O Lixo das Ruas

I wasn't expecting much when I watched this, but what I was expecting was a melt movie. An ordinary horror film with a plot centred around the viper drink. What I saw was a badly acted cop versus bums film, and in some parts, there was a bit of melting to justify the video cover. I suspect they couldn't afford much of the gore, so only had a few bits of melting. The part where the man exploded wasn't too bad, and nor was the first melting, on the toilet. I think that scene was probably the most expensive in it. It's the type of film that made me want to take a shower after viewing it. I didn't mind it. I've seen worse, but I was expecting a melt movie, and didn't really get it.

I saw this one years ago. You want necrophilia, dismemberment, gang rape, needless brutality, over-the-top violence, all in one package? This movie has it all and then some. Watch for the scene where the hardass cop beats the living Christ out of someone, drags him into a bathroom and then proceeds to stick a finger down his throat, bringing up a splatter of puke on the creep's face that looks like Four Brother's Chunky Tomato Sauce with stringy cheese in it! Yummy yum yum! It's a sick movie and it's not great but it's the equivalent of... hell, I don't know. Watch it if you dare. Lastly, this movie has one of the funniest animal reaction shots I've ever seen, next to Anaconda's black panther (read my review for that stinker). Watch for the black cat on the fire escape. You'll know it when you see it! Rating: *** out of *****.

'Street Trash' the most offensive film ever made? Quite possibly. This baby is exceedingly hard to locate, which is unfortunate, because it is an outlandish, unapologetic delight with a wonderful streak of black, black humour. Director Jim Muro has since become one of the most respected Steadicam operators in the business, and has worked his magic upon some pretty big pictures. I believe he was the Steadicam operator on 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day', but I might be wrong.

When an enterprising liquor store owner in New York's Lower East Side(?) finds a dusty crate of something named Tenafly Viper stashed behind a brick wall in a back room of his place of business, he decides to sell it cheaply to the bums in the neighbourhood who are his chief customers. But Tenafly Viper is strong stuff indeed; strong enough to melt one's body! And you thought hangovers were bad.

Pretty soon, the homeless population around the liquor store is dwindling as more and more of these unfortunates consume this deadly drop and promptly disintegrate. The first bum to imbibe the killer stuff does so while seated upon a filthy lavatory. He melts into the commode, pulls the chain, and flushes himself away! Truly tasteless, n'est pas? Two more memorable scenes from 'Street Trash' come to mind: in one, a man has his penis bitten off; in the other, a man is spectacularly decapitated by a flying gas cylinder. I read in Fangoria(?) that this scene required eight special effects crew members to pump blood! 'Street Trash' reminds me of Peter Jackson's wonderful 'Bad Taste' which, while far superior to 'Street Trash', is in the same outrageous vein. I guess it might also be likened to 'The Incredible Melting Man', although the special effects makeup in that picture was provided by the legendary Rick Baker - his first film? - and so is much better than anything in 'Street Trash'.

'Street Trash' is an excellent title, because trash is what this film is all about. Its milieu is grimy and bleak, and everything about the whole affair is inherently unclean. Oh yeah, I just remembered another memorable scene: a cop fights a man in a men's room, and beats him to the ground. Then the cop sticks two digits down his own throat and vomits upon the prone man! Pretty sick (excuse the pun)! This film also makes me think of John Waters in its examination of white trash, something Waters did with films such as 'Desperate Living' and 'Pink Flamingoes'. Like those flicks, 'Street Trash' serves up plenty of gross-out gags so, if that is what floats your boat in a movie, then you will certainly enjoy this. I hope 'Street Trash' has a huge cult following, and I suspect it does. And deservedly so.

When oh when oh WHEN is the DVD Special Edition going to be released?! I for one await it with great anticipation. By the way, if you do find this film, do not miss the song which plays over the end credits - very funny stuff! The last time I watched 'Street Trash' I was laughing because one of the bums reminded me of Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes fame. Sorry, Mr Robinson... no offence intended!

Or whatever package it was contained in, when you purchased it. You watched it online/digital/via your implanted eye? Damn that movie is still being seen in a 100 years? Not bad at all (congrats Imdb for also still existing in whatever form that may be). But all jokes aside, this is not a masterpiece, it couldn't be on any scale or measure.

Having said that, the movie has so many merits it's tough to not like it though. If you have a heart for low budget filmmaking or films at all that is. Editing is key here, in combination with guerilla filmmaking at its finest. I can only assume that quite a few shots in the movie were made without permission. A lot of favors cashed in, framing that makes you forget what time of day it is, resources used to its fullest (especially when it comes to location) and quite the special effects ... really well made. The story and characters are paper thin at best ... but this is sleaze, this is trash and so are they. Be aware of what you watch and don't judge it on a different scale. This is not Citizen Kane (that's still a thing people say, right?)

Yes, I actually thought this was better than some recent horror/comedies I've seen. Certainly superior to Urban Legend or Scream. I'm positively stunned by the fact that people would see the cover for this movie, read the title and synopsis, watch it, and then complain that this flick is offensive. For crying out loud, what do you expect from a film whose promotional literature shows a melted transient's head in a toilet bowl? Casablanca? Anyone dumb enough to see this movie and be taken aback by its admittedly sordid contents has exactly what they have coming to them.