Shock Treatment

This movie does match and surpass "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" in many ways. You can tell that Richard O'Brien and the film's producers had a bigger budget to work with. The songs are a match to the original (same song writer, same style...). Visually, a little too heavy on the reds, but this WAS 1981, after all. This movie will be enjoyed by those who will get the Rocky Horror references that are scattered throughout. Too bad Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon weren't there to provide a little more continuity to their characters. Jessica Harper does a great job though, she appeared in several off-beat movies in the 70s ("Phantom Of The Paradise" and "Suspiria" spring to mind) so playing in a Richard O'Brien movie was not too much of a stretch for her it seems. This sequel was, to me, a lot sexier than RHPS. The original seemed to center on campiness and shock value, it's here as well, but there is a lot more eye-candy in this sequel.

I'm still waiting for a Richard O'Brien / John Waters musical collaboration. Imagine the possibilities!

Shock Treatment (or Shocky as the few fans call it) is considerably more tame than it's predecessor The Rocky Horror Picture Show but no less entertaining. The songs are catchy, the plot is unique (but it does take a few watchings to understand EVERYTHING), and it makes you think about the amount of time you spend watching television. All in all a movie worth watching. Feel free to contact me and I will discuss it in more detail.

There is a reason "Shock Treatment" is as obscure and reviled as it is - it refuses to cater to its predecessor's mammoth cult. The film ditches the previous film's camp value and opts instead for (shock horror!) satire. Having much in common with the superb "Melvin and Howard", "Shock Treatment" is a scathing satire of the manipulating powers of television and eerily preceeds the recent onslaught of soap opera-style reality TV shows. While a million "Rocky" fans continue to bemoan the fact it is bereft of Tim Curry hamming it up or even a mere hint of sexual androgyny, they are simply not seeing the film for what it is - a more intelligent and mature film, and, in my opinion, a superior one.

Firstly, the presence of the amazing Jessica Harper immediately cancels out any chance of missing Susan Sarandon. Though Sarandon was sexy, she couldn't sing. Harper on the other hand is both extraordinarily beautiful as well as being an amazing vocalist, having already proved this in De Palma's "Phantom of the Paradise" (a campy film much in the vein of "Rocky Horror", but better in all departments). Harper's solos are show-stoppers and she makes Janet's journey from girl next door to knockout sex symbol wholly credible. De Young is also a better performer than Barry Bostwick, while Curry's camp value is somewhat supplanted by Humphries in a rare non-Australian film appearance. My only complaint is that Nell Campbell, who is almost unrecognizable and looks simply amazing in the film, is tragically underused.

Technically the film is something of an achievement, from the colorful sets, lighting and costume design, right down to the camera work (check out the opening long shot). Visually the film makes "Rocky Horror" seem like a dimly-lit Z-grade Hammer flick. The soundtrack is another component of the film that doesn't receive the attention it deserves, being much more diverse and mature in terms of the musical ground covered. From the country-tinged "Bitchin' in the Kitchen", the discofied "Me of Me" to the punk-lite "Breaking Out", the songwriting is more ambitious this time around but is nevertheless equally successful. Particular highlights include the sombre "Lullaby" (a wonderful sequence which was undoubtedly an influence on music videos in the decades to come) and Harper's brilliant rendition of "Looking For Trade".

"Shock Treatment" was a definite miscalculation, too ambitious to appeal to the "Rocky" crowd and not campy or funny enough to attract any cults of its own (audiences dressing up in hospital gear? I think not), yet on its own merits it is a far superior film. So for now, as the film awaits its belated DVD release, "Shock Treatment" continues to roam the sullen void of cult film that failed to find a cult.

Shock Treatment is an extremely strange movie, the plot is all over the place, the songs are weird and the confusion factor for the viewer is high. But Shock Treatment is a good movie. Forget everything about RHPS, there are no singing tranvestites or Meat Loaf getting hacked to bits with an axe, Shock Treatment is very different. It is a funny satire about how television has become an obsession. It's also about Brad and Janet Majors, who become contestants on a show called Marriage Maze and Brad is committed into a mental asylum, placed convieniently inside the TV studio. It's funny to see most of the cast return for a great big musical full of memorable songs. But a warning to the gay community, one song contains the lyrics.."Faggots are maggots-thank god I'm a man!"

Australian Classification

PG

No consumer advice but it really doesn't need any. There's nothing that troubling.

A decent movie, and nowhere near as bad as everyone makes out. Whereas Rocky Horror is weird in it's transvestite/alien way, this is actually better for a mainstream audience - it may be weird, but in a surreal/escapist way. Nice to see Ruby Wax in a lead role - she actually has a pretty big part as Betty, And the Rocky Horror actors - Richard O' Brien, Pat Quinn, Charles Gray and Nell Campbell are all great too (although it would have been nice to see a bit more of Nell) Keep a look out too for a pre-'Young Ones' Rik Mayall, playing Nell's love interest, interestingly enough. My advice is, if you can find a copy, get it - it's well worth investing in, whatever people may say.