As with all of my reviews of films for The Creepercast, I fully recommend that you check each and every one of them out. I am one man and this is my opinion. I've seen plenty of movies that received reviews that were the complete opposite of how I saw the film. These writers, directors, producers and actors all put a lot of time and love into these projects. They deserve to be seen and appreciated for what they are. Everyone has a dream and I fully support the people that take the time to make theirs a reality. With that being said....
This movie has been on my radar for a very long time. It kept popping up as a cult classic of independent horror of the 80's. Not the typical stuff that you would find on your generic horror sites lists, but the kind that only die hard fans would be aware of. On the surface, it reads like a Lloyd Kaufman Troma masterpiece, but this is a monster all it's own. It's grungy, dirty and feels like a lot of people viewed New York in the late 70's and early 80's. A bunch of people from all different parts of society, all kind of jumbled together into one potentially volatile space. Perhaps that was what Gregory Lamberson was intending when he made it? I'm not sure, but he captures the spirit of that time regardless. This is kind of the spiritual successor to Jim Muro's trashtastic epic 'Street Trash'. While it may not have the production values or the vibrant color palette, they feel like counterparts. Even the visuals and basic outline are very similar. Because of how impressed I was with 'Street Trash', I had high hopes for 'Slime City'. I truly believed it may be my next hidden gem that lined my library of film. What's funny though, is that because of my love for Herschell Gordon Lewis and what he brought to the table, I've been pegged as a gore hound. Believe it or not, I'm not the biggest fan of gore effects. They actually can be a bit of a detractor for me at times. This is kind of why 'Street Trash' spoke to me. It had all the elements of a gore film, but because of the decision to use neon colors for all of the blood, guts, gore and icky stuff, it almost made it fun and artsy. 'Slime City' made a similar stylistic choice, but it still came off as being pretty goopy. That's not a bad thing, just something that already kind of made it lose some points. What it did have going for it was the city and buildings the characters inhabited. One of my favorite things about revisiting a lot of these old unearthed titles (especially on Blu-ray) is that you can get a glimpse of what it was like to live in New York City, back in the day. It was a time when film makers seemed to be a bit more free with their decisions to experiment. They would play with the way a narrative was constructed and what might come off as believable. Some of them just didn't care and wanted to tell an insane story. (I'm looking at you Frank Henenlotter) This film is another addition to the time capsule that was the 80's in indie horror.
'Slime City' tells the story of a student, Alex, that moves into a run down apartment building. He's dating a girl that loves him and wants to marry him, but won't have sex with him. The other tenants in the building are all a little off. It's full of artists and punks and the elderly, but the rent is cheap. As he begins to establish himself in his new home, his neighbor has him over for “dinner”. What this actually consists of, he isn't sure, as it's simply described as 'Himalayan yogurt'. He also drinks some haunted Crème de Methe and before long, he's turned into a hideous, melting monster that has a desire to kill. After running into a bum in the alley and eventually killing him, Alex returns to normal. Realizing what's happening, he begins to investigate what he's ingested. We come to find out that a former tenant named Zachary, was an alchemist who's the one that is causing all of this, even from beyond the grave. Alex continues to kill, in order to keep himself as normal as possible. All the while, his relationship is falling apart, along with his life as he's soon face to face with his girlfriend for one final epic showdown.
(Note to the reader: I hate writing plot summaries. That is all.) This film is a cult classic, I can't deny that fact. After finally viewing this film though, I'm left feeling a little hollow inside. Not that it was bad, it just wasn't what I was expecting. Maybe the bar was set to high, from all of the time I spent waiting to watch it? I fully understand what Gregory Lamberson was going for with this film and ultimately, I think he succeeded despite the smaller budget. It very much feels like a student film, being made in the senior year of film school with people studying to be actors, but that will only end up in Eric Roberts films. The special effects are pretty solid. There are some questionable effects moments during the end battle between Alex and his girlfriend, but in the films defense, these were all practical effects. It was 1988, after all. With that being said, you have to give credit where credit is due. Considering all of the things it had going against it, this pulled off quite a bit. I'm curious to see the much delayed sequel 'Slime City Massacre' (2010) to see where the story takes us, so far into the future. At some point, I may end up picking it up on Blu-ray, just to be able to indulge in the special features and see if I can appreciate this one a little more after some distance and time. Also, since it's a double feature with both films, it's a win win situation. I'm keeping this review a little shorter, as it's been a couple of months since I've seen this one and I feel I've said about all I can say. It's a decent 3 out of 5 stars, just barely above a 2 star rating. If you're a lover of all things trashy and low budget, then I certainly recommend this one to you. If you like your horror movies more mainstream and high end, stay away at all costs. This one is for hardcore horror nerds only.
If you like this one, check out: 'Street Trash', 'The Toxic Avenger' and 'The Incredible Melting Man'
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