The Ghastly Love of Johnny X

A catchy film that hearkens back to the old B&W juvenile films of the 50s and 60s. The soundtrack also reminds one of the works of Bernard Herrmann, Danny Elfman (Beetlejuice) as well as The West Side Story. I had a chance to speak to Mr. Bunnell and found him to be the real deal. Considerate and passionate about the trade, he was very gracious with his time spent with me. If you ever get the chance to screen this film at a theater, by all means, do so. Run, don't walk!

This film was a lot of fun. The lead lady who played Bliss (De Anna Joy) was sexy and fun, and her one-liners were playful and quirky. It was take my eyes off her once she got going. Great dancing, too.

It put me in mind of other off-beat musicals like REPO! The Genetic Opera and the Devil's Carnival and had a slick production. Very sci fi and cool. A great adventure.

When I saw the trailer for this over a year ago I had to watch it. Unfortunately, living in rural America, it never came to any theaters near me. When it hit Vudu for purchase I snagged it almost immediately. Anyway, here goes.

If you love campy sci-fi humor you will love this movie. The musical aspect also give a nice touch and is well done. The choreography is also top notch.

If you appreciate odes to an era gone by where campy sci-fi flicks were plentiful then you cannot go wrong with this film. When comparing this to modern flicks in the same vein, it holds up well. While Repo The Genetic Opera remains my favorite indie musical, The Ghastly Love of Johnny X holds up well. I give it a solid 9/10 stars with zero reservations.

I had the absolute pleasure of watching The Ghastly Love of Johnny X with Will Keenan the other night. In this world of mostly unoriginal garbage and reboots coming out of Hollywood, this was a very refreshing treat. It has everything you want in a movie. There's love. There's tragedy. There's comedy. There's song and dance numbers. There are plenty of crazy bad special effects. There's rambunctious youth running wild. It IS the total package. It reminded me (just a hint) of Rocky Horror and it has a lot of MST3K type moments in it. Anyway, if you are looking for something really fun - check this film out. Support the "B" movie people!!

A decade in-the-making, The Ghastly Love of Johnny X really comes together in the details. In order to make such a concept pop, this one needed as much research as guts and gumption to see it over the line, and filmmaker Paul Bunnell has obviously invested a significant amount of time and money into making sure his film rises to its many, many sources of inspiration. I can see John Waters in here; I can see alien invasion films; I can see the big monster movies of the atomic age; I can see West Wide Story; I can see James Dean's oeuvre; I can even see a bit of Frankenstein and Re-Animator. The fact that Bunnell has managed to rope all these influences together into one cohesive package is a feat that deserves 'high five' recognition. The songs by Ego Plum and lyricist Scott Martin aren't quite that of Bacharach or Leiber & Stoller, but they're tight, finger-snapping ditties that recall the show tunes of a bygone era and ornament the film perfectly without overwhelming it. Ultimately, The Ghastly Love of Johnny X is just too unique and beautiful not to recommend. You may like it, you may not. Either way, I guarantee it will be unlike anything you have seen before.