettes. The second Blu-ray includes a feature-length making-of documentary, which is probably more detail than most viewers will ever want to know about this film’s production. I watched a few minutes of it and thought it added nuance to the artists behind the film, showing the work and enthusiasm that go into each of Troma’s productions.
Troma has always known their films aren’t for everyone. Still, there’s something admirable about their commitment to their brand of over-the-top chaos. For fans of the studio, this will be a must-watch. As for the general public, you’ll probably want to avoid this one.
Now available on Special Edition 4K Ultra HD™
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