The First Turn-On!!

This is the last straight comedy produced by Troma before they found their niche in action/horror spoofs and the only film directed mostly by Michael Herz. Its a very sophomoric and amateur take off on Porky's and Meatballs 2 designed to be zany and irreverent. Troma's early comedies all suffer from sleaze, grime and laziness, but they usually have a redeeming sly sense of satire and a fun cartoon logic thanks to Lloyd Kaufman. "Turn On" then is very interesting Troma fans as they can see just what Herz' contributions were before he stopped teaming with Kaufman. Herz directs "Turn On" with a humanist energy. His actors are happy and free and he pays no attention to blocking or coverage. He's all about performances. The later Troma films are missing this naturalistic acting style and the sensuality Herz seems obsessed with. Kaufman is definitely a better director of action and comedy but maybe Troma would've grown stronger with Herz's style still complimenting Lloyd's.

I used to hate 80's teen movies (it was bad enough actually BEING a teenager in the 80's without having to watch a bunch of crappy movies about it). But now a warm glow of nostalgia (or incipient senility) has set in and I kind of like some of them. I still don't care for some of the more famous ones ("The Breakfast Club", "Dirty Dancing", etc.), but I like some of the ones that are kind of realistic (if somewhat depressing) like "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "The Last American Virgin", or, on the other hand, films like this one that are so ridiculous you can't take them seriously at all. Since this film was made by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz of Troma, it is of course very self-consciously campy (if not quite as much as their more famous "Toxic Avenger" series). It takes place at a strange camp where the "campers" all seem to be in their early twenties. A counselor and four "campers" get trapped in a cave and decide to pass the time by telling each other stories of their "first time".

The stories are all REALLY dumb, but this movie uses an interesting device where the flashbacks on screen often contradict the story the character is telling. I remember a few years later a mainstream critic practically wetting himself when overrated film genius Steven Sodeberg did this in "sex, lies and videotape". Of course, this device is much more incompetently rendered here and a plot twist near the end really makes hash of it (but then again "sex, lies, and videotape" doesn't end in a big orgy like this one does).

But I'm sure nobody but me cares about any of this so let's get to the two most important things--the "T", and of course, the "A". There's plenty of it here naturally as in any Troma movie. Most of the girls, however, aren't stunningly attractive except for Sheila Kennedy, who was a former Penthouse Pet and years later appeared in the TV "reality dreck "Big Brother" (and I don't which of these is the skeleton in her closet). This movie is definitely a skeleton in the closet of Emmy and Academy Award-nominated actor Vincent D'nofrio. I certainly don't agree with Lloyd Kaufman's introductory comment that Sheila Kennedy is better in this than D'nofrio was in "Full Metal Jacket", but she's better than he is in this movie (of course, she doesn't have to stretch herself too much since she's actually playing a Penthouse Pet here). Anyway, those that enjoy this kind of celebrity early-career embarrassment will certainly enjoy Vince here.

The first turn on is a sexy comedy directed by Lloyd Kaufman & Michael Herz and stars Georgia Harrel, Michael Sanville, Googy Gress? John Flood, Heidi Miller, Sheila Kennedy and Vincent D'onofrio

The movie is based on the stories of first sex experience of campers stuck in a cave.

This is not a good movie in any context but a fun sex comedy. It's has it's own good punch lines and humour but disappoints majorly.

The acting is nice but editing and screenplay is bad. So as the background music which is sometimes too high and doesn't supports the original screenplay. The pace of the movie is good.

Overall a ok movie which could've good provided with more refined work of editing and screenplay. You can watch if you are fan of adult sex comedies

My interest in this film was purely as a fan of Vincent D'Onofrio..and this is his first ever movie made at the tender age of twenty four. His role is small however, but his character is actually quite funny. He plays a psychotic,brainless teenager called Lobotomy..and oh, how his acting improved over the years! The film itself is a carry on movie meets Airplane! lots of silly humour and innuendo. It's set at a kids summer camp with dubious members of staff and centres around four teens and a dizzy blonde staff members stories of their first seductions..it is funny in parts but also very silly. It's not a bad film, just a piece of inane fluff.

A completely pointless excuse to put some of the ugliest women in the history of 'cinema' on screen without their tops on. I don't know where the comedy bit came into this film, as the funniest bit of it was watching the woman cop a double decker on the bowling alley.

GOD AWFUL