I was a fan of Rick Moranis long before I first saw this movie, and I had always admired his comic/acting abilities, but I was blown away by his performance as Seymour Krelborne. I'm an actress who doesn't enjoy many musicals, but I have about five that I am simply crazy about, and Little Shop of Horrors is one of those. On the stage, I have seen many actors tackle that leading role, but none of them could ever hold a candle to Mr. Moranis' portrayal. I've seen other actors play the character almost one-dimensionally, but Rick Moranis truly showed viewers what a complex character Seymour Krelborne is. Rick Moranis is an amazingly talented man, and as I plan to write thesis on Little Shop of Horrors, I hope that I'll one day get to meet him.
But enough praising of that glorious actor, let me get on to talking about the movie.
So few plays make a respectable and admirable transition from the stage to the screen, but this one did, and I'm inclined to agree with a previous critic here that this may in fact be the last great movie musical. A fair amount of the play was altered for the screen, like a couple of songs that were replaced by new songs or more dialogue, but that seemed to make the movie better (I was very happy to find that "It's Just the Gas" was omitted from the film). The movie also adds the masochistic dental patient who was in the original 1960 Roger Corman film, but who wasn't added to the play. Played by the wonderful Bill Murray, the character has a delightful meeting with the sadistic dentist, played by the brilliant Steve Martin. Bill Murray doesn't give off the same amusing gay undertones as the great Jack Nicholson did in the original (and if you don't believe me about the original gay undertones, go watch that scene where he tells Seymour, who is posing as the dentist, to "DON'T STOP NOW!!!"). However, Bill Murray does seem to very subtly show that his character finds the dental torture to be sexually gratifying, which of course results in hilarity that is reminiscent of the original film.
As for the ending of this film, it's hard for me to form an opinion about it being better or worse than the ending performed on stage. I agree with another previous critic, that the play is a Greek tragedy (and I thought I was the only one who took interest in deeply analyzing that play!), and that it is important for Seymour to pay the price he's given. When watching Little Shop of Horrors on stage, I find the tragic ending to be quite fitting, but in this movie I honestly don't think I could see that happening. I'm not the kind of viewer that has to have a happy ending in whatever she sees, no not by a long shot, but something about this movie made me want to see them live happily ever after. I think I can chalk that feeling down to the fact that, like Leonard Maltin wrote, Rick Moranis "played the character to perfection", and the fact that Moranis and the lovely and talented Ms. Greene had such dynamic chemistry together. Like I wrote above, Rick Moranis played the character with so many dimensions, that I felt drawn more to his portrayal than anyone elses' I had ever seen. I felt more compassion, hope, and love for his Seymour than I had for anyone elses' (Rick even gave the character more sex appeal, in my opinion). Rick Moranis knew how to make his character have that desired and appropriate effect on the audience. So, because of how he truly got down to the heart of the character, I don't think I would have enjoyed seeing his end come.
However, I would love to see that ending. Ellen Greene is a magnificent, versatile actress and for her sake, it was a shame that scene was cut; the audience should have gotten to view that. And I'm sure Rick, who hasn't had the chance to do many dramatic scenes in his career so far, was amazing as well. So, what it comes down to is that I would love to see Rick and Ellen in that last scene, for I too feel deprived of parts of two great performances, but I'm still a fan of the happy ending.
Does anyone know where I can find the movie on DVD with the original ending? I believe I read that it was released with the original ending, but that was taken out of stores after some time. I would really like to see that, so if anyone can tell me of *anywhere* where I might find a copy (never before seen, used, or re-recorded) of the DVD, I would pay any price asked and be greatly appreciative.
But enough praising of that glorious actor, let me get on to talking about the movie.
So few plays make a respectable and admirable transition from the stage to the screen, but this one did, and I'm inclined to agree with a previous critic here that this may in fact be the last great movie musical. A fair amount of the play was altered for the screen, like a couple of songs that were replaced by new songs or more dialogue, but that seemed to make the movie better (I was very happy to find that "It's Just the Gas" was omitted from the film). The movie also adds the masochistic dental patient who was in the original 1960 Roger Corman film, but who wasn't added to the play. Played by the wonderful Bill Murray, the character has a delightful meeting with the sadistic dentist, played by the brilliant Steve Martin. Bill Murray doesn't give off the same amusing gay undertones as the great Jack Nicholson did in the original (and if you don't believe me about the original gay undertones, go watch that scene where he tells Seymour, who is posing as the dentist, to "DON'T STOP NOW!!!"). However, Bill Murray does seem to very subtly show that his character finds the dental torture to be sexually gratifying, which of course results in hilarity that is reminiscent of the original film.
As for the ending of this film, it's hard for me to form an opinion about it being better or worse than the ending performed on stage. I agree with another previous critic, that the play is a Greek tragedy (and I thought I was the only one who took interest in deeply analyzing that play!), and that it is important for Seymour to pay the price he's given. When watching Little Shop of Horrors on stage, I find the tragic ending to be quite fitting, but in this movie I honestly don't think I could see that happening. I'm not the kind of viewer that has to have a happy ending in whatever she sees, no not by a long shot, but something about this movie made me want to see them live happily ever after. I think I can chalk that feeling down to the fact that, like Leonard Maltin wrote, Rick Moranis "played the character to perfection", and the fact that Moranis and the lovely and talented Ms. Greene had such dynamic chemistry together. Like I wrote above, Rick Moranis played the character with so many dimensions, that I felt drawn more to his portrayal than anyone elses' I had ever seen. I felt more compassion, hope, and love for his Seymour than I had for anyone elses' (Rick even gave the character more sex appeal, in my opinion). Rick Moranis knew how to make his character have that desired and appropriate effect on the audience. So, because of how he truly got down to the heart of the character, I don't think I would have enjoyed seeing his end come.
However, I would love to see that ending. Ellen Greene is a magnificent, versatile actress and for her sake, it was a shame that scene was cut; the audience should have gotten to view that. And I'm sure Rick, who hasn't had the chance to do many dramatic scenes in his career so far, was amazing as well. So, what it comes down to is that I would love to see Rick and Ellen in that last scene, for I too feel deprived of parts of two great performances, but I'm still a fan of the happy ending.
Does anyone know where I can find the movie on DVD with the original ending? I believe I read that it was released with the original ending, but that was taken out of stores after some time. I would really like to see that, so if anyone can tell me of *anywhere* where I might find a copy (never before seen, used, or re-recorded) of the DVD, I would pay any price asked and be greatly appreciative.