Lloyd Kaufman’s Troma Entertainment is a staple of the indie horror world – I can already hear that catchy jingle and picture the now-iconic title card swooping in just by mentioning the name Troma. Whether you’ve only seen The Toxic Avenger, or if you’ve seen Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. more times than you’d like to admit, Troma’s influence is wide-spread. Hell, even Guardians Of The Galaxy director James Gunn was a young Troma talent – so yes, without Troma, we wouldn’t have a Guardians Of The Galaxy. (Shhh, just let me have that giant leap of logic.)
But Tromaville needs your help! Last year saw the release of Lloyd Kaufman’s Return To Nuke ‘Em High Volume One, which I already told you all to watch after attending the New York City Horror Film Festival that year. Don’t listen to my review though – Kaufman’s splatter-cinema played at the MOMA in a roundup of the year’s most “influential, innovative films that [Team MOMA believes] will stand the test of time.” Yup, Troma screened alongside such titles as Blue Is The Warmest Color, Dallas Buyers Club, Wolf Of Wall Street and other year-defining titles.
But, here’s the problem. As you might have noticed, there’s a “Volume 1” in the film’s title. So, now you may be asking, when can we see Volume 2? Well, that’s up to us.
After trying to finish the film on their own, Troma has now taken to Kickstarter to finish funding for what they’re promising is the studio’s “most ambitious effort ever.” Don’t worry, principle photography has already been completed, and all that remains is the post-production work (color correction/sound mixing/editing), which means that Troma has confirmed the film will be completed and released in time for the Toronto International Film Festival, with a fail-safe wide release January 2016 – if their $50K goal is met. If the goal is exceeded, Kaufman confirmed that money will be put into distributing the film on an even wider scale. There are still 33 days left to pledge, and Troma is about halfway there – pretty good numbers, but there’s still a good chunk to go.
Troma has been grinding it out for years as the little guy, yet they’ve always been able to entertain their cult followers with a smile on their face (seriously, in almost every picture you see of Lloyd Kaufman, he’s got a huge smile). Their filmmaking style is down and dirty, and while it may not be for everyone, Troma makes the movies they want to make – and are better for it. I need more President Lemmy. I need more radioactive duck monsters. I need more glee-club Cretins. Don’t you? EXACTLY! What are you waiting for, go help save Tromville and be sure to use “#SaveNukeEmHigh” when spreading the good word on social media!
The New England Patriot’s Deflategate campaign doesn’t need your help, but Return To Nuke ‘Em High Volume 2 and Toxie do! Tom Brady didn’t make Tromeo & Juliet, did he?!
