In a world oversaturated by bland, same-y superhero films, only one movie can rise above and deliver the most gonzo hero we’ve seen in years. That film is The Toxic Avenger, and it’s here to give all your favorite MCU and DC denizens a radioactive kick to the nuts.
The Toxic Avenger reimagines independent film company Troma Entertainment’s ultra-campy, ultra-violent 1984 cult classic of the same name. The original film sent up superhero tropes with mean-spirited glee, especially when it came to its protagonist: a nerdy janitor-turned-toxic monster. Now, director Macon Blair (I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore) looks to do something similar with his take on The Toxic Avenger — albeit in a very different media landscape.
Despite slowly increasing fatigue from audiences, there’s no doubt that superhero movies are a dominant culture force. And given that it is, by nature, a superhero movie, The Toxic Avenger inevitably finds itself walking the line between the big comic book films of today and its own countercultural roots. That tension is evident throughout the movie, right down to its production companies: Legendary Entertainment (which brought us The Dark Knight trilogy, the MonsterVerse, and Dune) and Troma itself.
So what happens when you push the rebellious, bonkers, and often offensive energy of the original Toxic Avenger into a 2023 studio superhero flick? Gloriously bloody mayhem, for starters. Yet there is also the sense that The Toxic Avenger is holding itself back — and while that thankfully doesn’t last too long, it recalls the restraint of other modern-day superhero films in a way that feels antithetical to The Toxic Avenger‘s madcap project.
The Toxic Avenger‘s backstory hits some familiar beats before letting loose.
Peter Dinklage in “The Toxic Avenger.”
Credit: Legendary Entertainment
Most of this restraint occurs in the first third of the movie as we first get to know the Toxic Avenger himself, aka Winston Gooze (Peter Dinklage). He’s a down-on-his-luck janitor trying to connect with his stepson, Wade (Jacob Tremblay), who recently lost his mother to cancer. When Winston discovers he has a terminal illness and that his health insurance won’t cover a crucial experimental treatment, he appeals directly to his boss, Bob Garbinger (Kevin Bacon), for help.
The only problem? As his last name suggests, Bob is a garbage person. He heads up the sinister BTH corporation, which pollutes the town of St. Roma’s Village with toxic waste and peddles carcinogenic wellness products to its customers. So, no, he has no desire to help a dying, low-level employee.
A desperate Winston attempts to take matters into his own hands with a BTH robbery, but an unfortunate chemical accident at the factory leads to a toxic makeover. Armed with his hideous new looks and staggering new super strength, Winston teams up with investigative reporter J.J. Doherty (Taylour Paige) to destroy BTH once and for all.
The band known as the Killer Nutz.
Credit: Legendary Entertainment
Between the evil boss, the father-son bonding, and the corporate vigilantism, The Toxic Avenger treads well-worn ground here. While these elements do provide higher emotional stakes for Winston, they also fit snugly into the framework of other superhero stories, even as The Toxic Avenger works hard not to fall into that box.
Blair acknowledges this superhero familiarity with meta nods like a literal “save the cat” moment and a dark, brooding opening voiceover. “I didn’t want any of this,” Dinklage snarls, right before a sped-up montage of the film’s most WTF moments. Think of it as the most extreme “record scratch, freeze frame” meme ever — one that garners laughs, but also promises that while you’ll have to sit through some story beats you’ve seen before, the weird stuff is on its way.
To The Toxic Avenger‘s credit, there’s certainly no shortage of strangeness right before Winston gets toxified. Tongue-in-cheek location names like “Ye Olde Shithead District” and “Depressing Outskirts” establish the film’s screwball self-awareness. Elsewhere, the introduction of a killer “monstercore” band called the Killer Nutz — part Insane Clown Posse, part Satanic cult — teases bizarro battles to come. But for Winston, it’s superhero origin story business as usual — at least, until he rips a man’s arm off.
The Toxic Avenger unleashed is the most fun a superhero movie can be.
Elijah Wood in “The Toxic Avenger.”
Credit: Legendary Entertainment
From that arm rip on, the vibe shifts for the wilder — and the better. As the Toxic Avenger (or Toxie, as he becomes affectionately known), Winston goes on a violent rampage for the ages. Faces get smashed. Eyeballs get popped. Entire bodies get shredded. Blood and viscera pile up; butts and guts receive their moment in the spotlight; gore fiends everywhere rejoice.
These fight scenes, in all their gloopy glory (minus some less than convincing CGI blood), are a major testament to The Toxic Avenger‘s use of practical effects. The effects truly shine when it comes to the Toxic Avenger’s look itself. Dinklage disappears beneath layers of impressive prosthetics, boasting nasty green muscles, burbling purple boils, and a disconcerting (and detachable!) red eye. Yet we never lose sight of Winston himself, with Dinklage doing an admirable job emoting with Toxie’s get-up. From twirling in a tutu to kicking ass with a radioactive mop, Dinklage is clearly game for anything — and it’s that total commitment to the ridiculousness that makes his performance shine.
That attitude extends to the rest of The Toxic Avenger‘s ensemble. As Bob’s brother Fritz, Elijah Wood enters peak weird little goblin guy mode, and the film is all the better for it. Elsewhere, Paige channels her inner action hero, and Tremblay brings the house down with a dance — sorry, “property movement” — piece to be remembered. And of course, there’s the total delight of Kevin Bacon as an unhinged villain. Bob swans around his mansion in a gold robe and flexes shirtless in TV commercials, with Bacon never missing a chance to go as big as possible.
Like Bacon, The Toxic Avenger gets better the bigger it goes, especially since “going bigger” means further distancing itself from the casings of standard superhero flicks. No major lore or superhero homework here (although you will catch a Troma Easter egg or two if you’re looking). Instead, once The Toxic Avenger truly gets the ball rolling, you’re in for the kind of sheer, stupid insanity you won’t find in other major superhero IP. Let the blood and guts rain down — here, there’s no such thing as overkill.
The Toxic Avenger was reviewed out of its world premiere at 2023’s Fantastic Fest. It will be released at a later date.
