Best Worst Movie – DVD Review

The Flick:

I finally sat down and watched Troll 2 one year ago after viewing a trailer online for a documentary named Best Worst Movie, which chronicles the making of the film and the unexpected cult phenomena that has grown to enormous preportions. Michael Stephenson played the leading kid Joshua Waits in the sequel, and serves as Director here. He tracked down the majority of the cast and crew for a flick that is considered one of the worst movies all-time according to rating system websites like Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb.

As a child, Michael Stephenson recieved an unlucky Christmas present in the form of a VHS copy of Troll 2 and he has been running from that bad memory ever since. For years, he just wanted to forget about this Utah shot production made by prolific Italian director Claudio Fragasso. I will admit that Troll 2 is not going to win any Oscars and deserves a few Razzies, but for a no budget movie, shot with no name actors in three weeks, it has a certain charm that shines through all of the awfulness. A movie that is a follow-up to John Buechler’s 1986 original and doesn’t have a single Troll in it.

The glue that holds everything together is George Hardy, a guy that resembles Craig T. Nelson and a man who has more charm and charisma in his pinky finger than Sam Worthington has in his entire being. Now a practicing dentist in Alabama City, Alabama, George is adored by his friends and family – and it is pointed out that he did major dental work on several children from a local school for absolutely free. Even his ex-wife thinks he’s a good guy.

Now we head into dork territory as a fans get together to throw their annual Troll 2 parties and try to bring in more members to the cheeseball side. Then we see things catch fire as screenings are set up across the nation to one sold out show after another. These people are not lined up to see Avatar, they are traveling from hundres of miles, state to state, to see a film where a town [Nilbog, Goblin spelled backwards] is taken over by vegeterian beasties.

Claudio Fragasso [Scalps, Monster Dog] belives that his film has deep mean explaining, “Troll 2 is a film that examines many serious and important issues like eating, living, and dying. It’s an important film.” He is a passionate man who is a grumbler like his fellow countryman, the late Lucio Fulci. In no way was he setting out to make a bad movie. He doesn’t think highly of the dogs, I mean actors, he had to work with. There is a heart underneath that steel chest that opens up when he visits a screening in Los Angeles as he is treated like a star from the excited fans.

What suprised me the most about this excellent documentary is it reveals some humbling sadness along the way. It was very meloncholy to learn that actor Don Packard [Nilbog Store Owner] suffers from a mental illness that dates back to the making of the picture. Margo Prey [Diana Waits] has a hard time leaving her home for long periods of time because she is taking care of her mother who needs full-time care. I couldn’t help but think of both my grandparents who needed that kind of attention when their health started failing.

I will say this loudly and proudly, Troll 2 is not the worst movie ever. That would belong to movies made with robust budgets and A-list actors that had catering budgets that exceeded the cost of the entire production of Troll 2.

The DVD:

Audio/Video

The audio came in loud and clear and the video is pretty impressive for a documentary about the worlds worst movie.

Special Features

Deleted Scenes: This disc has an abundance of deleted material that didn’t quite fit with the direction the of the film. I loved every bit of footage compiled here, it’s all worth watching.

Filmmaker Q&A: A podcast with director Michael Paul Stephenson and George Hardy that is pretty comprehensive and takes the place of the absent commentary track.

There are tons of other features on here as well, including more scenes from the Alamo Drafthouse, fan films, music videos, and more!

The Flick: Rating:

The DVD: Rating: