- The Stuff
Infobox_Film
name = The Stuff
caption = The Stuff DVD cover
imdb_id = 0090094
producer =Paul Kurta
director =Larry Cohen
writer =Larry Cohen
starring =Michael Moriarty Andrea Marcovicci Garrett Morris Paul Sorvino Scott Bloom Danny Aiello Patrick O'Neal
James Dixon
music =Anthony Guefen Richard Seaman (jingles)
cinematography =Paul Glickman
editing =Armand Lebowitz | distributor =New World Pictures Anchor Bay Entertainment
released =June 14 ,1985 (USA)
runtime = 93 minutes
language = English
budget = $1,700,000 (estimated)
amg_id = 1:47478
gross = Unknown"The Stuff" is a
1985 science fiction -horror film written, produced, and directed byLarry Cohen and starringMichael Moriarty ,Garrett Morris ,Andrea Marcovicci , andPaul Sorvino .Synopsis
The plot, a scathing commentary on
consumerism , involves a sticky white glop that is discovered byminers . Upon tasting it, they discover it has a sweet and highly addictive taste. Later, the slime is marketed as the Stuff and sold to the general public in pint (half-liter) containers likeice cream . The Stuff becomes a nationwide craze and drastically hurts the sales of ice cream. An industrial saboteur is hired by the leaders of the suffering ice cream industry to find out exactly what the Stuff is and destroy it. His efforts reveal that the craze for the dessert is far more sinister than anyone had thought—it is actually alive, possibly sentient, and gradually takes over thebrain , mutating those who eat it into bizarrezombie -like creatures.Production
*Some of the substance props or stand-ins for the real Stuff used in the movie included lots of
Häagen-Dazs ice cream, yogurt, and, for one scene involving an enormous avalanche-like effect of Stuff crashing though a wall, fire-extinguishing foam. Other shots, such as the ones of the giant lake of Stuff, required superimposed images and animation.
*The scene in the motel where the Stuff comes out of the mattress and pillows and attacks the man on the wall and ceiling was shot in a room that could turn upside down, allowing the Stuff to move up and down the wall. It was exactly the same room used in "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984) when Johnny Depp's character Glen is sucked into his bed and his blood is regurgitated back out onto the ceiling.
*Writer-directorLarry Cohen wanted to castArsenio Hall as Chocolate Chip Charlie W. Hobbs, since he thought he was not only good but a rising star. However, the execs atNew World Pictures wanted someone more recognizable, and thus castGarrett Morris instead.In popular culture
*The "
Futurama " episode "The Problem with Popplers " has a similar premise to that of the film. In the episode, Fry, Leela, and Bender land on a planet where they find what looks like fried shrimp nuggets and sell it to a fish restaurant where it becomes insanely popular, until Leela finds out they are actually the recently born children of aliens from Omicron Persei 8.
*The Stuff is an item and collectible card on the virtual pet siteNeopets , portrayed as a pink, gooey substance that rapidly grows in size to consumeNeopia . It can only be stopped by being eaten.
*In theUK children's series "The Sarah Jane Adventures ", the episode "Invasion of the Bane " involves a highly addictive soft drink used by aliens to brainwash the British public. The drink, Bubble Shock, contains organic elements from the Bane Mother, which leads to the aliens being able to exert control of people who have drunk it.External links
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090094/ The Stuff] at the
Internet Movie Database
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
