Hell Comes to Frogtown

Hell Comes to Frogtown
Directed by Donald G. Jackson
R. J. Kizer
Produced by Donald G. Jackson
Randall Frakes
Written by Donald G. Jackson and
Randall Frakes (story and screenplay)
Starring Roddy Piper
Sandahl Bergman
Cec Verrell
William Smith
Rory Calhoun
Music by David Shapiro
Cinematography Donald G. Jackson
Enrico Picard
Edited by R. J. Kizer
James Matheny
Distributed by New World Pictures
Release dates
  • January 1988 (1988-01) (U.S.)
Running time
88 minutes
Country United States
Language English

Hell Comes to Frogtown is a 1988 cult film that was created by Donald G. Jackson. The screenplay was written by Jackson and Randall Frakes. The film was directed by Jackson and R. J. Kizer, and stars professional wrestler Roddy Piper as well as Sandahl Bergman, Cec Verrell, William Smith and Rory Calhoun.

Plot

This film is set in an post-apocalyptic wasteland where few fertile men and women exist due to atomic fallout. As a result, the government places a high priority on those that can still breed. Shortly before the movie opens, a group of mutant amphibians (who have been exiled to the desert by humans) capture a group of fertile women and are using them as sex slaves.

Sam Hell (Piper) is a nomadic traveler who wanders the countryside. He is eventually captured by an organization of warrior-nurses, the closest thing to a government in his region of the world, who reveal that they located him by tracking the trail of pregnant women left in his wake. Their original plan was to use him as breeding stock with their collection of fertile women, but this was the group captured by the mutants. With their own attempts to capture the women failing, the group presses Hell into service as a mercenary; he is to infiltrate the mutant city (derogatorily referred to as "Frogtown") and rescue the women. To make sure that the rebellious Hell follows his orders, he is forced to wear an electronic protective codpiece that will explode if he disobeys or tries to abort his mission. Having already taken numerous samples of reproductive material from him, he is now deemed far more expendable than the women themselves. To aid him in his mission (and make sure he follows the plan), he is paired with one of the nurses, Spangle (Bergman), and an aggressive guard named Centinella (Verrell).

During their journey to Frogtown, Hell tries numerous times to escape but quickly learns that a device Spangle carries will shock his genitals if used or if he gets too far away from it. Despite their rocky start and Spangle's initial cold demeanor, the pair grow closer during the journey and eventually fall in love. When they reach Frogtown, everyone involved is captured. The frogs' second-in-command, Bull (Nicholas Worth), tortures Hell and attempts to remove the codpiece for its technology. Meanwhile, a slightly drugged Spangle is forced to work as a slave and dance for the frogs' Commander Toty (Brian Frank) in the notable "Dance of the Three Snakes" sequence. Proving more successful than she had wished, the nurse soon finds herself at the mercy of the aroused commander. However, with the codpiece now removed (Bull finally removed it with a chainsaw, but it blew up and killed him), the escaped Hell rescues her along with the group of fertile women (Ellen Crocker, Kim Hewson, Ilana Ishaki, Annie McKinon and Janie Thorson) held captive.

Cast

Sequels and spinoffs

Hell Comes to Frogtown spawned one sequel, Return to Frogtown, which was released directly to VHS in 1993. None of the original cast returned.

Toad Warrior was released in 1996 and later re-released as Max Hell Frog Warrior in 2002. According to Jackson, the film was intended as a stand-alone story.[1] It was made using an improvisatory technique known as "zen filmmaking" in which no scripts are used.

Cultural references

The title inspired the animated television series Family Guy episode title "Hell Comes to Quahog".[2]

References

  1. http://www.scottshaw.com/dgjinterview.html
  2. MacFarlane, Seth (2006). Family Guy season 5 DVD commentary for the episode "Hell Comes to Quahog" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.

External links

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