Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

A nerdy florist finds his chance for success and romance with the help of a giant man-eating plant who demands to be fed.

Director:

Frank Oz

Writers:

Howard Ashman (screenplay), Howard Ashman (based on the musical play "Little Shop of Horrors")

Stars:

Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Vincent Gardenia

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Levi Stubbs	...	Audrey II (voice)
Rick Moranis	...	Seymour Krelborn
Ellen Greene	...	Audrey
Vincent Gardenia	...	Mushnik
Steve Martin	...	Orin Scrivello - D.D.S.
Tichina Arnold	...	Crystal
Michelle Weeks	...	Ronette
Tisha Campbell-Martin	...	Chiffon (as Tisha Campbell)
Jim Belushi	...	Patrick Martin (as James Belushi)
John Candy	...	Wink Wilkinson
Christopher Guest	...	The First Customer
Bill Murray	...	Arthur Denton
Stan Jones	...	Narrator (voice) (as Stanley Jones)
Bertice Reading	...	'Downtown' Old Woman
Ed Wiley	...	'Downtown' Bum #1

Storyline

Seymour Krelborn is a nerdy orphan working at Mushnik's, a flower shop in urban Skid Row. He harbors a crush on fellow co-worker Audrey Fulquard, and is berated by Mr. Mushnik daily. One day as Seymour is seeking a new mysterious plant, he finds a very mysterious unidentified plant which he calls Audrey II. The plant seems to have a craving for blood and soon begins to sing for his supper. Soon enough, Seymour feeds Audrey's sadistic dentist boyfriend to the plant and later, Mushnik for witnessing the death of Audrey's ex. Will Audrey II take over the world or will Seymour and Audrey defeat it?

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Plot Keywords:

plant | florist | shop | eclipse | nerd | 

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Taglines:

Don't feed the plants.

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Musical | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material including comic horror violence, substance abuse, language and sex references

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 December 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

La petite boutique des horreurs

Filming Locations:

Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$38,747,385 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Geffen Company, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min 102 min (original)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The shot pulling away from Audrey after the song "Somewhere That's Green" was so long that it required two cranes, one placed on top of the other, to pull it off. The camera actually shifts a little when the one crane stops and the other takes over.

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Goofs

In one shot during the "Downtown" sequence, Audrey is obviously stepping off from a standing position on cue, although she's supposed to be continuing a walk down the sidewalk.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: On the twenty-third day of the month of September, in an early year of a decade not too long before our own, the human race suddenly encountered a deadly threat to its very existence. And this terrifying enemy surfaced, as such enemies often do, in the seemingly most innocent and unlikely of places...

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Crazy Credits

"Special Thanks" are given to Paul Dooley, because his scenes as Patrick Martin were cut and re-cast with Jim Belushi. Dooley's scenes are restored for the Director's cut, and consequently Belushi gets the "Special Thanks" instead.

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Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

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Soundtracks

The Meek Shall Inherit
Written by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken
Arranged and Adapted by Bob Gaudio and Robby Merkin
Produced by Bob Gaudio
Performed by Rick Moranis, Michelle Weeks, Tichina Arnold and Tisha Campbell-Martin with Robby Merkin,
Frank Oz, Doreen Hermitage Bob Sessions, Stephen Hoye, Gary Martin and Bob Sherman

User Reviews

Loving homage to B movie ideals

One of the most unappreciated films of the eighties, the songs, performances, and especially the affectionate screenplay all harken back to the cheap old days of Roger Corman and his B movie compatriots. From Steve Martin's sadistic Elvis-inspired dentist to the early girl-group rock score, "Little Shop" moves with an appropriately cheesy style that lets you in on the joke, yet never insults you for loving those poverty row movies.