Atomic College

Class of Nuke 'Em High is one of Troma's best loved and most seen films. This film helped to define the Troma formula that crap addicts the world over would grow to love - gory violence, gratuitous nudity and black humour, all mixed with a large dose of irony and an incredible lack of taste.

Class of Nuke 'Em High was released just after "The Toxic Avenger" and it shares a similar nuclear theme. In this case, a nuclear waste facility is leaking toxic goo into the local high school with some rather unfortunate consequences for the student body. Unlike the poor nerd in the film's brilliant opening sequence, our heroes are not directly exposed to the toxic waste. Rather, Warren and Chrissy smoke marijuana grown on the grounds of the nuclear power plant. This ultra-potent pot not only makes Chrissy incredibly horny, but mutates her unborn child and imbues Warren with super-human strength.

The film then focuses on Warren's rivalry with the Cretins (former honours students who have turned into freaks after smoking one too many toxic joints) and Chrissy's rampaging miscarried foetus (which lives in the toilet and hides out in a vat of toxic waste). These situations provide the filmmakers with plenty of opportunities for hilarious sight gags, gory violence and camp action - and they deliver.

As with much of Troma's early output, this film has been crafted with considerable care and attention to detail, despite budgetary restrictions. The plot has its own ludicrous sense of logic and the direction is captivating - Kaufman, Herz and Richard W. Haines all share a directorial credit but the action sequences reek of Kaufman's mercurial style. I love the scene where Warren literally punches one of the cretins through the mouth, down into his chest. The special effects also deserve a mention. The creature effects used for Chrissy's mutant foetus are hilarious.

The Class of Nuke 'Em High does not quite match "The Toxic Avenger" for originality or style, but it is a great example of what Troma does better than any other studio and why they are still around 20 years later.

Students pick leaves from a radioactive marijuana plant located in the yard of the nuclear plant.

I first saw this in the late 80s on a vhs n found the creature to b a cheap copy of Alien.

Was never a fan of Troma movies in the late 80s cos they were more gross than gory.

Revisited it recently.

Their earlier effort Toxic Avenger is far superior to this one.

When it comes to stupid trash films, Troma have no equal; and while the vast majority of their output is absolute rubbish, now and again you'll find a few gems in the rough; and unlikely as it may seem, Class of Nuke 'Em High is one such gem. The film presents a post-apocalyptic style similar to that seen in films such as The Warriors and Escape From New York, and blends it with the idea of a school being run by several students; which is reminiscent of the hit thriller Class of 1984. This is all then mixed in with stoner culture; as its toxic weed that causes all the problems, and you have a recipe for a successful trash flick. The film opens with a 'routine nuclear evacuation drill' at Tromaville High; a school situated next to a nuclear power plant. One kid goes mental, and it's not long before we see that a local gang are buying weed from a nuclear plant worker and selling it to the kids at school. The weed grows faster than normal; and there's a reason for that, as toxic waste has contaminated it and pretty soon the kids of Tromaville High start acting rather strangely...

If this film was made by any other production company; I'd probably say it has a point to make about the advent of nuclear power, but since this is Troma it's clear that they've simply lifted a common fear and turned it into a schlock film. There's absolutely no point to it; but seeing all the general carnage is a lot of fun, and director Richard W. Haines isn't afraid to go completely over the top, despite the obvious limitations of his special effects budget. The film plays out something like a zombie movie; although there are influences from other sources, and not all the afflicted characters turn into mindless beings. The gang at the centre of the film is an interesting troupe, and their style fits the jokey tone of the film very well. It's good to see a film like this that has a sense of humour, and absolutely nothing in the film is to be taken seriously; shown best by the fact that the central location is 'Tromaville', and is the 'toxic chemical capital of the world'! The special effects towards the end get a little silly, but it's all in good fun; and while this movie won't be to everyone's tastes, if you enjoy schlock horror - you'll love this!

Funny: The comedy is wittier than you'd expect. Along with the obvious gross gags, there are some deadpan character reactions that made me laugh, like when some of the men checking the plant for radioactivity were dropping like flies and their colleagues, who were standing right beside them, didn't seem to notice or care. Also, you learn a useful lesson here: when you find a barrel full of green slime that smells bad and makes weird noises, DON'T stick your hand into it!

Sexy: The heroine is cute, but the two (or were there three?) bad girls are from another planet!

Gory: Considering the budget they probably had to work with, the gore effects are ingenious. The mutations, mutilations and monsters all look good.

I've not seen enough Troma films to compare this with, but it's fun for at least one viewing. (**1/2)

If only my highschool was like this...eerily predicting a violent chaotic state of highschools in the future loaded with biker gangs and mutants. I first saw this movie on USA's "Up All Night" back in the early 90's when I was about 8 years old and it became one of my favorite late night viewings especially since I was very heavy into the Toxic Crusaders. Movies like this and the Toxic Avenger played a big part in my childhood and thanks to Lloyd Kaufman's influence I am the sick demented horror fan I am today...as if it's a bad thing. 10/10