Troll 2 (1990)

A vacationing family discovers that the entire town they're visiting is inhabited by goblins, disguised as humans, who plan to eat them.

Director:

Claudio Fragasso (as Drake Floyd)

Writers:

Rossella Drudi (screenplay), Claudio Fragasso (screenplay) (as Drake Floyd)

Stars:

Michael Paul Stephenson, George Hardy, Margo Prey

Bottom Rated Movies #33 | See the Bottom Rated Movies as rated by our users.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Paul Stephenson	...	Joshua Waits (as Michael Stephenson)
George Hardy	...	Michael Waits
Margo Prey	...	Diana Waits
Connie Young	...	Holly Waits (as Connie McFarland)
Robert Ormsby	...	Grandpa Seth
Deborah Reed	...	Creedence Leonore Gielgud
Jason Wright	...	Elliott Cooper
Darren Ewing	...	Arnold
Jason Steadman	...	Drew
David McConnell	...	Brent
Gary Carlston	...	Sheriff Gene Freak (as Gary Carlson)
Mike Hamill	...	Bells
Don Packard	...	Drugstore Owner
Christina Reynolds	...	Cindy
Glenn Gerner	...	Peter

Storyline

A young boy is terrified when his family's vacation is haunted by vile plant-eating monsters from his worst nightmare; the spectre of his deceased grandfather assists his attempt to save his beloved family. Also, there are NO trolls in this movie, only goblins.

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Plot Keywords:

corn | cult classic | green fluid | inconsistency | sexual innuendo | 

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Taglines:

There's nothing more frightening than a little boy's nightmare...until it turns real.

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Horror

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Certificate:

M

Did You Know?

Trivia

The infamous "Oh my God!" scene has been viewed on YouTube just over 7.1 million times as of Feb 2020.

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Goofs

Creedence says "You'll just feel a little tickle...", but her mouth says something else.

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Quotes

Joshua: Nilbog! It's goblin spelled backwards! This is their kingdom!

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Alternate Versions

There is one slight inconsistency between the VHS version and the DVD version. In the VHS, when sheriff Gene Freak gives Drew the sandwich, after Drew bites into it he says "thank you sheriff this is good". But in the DVD, you see him mouthing "thank you sheriff this is..." and then you hear the word "good". In other words, they muted the words "thank you sheriff this is" on the DVD version. However, this was later corrected for Scream Factory's Blu-Ray release.

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Connections

Referenced in The Nostalgia Critic: The Happening (2016)

User Reviews

Utterly flawless

This IS the best movie ever made. Nothing I have experienced has displayed the degree of perfection attained by the geniuses (yes geniuses and nothing less) behind Troll II.

The story-line is gripping, believable, and damn scary. The Waits family is on a month long vacation in the country town of Nilbog, as part of the family exchange program. They leave the modern conveniences of their home to "rough it" in Nilbog's rural setting. I'm on the edge of my seat already, but wait, there's more. Young Joshua's deceased Grampa Seth comes back from the grave to warn the family of Nilbog's dangers. The beautiful Holly Waites's boyfriend tags along with his blatantly homo-erotic chums. There's something strange about the curiously unrefrigerated "Nilbog Milk." Oh, and did I forget to mention that the town is full of GOBLINS?!!!

The acting in this film can be summed up in one word and one word only: superfine. Every member of the Waites family was portrayed realistically and intriguingly. The chemistry between Elliot and Holly was so intense that I would be surprised to hear that there was not something going on off camera. The town matriarch has full command of the screen whenever she graces it with her presence. One actor takes the cake, however. Scene stealer Draco Floyd as the Store Owner is a sight to behold. He truly takes this movie that extra step into masterpiece. Watch for him. He'll give you chills.

The special effects are top of the line for 1992, and some of these techniques are still used today. Watch for the spear throwing, the regeneration of Creedence's hand, Grampa Seth in the mirror, "the shirt buttoning scene," the vegetable transformations, "the popcorn scene," and of course, the goblin costumes.

The underlying social commentary of Troll II was truly ahead of it's time. Homosexuality is dealt with on many different levels. Elliot and his boys are obviously repressed closet homosexuals. Their's is a constant struggle for acceptance into the Waites family. The town of Nilbog is in fact run by a lesbian who lusts after Holly Waits and takes great pleasure in the demasculinization of Arnold. Vegetarianism is approached more directly. The goblins turn their human victims into vegetables before devouring them. This says in no uncertain terms that everything you eat (plant or animal) was alive once, and killing is still killing. Troll II takes a chilling look at organized religion in the sermon scene. The Preacher (played by my father, I'm pretty sure of it) has his congregation in the palms of his hands and easily turns them against the lovable, freckled Joshua. Power like that belongs in no one man's hands.

On the whole, realism sells Troll II. It's scary because it COULD happen. Don't watch this one alone or at night, but DO watch it. You won't forget it.

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

1990 (Greece)

Also Known As:

Trolls

Filming Locations:

Morgan, Utah, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$65,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmirage, Filmirage

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1