kapecki-51036 The paint-by-numbers plot of "Slugs" is hardly innovative, even for a horror movie: chemical wastes generate mutated, flesh-eating killer slugs in a small community whose authority figures refuse to believe the stalwart head of the local health department until it is too late. Our heroes are on their own to devise a way to kill the beasties and do so with explosive vigor and sacrifice...except. And although the film was made after Roger Corman left New World, it has his trademark drive-in blend of teen sex, blood, and gross-out makeup effects. But the direction is tight, efficient and never lagging, with good production values within its budget and mostly competent acting and dialog that lets the clichés roll. Special effects are quite well done (if generally repulsive), and the small town atmosphere (exteriors were primarily filmed in the upstate New York town of Lyons) is effective. Slugs is an above average entry into the low budget eco-horror genre, good for those who still miss Saturday night at the drive-in.

Predrag The premise behind Slugs sounds ultra cheesy - mutated killer slugs. But it actually turns out to be quite fun and better than any regular "nature-run-amock" horror flick. I was expecting another god awful cheesy, campy bug movie along the lines of Ticks or Skeeter. In other words, I didn't expect anything good at all, who would ever be scared of a slug? I mean, it is one of the slowest creatures in the world after all!. Imagine my surprise then, when I found that not only is this movie not that bad, but.... it is actually pretty damn entertaining and good! Actually, the best word to describe Slugs is FUN! Sure, it's pretty damn cheesy and the general idea is pretty laughable, but with the delivery, Slugs actually turned into a decent little horror movie. Not only that, but it does even manage to...ahem, get under your skin a bit. Plus, for those gore hounds out there, there's a ton of that as well.This is a very highly rated horror from the 80's, a fantastic movie with a well paced out plot and a great budget for effects, a good cast and an erratic tension building soundtrack, you wouldn't think slugs could be scary but they are now, only in the 80's could they get away with a creature feature like this, its chock full of amazing effects, plenty of marvelous stand out bloody gore moments throughout, if you're big on 80's horror then this is a must have!Overall rating: 7 out of 10.

Mark Turner Back in the 80s the glut of low budget horror films was running rampant. Most weren't playing in theaters around the country but the movies did make their way to the grindhouses of the world and then onto video store shelves where horror and gore fans flocked to find the latest release. One such film that garnered attention as well as a small cult following was the film SLUGS, new on blu-ray from Arrow Video.The story is fairly simple and feels like it was derived from the tons of oversized radiation induced monsters of the fifties. A small town is having a rash of murders occurring and no one seems to know what the cause is. Each victim seems to have been eaten alive, their skin and flesh wolfed down to the bone. With no trace of evidence to connect the murders to anyone local Sheriff Reese is at wits end.The local health inspector, Mike Brady, is called to the scene of the first known death. Brady and Sheriff Reese never have seen eye to eye, not in small part due to the Sheriff's always angry disposition. How this man ever got elected is beyond me. Looking for clues Mike doesn't find anything definite but he does notice a trail of slime at the murder scene.As the film progresses more people are killed and in the most gore filled ways. One young teen couple is fooling around only for the girl to fall out of bed and into a massive pile of the man eating blood sucking slugs that are the protagonist in the film. Like the title didn't give that away. Nude and covered in blood and slugs her fate is sealed. The same holds true for various other town folks who are attacked and killed.By the time Brady figures out what is going on he tries to warn the mayor and Sheriff. But with a major development deal in the making and the folks behind it in town no one wants to hear about it. With the help of his best friend, the town planner, they take to the sewer system with the aid of the local high school science teacher to flush out the slugs and bring an end to their reign of terror.So the first question is, is this film any good. Seriously? With a title like SLUGS you ask that question? Of course it isn't a great cinematic achievement. But then again with a title like that and a plot to match why would anyone expect it to be Oscar material. So let's rephrase that question. Is the film a fun filled romp that is absurd, gore filled, cheezy and enjoyable if you let it be so? Absolutely. Don't go in expecting great theater and you'll have some fun with this one.The over the top gore aspect of this film is exactly what made those films in the 80s pop with horror fans. Having gone through decades with little gore and then fueled by films like DAWN OF THE DEAD the gore factor suddenly took off through the roof. Slimy slugs with big mouths and sharp teeth as well as being able to slide along faster than real life slugs seemed like a natural antagonist. This American/Spanish production made the best of what small story there was and created one of those movies that popped up on cable non-stop and rented well at video stores.While those VHS copies are still found, more often than not for sale on ebay, this release puts all of those to shame. Arrow Video, who I've hailed before for saving genre titles and non-mega hits that still have fans, has done it again with a quality transfer of the film. The washed out, blurry tape versions have been replaced with a sharp picture that is amazing considering the sources. The sound is also amazing.If that wasn't enough the extras are enough to keep you busy as well. Included are an audio commentary track by writer/filmmaker Chris Alexander, HERE'S SLUGS IN YOUR EYE – an interview with actor Emilio Linder, THEY SLIME THEY OOZE THEY KILL: THE EFFECTS OF SLUGS – an interview with special effects artist Carlo De Marchis, INVASION USA – an interview with are director Gonzalo Gonzalo, THE LYONS DEN – an interview and locations tour with production manager Larry Ann Evans, a 1988 Goya Awards promo reel, the original theatrical trailer, a reversible sleeve with newly commissioned artwork and a fully illustrated collector booklet with new writing by writer Michael Gingold. When watched with the movie it's enough to keep you busy for an entire evening.So SLUGS isn't a cinematic achievement that major film scholars will be dissecting for years to come. It's fun! It's one of those movies that you don't have to look for subtext in or find political implications running throughout. It is a simple monster movie with the oddest choice of creature you can think of. Pop this one during a party and watch folks howl with laughter while groaning at the gore scenes as well. It's a popcorn movie for those with strong stomachs and fun for horror fans who will want to add this one to their collection.

