A shy young flower shop assistant from the wrong side of the tracks named Seymour (Johnathan Haze) is propelled to fame when he develops a strange new breed of plant. He names it Audrey Junior in honour of fellow shop assistant, Audrey, who he is infatuated with.

As time wears on the plant weakens and Seymour’s boss (the owner of the flower shop, Mr Mushnick) makes it clear to him that he will sack him if this growing horticultural curiosity doesn’t survive. As word of this weird-looking plant spreads, flower sales in the skid row shop go through the roof, so poor Seymour is under pressure. When a DROP of his blood accidentally lands on Audrey Junior and the plant improves to the point of developing speech, Seymour realises that only human flesh can make it thrive. With his job on the line, Audrey’s growing interest in him, and an ageing mother to support, he resigns himself to secretly doing what he has to do, with bizarre results.

Will Mr Mushnick discover Seymour’s nasty secret? Will Audrey? If so, will they care? You find yourself asking these soapie-inspired questions as you get sucked into the cruddiness of it all.

The plot in this black comedy/horror revolves around Seymour’s dilemma, and this generates enough interest in the outcome to keep watching. It’s definitely a cast of unknowns, notable for a brief but memorable cameo appearance by a young Jack Nicholson, as well as being rumoured to have been shot in 2 or 3 days on a disused set about to be demolished. For a rush job of this magnitude, it’s well done, but it’s not my cuppa tea.

I gotta say, the warped side of my nature appreciated the characterisations; Jack Nicholson plays a masochistic funeral director who just loves the dentist’s drill. This sort of stuff is cult collector “gold”.

Being shot in black and white lends it a gritty edge, and the economical musical score totally suits the mood. The story unfolds in retrospect, with a detective narrating the general course of events, but it’s so unobtrusive that I didn’t notice initially.

Directed by Roger Corman, who by this stage of his career had such 50’s schlock film credits to his name as “Attack of the Crab Monsters” and “Wasp Woman”. Need I say more?

Digitally remastered, full screen aspect ratio 4:3. The picture is sharp with no obvious artefacts, except in opening credits - so what? Couldn’t imagine it in anything other than B&W; Audrey Junior might not have looked as crappy otherwise, and we can’t have that.

THE EXTRAS

Trivia: A couple of paragraphs on a scrolling screen outlines the film’s speedy completion and subsequent cult status, essentially giving you the option of saying “It’s half-decent, considering….” instead of “What a crock….”

Synopsis: Same setup as the trivia section, except it tells you the basic story.

CONCLUSION

A kooky cast of characters blends the mundane and the macabre. It’s The Twilight Zone meets The Day Of The Triffids. For lovers of the absurd.