Bad Taste

Title: Bad Taste
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Peter Jackson, Terry Potter, Pete O'Herne
Year: 1987
MPAA: Rated R for strong violence and gore, language, and some disturbing images
Date of Review: January 31, 2005


Looking at Peter Jackson's filmography is like looking at the diary of someone with multiple personalities. With "Bad Taste", he started off in the same vein as Sam Raimi, making extremely low budget horror films which, with their ridiculous amounts of gore, classic over-the-top acting and memorable characters and one-liners, became huge cult hits. Jackson directed another gore-fest called "Dead Alive", then did a complete u-turn with his critically acclaimed drama "Heavenly Creatures", which starred Harvey Keitel and Kate Winslet. After his semi-successful horror/comedy "The Frighteners" starring Michael J. Fox, he went on to direct what we know him best for, the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.

With "Bad Taste", Peter Jackson has created a mixed bag of comedy, extremely low-budget action, and some of the most disgusting gore this side of the galaxy. The story follows a team of government agents nicknamed "The Boys" as they try to foil the plans of an intergalactic alien fast food chain called "Crumb's Crunchy Delights", who plan on using humans in their latest addition to the menu. That's basically all the story you get, and then you are thrust into an hour and a half of exploding heads, piles of brains, people drinking vomit, and, of course, exploding sheep.

Considering the fact that they had a budget of literally nothing, the things Jackson and his team were able to pull off are pretty incredible. When the aliens finally morph into their real, alien forms, the costumes are both hilarious and impressive, and the actual morphing process itself was quite inventive. I would also like to note that whoever sacrificed their hot-rod to be blown up by a rocket launcher was either very faithful to the project, or completely insane.

The movie is filled with dialogue that is so intentionally bad that you can't help but laugh. Peter Jackson plays two roles in the film: one of "The Boys", and one of the aliens. His human role is a mumbling dork named Derek who, after being told that a band of vicious aliens are heading his way, says "I'm a Derek...Derek's don't run". There is also some great witty banter between the two "macho men" of the team as they take their time driving to aid their friends. One of their conversations reveals that the team's actual government name is "Astro Investigation and Defense Service", to which one of them says "I wish we'd get that name changed".

The only real drawback to the movie could even be considered something that makes it funnier. Unfortunately, shortly after the movie was completed, all of the audio tracks were lost. This meant that all of the dialogue had to be re-recorded in a studio and matched up to the actors' mouths. While some may find this a bit distracting, it actually makes everything they say even more ridiculous and overdone.

"Bad Taste" is a truly gross movie. From the opening multiple-head-shot sequence to the ending "re-birth" shot, we are treated to some of the most disgustingly ooey-gooey gore ever put on film. But it is all done very well, and it has a wonderful self-mocking sense of humor that is nearly impossible to not laugh at.

8.5/10