Bonehead-XL Some horror movies have goofy premises. Killer trees, killer worms, killer beds. No list of absurd horror premises is complete without "Slugs: The Movie." Slugs, as a species, are known for being slow and easily killed with salt. They do not inspire terror, unless you're a cabbage. Building an entire horror movie around slugs seems ill-conceived. It is and yet, not only is "Slugs: The Novel" a real thing, so is "Slugs: The Movie." (As opposed to "Slugs: The Collectable Dinner Ware?") There's not much to the story of "Slugs: The Movie." A small town in the rural United States is threatened by a plague of flesh-eating slugs. The slugs were mutated from normal garden pest into man-eating killers by toxic waste. Our heroes are Mike Brady, a health official, and Don, a sewer inspector. The script gleefully indulges in cliché. Despite the dead bodies piling up at their feet, the town politicians refuse to acknowledge the threat, laughing killer slugs of as silly. Go figure. This impedes the heroes, forcing them to do things by themselves. The focus is more on the town then the people. Slowly, very slowly, the slugs claim clumsy, dimwitted victims. Will the heroes stop the threat in time? Or is the town doomed to be destroyed by slimy, slow gastropods? How do you make a horror film about killer slugs? The film compensates for the premise by doing two things. First off, it pumps up the gore. "Slugs" is way bloodier then you'd expect a movie about garden pest to be. A boy is pulled into a lake, blood erupting at the surface. A man swallows a slug, parasites eating him from the inside out, and his eyeball exploding. A fountain of gore flows from a corpse. The slimy creatures latch themselves to their victims, slowly gnawing them to death. If you can overlook the sheer goofiness of the premise, the film can easily be enjoyed for its over-the-top gory special effects.The movie is almost knowingly ridiculous. How would anyone fall victim to a slug? In several different, contrived ways. While a teenage couple has rowdy sex, the slugs unknowingly fill the bedroom. Just one step on the floor and both teens are claimed. (I feel so sorry for the actress who had to crawl around in the nude, covered in fake blood and fake slugs.) A man lays down on a couch without noticing the slug infestation on it. A woman, chased by a masked rapist, leaps into a hole in the ground, unaware of the slugs filling. No scene is more ridiculous then when a single slug explodes a house. Yes, you read that right. While in his green house, an old man is bitten by a slug. Instead of just pulling the critter off, he writhes around in agony. In his blind panic, he crushes a table and pulls down a shelf. Jars of flammable chemicals are smashed, gas filling the air. The singular slug drives the man so nuts he thinks chopping off his hand is a good idea. His clueless wife in the room over lights a cigarette, igniting the gas, and exploding the house in a massive fireball. It is hilarious. Words don't do the scene justice.The movie is actually full of giant explosions. The performances are badly dubbed and hilariously over-the-top, most notably the ridiculous jerk sheriff. When the sheriff starts yelling at his deputy for asking too many questions or the local teens brush off all the recent deaths, you start to wonder if "Slugs" is in on the joke. And yet, that ending is so totally earnest. Oh no, the lackluster teenage Halloween party will be ruined by the murderous slugs unless we blow up the local sewer system and a few houses! Bad movie lovers should walk, not slowly crawl in their own mucus, to watch "Slugs: The Movie." It is totally ridiculous but never boring. The nudity is frequently and bouncy, the sleaze is honest and up-front. The score is 100% serious. In our era of pre-fab B-flick laughers like "Sharknado," "Slugs" is here to remind us of what a hilarious, B-flick can truly be.