By Melissa Antoinette Garza
When I was around 13 years old, I found out that there was a sequel to the cult classic THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975). I had to see it. This was before the internet was really popular and online shopping was nearly non-existent. Most people still did the majority of their shopping at physical stores and when one wanted something obscure, it could take forever to find it. SHOCK TREATMENT (1981) definitely fit into that category.
Thankfully, I was always a cult movie fan and sought out places that could help me find little known gems. There are two stores I miss more than any others. The first was called MEDIA PLAY. They carried all sorts of hard-to-find titles. I remember for years I had been searching for a movie but couldn’t remember the title. It was one that petrified me as a child and all I could recall were zombies on a boat and a man pushing a woman into the undead. It was CHILDREN SHOULDN’T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS and my brother found it there. I also located SONNY AND CHER’S GOOD TIMES (1967) which was a movie I had wanted since childhood.
SHOCK TREATMENT was a bit harder to find back then. I eventually special ordered it for $35.00 and that was a VHS used copy thru a guy who pwned a single (albeit huge) video store. Going in, I knew SHOCK TREATMENT wasn’t as popular as RHPS. This was before it came back as the cult hit it is now. Still, I went in with full optimism and I wasn’t let down.
SHOCK TREATMENT has a special place in my heart for quite a few reasons. The most significant is because it was the topic of an ice-breaking conversation between my husband and I when I met him online.
The film opens with Brad (Cliff De Young) and Janet (Jessica Harper) as they become pawns for the television station that has overrun their home town. For all intents and purposes, Denton no longer exists and is instead this TV network. All of the residents either sit in the audience as viewers or partake in the shows as guests or actors. This like RHPS was very ahead of its time.
The movie plays out like a parody of the present. When you think about reality-TV and how so many people want to be celebrities, it certainly has a prophetic feel to it. People sell their souls to be recognized. How many countless shows are on TV which just serve as exploitation of mental illness or simple bad behavior?
The host of the show, Bert Schnick (Barry Humphries) is a very pale, eccentric fellow with a bright yellow suit and black bow-tie. He’s a very quirky personality and a really neat character. He’s no Frank-N-Furter, but he’s definitely compelling. His hair is oddly parted and flared on one side.
So, the Denton TV executives encourage Janet to lock Brad up in a mental institution. Brad is much geekier in this film than when he was portrayed by Barry Bostwick which makes sense considering this takes place after RHPS. If looking at this within the Rocky Horror universe, it makes sense that Brad is aloof. Now that Janet has found herself and is stronger, Brad’s insecurity is at an all-time high. He constantly knocks things over and causes damage accidentally.
Another key player, is Brad’s alter-ego in the form of a cool evin twin. His brother, Farley Flavors who is also the head of Denton TV, dresses in black and has his hair slicked back which is a far smoother fashion than the frazzled way that Brad wears it. The contrast between the characters is fascinating. I had read that De Young used Jack Nicholson as inspiration to help him develop Farley. When one knows that while watching, it’s easy to see the parallels.
On top of being a figurehead at Denton TV, Farley also owns a fast food company. He decides to use the profit to create a movement called Sanity for Today and hires Janet to star in the related program Faith Factory. He has full intention to make her into a big star both because he wants her and to get revenge on his brother.
Like Brad, Janet has changed and is no longer the love-struck innocent. At times, Harper plays her like a complete bitch. To be fair, manipulation and drugs are involved, but without question ego and fame plays a part. She falls so far that she grows angry and nearly throws a tantrum when people mention Brad’s condition as she wants to be the center of attention.
The sexy, charming, funny and amazingly talented duo Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn return portraying doctors, actors, siblings and lovers, Cosmo and Nation McKinley, who keep Brad locked up and Janet preoccupied and focused on her star power. Many including myself believe this just to be RiffRaff and Magenta, in disguises, having fun with the duo again. There’s a few clues, for anyone who wants to read into this theory, including the hanging AMERICAN GOTHIC painting.
Even without the RHPS connection, there is so much to this film. It’s actually quite deep as it delves into star worship, obsessive aspirations, and the absence of a moral compass.
The songs are of course fun and wild as they, like the film, were written by the incomparably beaut that is Richard O’Brien. I swear if there was a way to make the world into something owned and operated by O’Brien, we’d all live in a much happier place.
Scared Stiff Rating: 10/10
