Terror Firmer (1999)

Director:

Lloyd Kaufman

Writers:

Patrick Cassidy (writer) and
Douglas Buck (writer) ...
(more)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror

Tagline:

Let's Make Some Art!

Plot:

A homicidal maniac is on the loose in the city and the low budget film crew on a Troma movie have the power to stop them.

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Exploding Car | Severed Leg | Disturbing | Mute Child

Cast

Will Keenan	...	Casey
Alyce LaTourelle	...	Jennifer
Lloyd Kaufman	...	Larry Benjamin
Trent Haaga	...	Jerry
Sheri Wenden	...	Mysterious Woman / Waitress
Debbie Rochon	...	Christine
Yaniv Sharon	...	Naked P.A.
Charlotte Kaufman	...	Audrey Benjamin
Gary Hrbek	...	Toddster
Joe Fleishaker	...	Jacob Gelman
Ron Jeremy	...	Casey's Dad
Greg 'G-Spot' Siebel	...	Ward
Mario Díaz	...	DJ
Mo Fischer	...	Andy
Lyle Derek	...	Asshole P.A.
Trace Burroughs	...	Edgar Allan
Edouard Baer	...	French Cool Cat
Joseph Malerba	...	French Cool Cat
Roy David	...	Jeff / Toxie
Sean Pierce	...	Moose
Barry Brisco	...	Stephen
Darko Malesh	...	Nikolai
Carla Pivonski	...	Sarah - Toxie's Girl / Best Breast (as Carla Burden)
Reverend Jen Miller	...	Script Girl
Eve Crosby	...	Jennifer's Mom
Stefanie Imhoff	...	Assia
Theo Kogan	...	Theodora
Ariel Wizman	...	Guy Beaten by Leg
Michael Locascio	...	Old Man Phil
Wendy Adams	...	Toilet Plunger Police Gyno
Michael Levine	...	Police Detective
Gadi Harel	...	Continuity Guy
Anthony Haden-Guest	...	Toxie's Father
Lemmy	...	Television Inteviewer
Paul Cohen	...	Television Interviewer
Oakley Stevenson	...	Pregnant Woman
Ali Grossman	...	Homecoming Queen
Rik Slave	...	Two-Sexed Freak - Man
Lindsey Anderson	...	Two-Sexed Freak - Woman
Maryse Pen	...	Escalator Screamer
Jacob Adams	...	Boy Who Plays with Severed Head
Haynes Thigpen	...	Randy, Drunk Frat Guy #1
Gabriel Friedman	...	Meathead Drunk Fratboy #2
Ileana Romero	...	Naked P.A. Lover
Joe Franklin	...	Himself
Joey Crawford	...	Fire Extinguisher Boy
Sharon Middendorf	...	Frat Bartender
Bella Compagna	...	Nurse Anesthesia
Sarah Allan	...	Fraternity Lesbian
Don McGregor	...	Tony 'Be Reasonable' Rosen (as The Great Don McGregor)
Jim Salicrup	...	Video Company Exec (as James Salicrup)
Jerry Rudes	...	Vomiting Stretcher Bearer
John Jordan	...	Vomiting Stretcher Bearer
Kerri Kenney	...	Woman with Eyeball in Her Cleavage
Pedro Pizarro	...	Marco (Squib Guy)
Lisa Gaye	...	Casey's Mom
Holly Spencer	...	Gelman's Wife
Marina Morgan	...	Gelman's On-Set Gyno-American
Avery Misuraca	...	Gelman's On-Set Gyno-American (as Countess Vladimira)
Patrick Curry	...	Butcher
Vince Burger	...	Craft Service Guy
Becque Olson	...	The Butcher's Wife
Richard Johnson	...	Cereal Killer's Victim
Greg Nolasco	...	Farting Boy (as Gregory John Nolasco)
Hetty Weering	...	Young Casey
Barbara Malinowski	...	Baby Toxie
Robert Samuels	...	Squib Death Victim
Joe Lynch	...	Clothespin Boy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Eric Alan	...	Actors... or, Individuals Who Portray Members of the Crew (as Eric Zork Alan)
Patrick Cassidy	...	Donald
Alisa Christensen	...	Crew Catfighter
Ez Davidson	...	Stockbroker in front of Library
Scott Ennis	...	Shocked Pedestrian
Tony Finn	...	Pushy Reporter (as Tony Maestrone)
Brendan Flynt	...	Headcrushing Witness
Devin Hamilton	...	Bar Mitzvah Guy
Adam Hammel	...	Head Crushing Witness
Jeremy Hodgins	...	TROMIE - the Nuclear Rodent
Kitty Kowalski	...	Two-Sexed Freak
Paul Kyrmse	...	Reporter
Jasi Cotton Lanier	...	Sexy Scream Queen (as Roxanne Michaels)
Sean McGrath	...	12 Year Old Retarded Boy
Lauren Heather McMahon	...	Beautiful Crew Member with Aerosol Can (as Heather McMahon)
Rusty Nails	...	Frat Guy (as Rusty Osgood)
Christopher Pierce	...	Stockbroker in front of Library
Rachael Robbins	...	Costume Girl
Eli Roth	...	Shocked Onlooker
Jonny Spanish	...	Mad Cowboy (scenes deleted)
Dana Troy	...	Crew Catfighter
Dan Truman	...	Geek P.A.
Douglas Weiss	...	Stockbroker in front of Library
Nick Zedd	...	Doctor Fershlugglner
Trey Parker	...	Hermaphrodite (uncredited)
Gregory Radin	...	Shirtless man being pistol whipped (uncredited)
Matt Stone	...	Hermaphrodite (uncredited)

