The Stuff

Director - Larry Cohen (Full Moon High, It's Alive)
Starring - Michael Moriarty (Hitler Meets Christ), Andrea Marcovicci (Thriller), and Garrett Morris (The Twilight Zone)
Release Date - 1985
Genre - Horror
Tagline(s) - "Are you eating it ...or is it eating you?" "It'll change your life forever" "WARNING! If you see The Stuff in stores... call the police. If you have it in your home... don't touch it...get out. The Stuff is a product of nature... a deadly living organism. It is addictive and destructive. It can overcome your mind and take over your body... and nothing can stop it" "It's smooth and creamy. It's low calorie and delicious. And it kills. It's The Stuff!" and "Enough Is Never Enough"
Format - Streaming (Netflix)

Rating (out of 5):

     Horror from the 80s will always be my favorite films.  I love the culture, the special effects, and the way the stories were written.  Sadly, there were so many 80s horror movies made that I am still discovering new ones.  A year or so ago I was checking out Cinemassacre's Monster Madness.  This is James Rolfe's (Angry Video Game Nerd) Halloween series where he showcases various horror films each year following a theme.  That particular year was 80s-a-thon.  It was during this time that I discovered The Stuff.  Ever since that day I have seen this movie on various occasions and I now often wonder how come I have never heard of this popular Larry Cohen flick. 
     A white substance was found one day by two old men and one of them decides to taste it for some unknown reason.  The old godger discovers that it tastes good and a new craze sweeps the nation.  The substance is then aptly named The Stuff.  One night a young boy is rummaging through the fridge when he accidentally knocks over a container.  To his surprise the substance moves.  From that point on he refuses to touch the stuff, however, his family is painfully addicted to it.  They force him to eat it but he flees.  He jumps in the car of a former F.B.I. agent who is working a case for the ice cream companies in an attempt to regain their sales.  The former agent slowly unravels a high brow conspiracy involving the stuff.  The stuff is actually a living creature that takes over the mind of the host and substitutes their blood with a white fluid.  The former agent and a rag tag team of friends set out to bring down the manufacturing plant to prevent world wide contamination.
     This movie was a solid 80s horror flick but I was a little disappointed with it.  The movie had everything I love about 80s films.  The cheesy 80s storyline, the style and music, and the amazing special effects run wild in this making it the perfect 80s experience. However, the movie has a lot of filler.  Instead of feeling like your typical horror film in the style of The Blob we get a horror film fuzed with a detective flick which makes the film rather boring at times.  I don't give a shit about ice cream manufacturers crying over losing their businesses.  Instead, I want to see more people having a white foam monster pouring out of their eye.  My point is that the film drags out in many of the scenes making the film feel extremely boring at times.  The acting is decent at best.  Michael Moriarty is just awkward to watch.  He acts the same in every role I have seen him in with the exception of the Masters of Horror episode Pick Me Up.  His interactions with other characters puts me in the mind set that I am watching a poker game on ESPN.  It just doesn't feel like he is trying to be the character he is portraying.  The story is obviously similar to The Blob and the film was actually released three years before The Blob remake.  Though the film is very similar to The Blob it still had a lot of creative thinking behind it making it more close to home.  Finally, the film has some amazing special effects and on screen kills.  I loved the special effects but they are not the pinnacle of 80s practical effects.  I would have loved to see more films look as good as this one did.  The special effects truly added to the movie making it really enjoyable.  Overall, when people talk about 80s horror this is the kind of film they are talking about.  This film perfectly demonstrates everything that made that decade memorable.  I recommend it.