Little Shop of Horrors 4K 1986 Ultra HD 2160p

Seymour, a young man who seems to be nothing but elbows and knees—always ending up in the wrong place at the wrong time—works at a flower shop struggling through an economic crisis. His boss rolls his eyes with professional indifference and thinks nothing of him; the girl he secretly loves endures domestic tyranny at the hands of a sadistic dentist—a man whose appearance is perhaps the most sinister imaginable—and his only outlet is genetic experiments in botany. One day, after a solar eclipse, he finds a strange plant that, with a gentle smacking sound, begs for blood instead of fertilizer.

This oddity attracts the attention of potential customers, and the business flourishes, but Audrey II—growing not by the day but by the hour—develops teeth of impressive size and the facial expressions of Eddie Murphy, and no longer asks for blood but demands meat—human meat, if possible.

“Little Shop of Horrors” by Frank Oz—best known as the voice of Master Yoda—is a remake of the original 1960 film and a rare example of how something with a niche cult following, cobbled together in three days, can stick in a person’s memory; through their sense of beauty, they are capable not only of keeping their beloved monster alive—like Igor does with electricity— but to breathe new, full-fledged life into it at the highest level of samsara. This clunky but charming classic black comedy mutated into a mind-bending and jaw-dropping musical, took root all the way on Broadway, and became the subject of an unconditional cult following. The cluelessness of one of the Rocco brothers gave rise to Ja-Ja’s charming bumbling; the Scrooge-like despotism of the boss gave way to comedy; and Flower began to sing and harbor plans for world domination. The atmosphere of a quintessential ’80s ghetto, the set design of a Jackson-style “thriller,” complete with mass dance numbers and a multi-ethnic trio providing backing vocals and dance support. The bumbling romantic—a trope stretching from silent films to post-apocalyptic heroes standing twenty-five centimeters tall—is here, too, with a touch of Oliver Twist and a touch of Peter Parker. The girl, conceived as a Monroe, but in reality more like a swan with a cocaine addiction, dreams of shiny toasters and green lawns where exceptionally ugly children will run about. Steve Martin plays an Elvis-like dentist who snorts laughing gas and loves it when his victims scream—by and large, he alone is enough to bring pure delight. And the cherry on top is Bill Murray, a masochist in the dentist’s chair (the original featured a wonderful performance by a young Nicholson), and it’s impossible to watch this calmly. And they sing—they sing, damn it—and how they sing! The reaction to a good musical is physiological; endorphins simply crystallize in your brain.

The headless children of Bacchus and Venus are already kissing the trees, filling them with pus. Carnal desire rages within; the monster serves as a metaphor for dark forces. Mr. Hyde—“the evil inside of me… is on the rise”—Shurik will arm himself with an axe for Lidochka’s sake, and the body parts will go to feed the ego. Despite the farce, the drama strikes a unique chord, and it’s no wonder that *Audrey II* has spoken up; seizing the moment, Seymour has slipped into the Twilight from the dark side, and excuses are thrown around to justify the victim’s villainy—all that’s left is to turn on Sharapova. Greenpeace will prevail, and human sacrifices will be offered to the marching pine trees. The loggers will be equated with Schwartz, reviving Perrault’s traditions. These people are afflicted with leprosy; they no longer believe in nature—but nature, as usual, is capable of standing up for itself.