Certain movies feel predestined to become cult classics, whether through the sum of their creative parts, the outlandishness of their conceits, or a combination of both. Hell Comes to Frogtown firmly ticks each box, and the end result is unashamedly glorious trash.
Directed by schlock merchant Donald G. Jackson – who boasts The Demon Lover, Kill, Kill Overkill, Rollergator, and Guns of El Chupacabra in his filmography – the screenplay was co-written by James Cameron regular Randall Frakes, who’d work with the box office conqueror on Xenogenesis, Battle Beyond the Stars, Aliens, and Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
Arriving in a banner year for its leading man, Hell Comes to Frogtown landed months before John Carpenter’s They Live, although it remains entirely up for debate as to whether Sam Hell or John Nada wins the award for ‘Best-Named Character Played by Roddy Piper in 1988’.
Throw in Golden Globe-winning Conan the Barbarian and Razzie-nominated Red Sonja star Sandahl Bergman, an endearingly threadbare budget, and the unbridled nonsense of a post-apocalyptic world infested by sterile humans, mutant amphibians, and government-sponsored codpieces, the end result was never going to be anything less than anarchic nonsense.
You must log in or register to comment.
Fun fact, Daniel Stern (best known as one of the robbers in Home Alone) was strongly pushed to play the lead character Sam Hell, but declined after not being able to get parts of the character changed, ultimately leading to Rowdy Roddy Piper getting the role.
The podcast How Did This Get Made? that reviews “bad” movies did a hilarious episode reviewing Hell Comes to Frogtown.
I’m Rhonda Sheer and you’re watching USA’s UP all night.