Directed by
Lloyd Kaufman

Writing credits
Patrick Cassidy		(writer) and
Douglas Buck		(writer)
Lloyd Kaufman		(book "All I Need to Know About Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger") (inspiration) &
James Gunn		(book "All I Need to Know About Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger") (inspiration)

Produced by
Michael Herz	....	producer
Lloyd Kaufman	....	producer
Will Keenan	....	associate producer
Elizabeth van Merkensteijn	....	producer

Original Music by
Nobuhiko Morino

Cinematography by
Brendan Flynt

Film Editing by
Gabriel Friedman

Casting by
Will Keenan

Production Design by
Jean Loscalzo

Costume Design by
Stefanie Imhoff

Production Management
Yurgi Ganter	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Adam Hammel	....	assistant director
Gadi Harel	....	second assistant director
Ted Magee	....	second second assistant director
Edward McGurn	....	second assistant director

Sound Department
Sean McGrath	....	adr recordist
Evan Meszaros	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
David Bracci	....	special effects technician
Brigida Costa	....	special effects assistant
Ruth Pongstaphone-Safer	....	special effects: Real FX

Stunts
Mike Jones	....	stunts
John L. Lewis	....	stunt rigger

Camera and Electrical Department
Antarès Bassis	....	clapper loader
Nyle Cavazos Garcia	....	second assistant camera
Nate Havens	....	first assistant camera
Tet Kay	....	second camera operator
Joe Lynch	....	grip

Editorial Department
Michael Yetter	....	negative cutter

Production Companies

• Santa Monica Holdings
• Troma Entertainment

Distributors

• Cecchi Gori Home Video (2007) (Italy) (DVD)
• Cultmovies (2008) (Germany) (DVD)
• Stomp Visual (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• Troma Entertainment
• Troma Team Video

Other Companies

• Victor Entertainment  soundtrack
• napalm FiLMS  soundtrack recording

Also Known As:

Terror Firmer (Italy) [it]
Terror Firmer (France) [fr]
Um Terror de Equipe (Brazil) (festival title) [pt]

MPAA:

Rated R for strong crude sexuality, language, violence and gore.

Runtime:

USA:114 min (unrated version) | USA:98 min (R-rated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Iceland:16 | Italy:VM18 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Sweden:15 | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut)

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Santa Monica Holdings

Trivia:

The end credits states, "A VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU TO: The New York City Police Department, for their unstinting cooperation and invaluable help throughout every part of this production" In The Making of Terror Firmer, it shows the police clashing with the production on several instances (one of which involved the police revoking the crew's filming permit).

Quotes:

Jacob Gelman: Do you want some chocolate? I didn't think so. I eat this stuff all the time. White chocolate, dark chocolate. Of course I eat dark chocolate with meat and white chocolate with fish.

Movie Connections:

References Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000)

Disgusting, Sick, Perverse but Oh so Funny!

It's hard to describe "Terror Firmer". Think "Living in Oblivian" with Lucio Fulci style violence, filmed by the "Vienna Aktionists" on the set of "Sweet Movie" directed by Groucho Marx and John Waters. Those unfamiliar with the 60's shock artists the Vienna Aktionists; will be surprised at their similarities to troma. The Vienna Aktionists were a group of anarchist stage performers from the 60's, who would put on live surreal sex shows. They would take food, urine, feces, vomit and semen and create shocking works of art. When I think of Troma, I'm reminded of the Vienna Aktionists. Troma's films are so sick and gross, that they teeter on artistic brilliance. O.K, so "Terror Firmer" defies description. Troma is a company dedicated to gore hound freaks and fans of guilty pleasure b-movies. I am one of those fans. Terror Firmer can definitely be considered a surrealist film. It lacks a traditional narrative, it has grotesque imagery and mocks many institutional standards. It's also one giant middle finger to Hollywood. The plot concerns a psychotic, hermaphrodite serial killer; who is killing people off in the most morbid ways imaginable, on the set of a troma movie. Lloyd Kaufman plays Larry Benjamin, a blind movie director who continues filming even though his cast keeps getting murdered. He wants to get his bizarre artistic vision out there. It seems like "Terror Firmer" tries to outdo "Pink Flamingos", "Cannibal Holocaust" and "Salo" in shock. The first five minutes of the film contain a leg decapitation, an abortion, death by corn flakes and a suicidal shot in the head. This film is almost guaranteed to even make the most jaded viewer cringe. Your either laughing or disgusted with shock. There is ridiculous amounts of sex, full frontal nudity and of course "big breasts". Almost every imaginable bodily function or fluid is present, including crap eating. Also the films obsession with pickles is quite disturbing. After viewing this film, you'll never think of pickles the same way again (guarenteed). As repulsive as the subject matter is, the film is pretty damn funny. Just be prepared to squirm too. I appreciate Troma, because after watching "Terror Firmer"; I searched for other bizarre films. I also became interested in surrealism. So if it wasn't for Lloyd Kaufman, I may of never appreciated Bunuel, Godard, Greenaway, David Lynch, Fellini, Jodorowsky, John Waters, Salvador Dali, Jan Svankmajer, Tekeshi Miike, Dusan Makavejev or David Cronenburg. I love Troma, even if their films are sometimes a bit much. They opened up my mind and imagination to new ideas. I know one thing Otto Muehl and Dali would be proud. Now let's go make some art!