Viewing “The Uh-Oh! Show” at the Florida SuperCon convention was a unique event for me. I got to hear from the cast and director, Herschell Gordon Lewis, before they showed the movie. They shared some of their experiences while on set. Herschell also talked about some of the ideas behind the movie, and what to expect while watching it. What really made it unique was not only that the audience was watching it for the first time, but it was also the cast’s first time. They were really excited to see the final product.
Herschell also discussed “The Uh-Oh! Show” the day before the screening of the movie. He mentioned that this was not your typical horror movie. They made it with the intention to “entertain” the audience. I wasn’t sure what to make of that until he showed us the trailer for the movie.
Before getting into the overall movie, let me give you a little idea of what the Uh-Oh! Show was all about. Basically, it was an old fashioned game show with a nice horrific twist. The contestant was brought on stage to answer a couple of questions. Answer the questions correctly, and win some amazing prizes. The prizes were so enormous; you knew they had no intention of ever rewarding the contestant. If you answered the question incorrectly, it wasn’t simply losing your prizes, or getting a pie in the face. You had to spin the giant “Wheel of Misfortune” that determined which body part you were about to give up.
So what was so “entertaining” about this game show? Well, this wasn’t the typical horror movie where you see someone cut off a person’s body part, and they yell in excruciating pain. In the show, if someone got their leg cut off, then they would just laugh about it. Everyone was having a good old time while this person was getting sliced up including the audience. Just before the person was about to get sliced up, members of the audience would yell “uh-oh,” and then cover themselves with raincoats. And no, Jackie, the host of the show, nor his lovely hostess, Champagne, were the ones doing the cutting. For that, they had Radial Saw Rex, who carried a huge electric saw to do his dirty work. For the contestants, it didn’t end there. We got to see scenes of them after the show as the doctors tried to piece them back together.
No, the movie was not just about contestant after contestant going on stage, and getting sliced apart (although I wouldn’t have objected to that). There was more to the story than that. As one might expect with a show like that, there was going to be a great deal of people that would object to it. Surprisingly, Jackie was one of the first people to object to what was happening on the show. This caused a constant conflict of interest between him, and Fred, the show’s producer. Fred was dreaming big things for the show, while Jackie was having his doubts about the show’s direction. Another person who had issues with the show was Jill, a local reporter. Her boyfriend went on the show, and hadn’t been seen since. She was out to end the show, and find out what happened to her boyfriend with some unexpected help.
Obviously, the game show itself was “entertaining,” but what else made this movie “entertaining?” First, it had some great characters. Jackie and Champagne were terrific stereotypical game show host and hostess respectively, but they also had great off stage personalitites as well. Radial Saw Rex really enjoyed his job. It seemed like he had won the Super Bowl every time he came on stage to cut up the contestants. He kind of reminded me of Terry Crews (White Chicks and Get Smart). Fred was also a good character, especially when he showed how obsessed he was with the show, or got angry. He yelled at and intimidated almost everyone into transforming the show into his vision for the show. Then there was Jill, who didn’t seem like the smartest of reporters, but made up for that with determination. Also, I can’t forget the surprise appearance of Herschell himself. He was very funny playing a role similar to that of the Crypt Keeper from Tales of the Crypt.
For those looking to be “entertained” by horror, I think you will enjoy the transformation the show made. Fred transformed the show from the Uh-Oh! Show into the prime time hit Grim Fairy Tales. While there was plenty of blood in the Uh-Oh! Show, Grim Fairy Tales was more like a true horror story. There were horrific twists on two popular fairy tales: Little Red Riding Hood, and Hansel and Gretel. It seemed like an awkward change of direction for the show, but was still enjoyable. Also amusing, were the shots of people watching the show. They showed people, who usually watched the Uh-Oh! Show, at home watching the Grim Fairy Tales for the first time. It was hilarious how the at home audience seemed fooled into liking the new show.
After watching this movie, I have to agree with Herschell, this was an “entertaining” horror comedy. The game show was great because everyone enjoyed watching the contestants lose, and then get a limb chopped off. The fairy tales quenched your thirst for more of the typical horror story. Some awesome characters, including some that I didn’t even touch on, carried the story. There were also plenty more funny moments in this movie; you just have to be on the look out for them. I give this movie 3 pools of blood.
HorrO
great blog.f
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