Spontaneous Combustion, le feu de l'au-delà

Not as bad, as it's credited to being (Hooper's done far worse)… more so disappointing for me. Such an imaginative concept, which is never really tapped in to by Hooper with his economical direction and even less so in the smoky (excuse the pun) writing. It goes so sinister and over-the-top in a dead serious tone, becoming ridiculous and unfocused letting the whole pessimistic mystery / conspiracy-laced narrative being easily telegraphed to end on something completely abrupt. Because of that, the pacing goes on to be rather sluggish and Brad Dourif (cool to see him in a leading role) seems to struggle with an off-balanced performance, despite etching out a bemusedly quirky intensity to his off-colour character. Even though it's cheaply done, there's a competent technical attitude to it. However it doesn't seem to go anywhere out of the ordinary with its idea and wants to plaster in nasty jolts (which some do work) and strikingly steaming special effects (flames, flames everywhere) instead. Hooper does display some stylishly frenetic imagery (more so towards the latter end), and the camera-work is swiftly manoeuvred and the beaming score is titillating. The performances are bit all over the shop with the appearances of William Prince, Cynthia Bain, Dey Young, Jon Cypher and Melinda Dillon. Also Geroge Buck Flower and John Landis have small, but amusing cameos… especially Landis. Nothing surprises, but it's passably engaging.

God i love those transparent, glowing phones and radios that chick has.

Anyway, not as bad as many people say it is. I'm actually a fan of Tobe Hooper's later work (well, some of it). I think people expect far too much of him based on the cultural impact of TCM and its just not fair. Tobe Hooper's films have always been rather fun and campy, while simultaneously making (sometimes rather heavy handed) sociocultural critiques. As others have noted, Spontaneous Combustion has underlying themes relating to the way that the 50's atomic bomb influenced and informed the culture of the 80's. A lot of biting references to the 'nuclear family' and its place in society as well as how both the presence and absence can affect us as we grow up and become adults. I honestly have no idea why most people say this started his downward slide cause its actually pretty good- a lot better than his remake of Invaders, that's for sure.

Eccentric but interesting thriller. Brad Dourif puts a lot into his portrayal of the lead character, a school teacher who discovers he can start fires, and the performance is one of the main things thats lifts the film out of the rut.

With its evocation of a strange little town dominated a large nuclear plant the film recalled for me "Strange Behavior" (1981) (AKA "Dead Kids"). The films show an odd mix of architecture, clothing fashion and interior decoration from different eras that makes placing and dating the film difficult. Overall its look and generally offbeat characters gives the film an effective unreal sort of quality. Also similar to "Strange Behavior" is the murky, complex, slowly unfolding story and the sinister scientist who is controlling everything. Also Dey Young is a cast member of both films, sadly underused here.

I really don't understand why so many people hate this movie! I mean, I cry every time I see the end of it, I love the music that gets played over the end credits (the one I like to call the 'Sam & Lisa love theme',) I love the acting, and I love the *tragic* relationship between the two main characters.

Brad Dourif's always been one of my favourite actors, and I think it's really cool that he puts so much into his acting in 'Spontaneous Combustion' that he is actually sweating. (Remember that scene in the phone box when he's talking to Lisa and asking her 'what was in those pills you gave me?'

I think Tobe Hooper did really well making this one. (I'm looking forward to seeing his new film; 'Brew', which also stars Brad Dourif and Bill Moseley from 'House of 1000 Corpses.')

Righty right. Here's a bit about SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION: the government is trying to engineer the perfect weapon for war. It fails, and the project is supposedly buried. Years later, however, a young college student by the name of David (Sam), is finding out slowly that he is something more than human. So, he intends to find out just what he is, and a path of destruction and fire is left in his wake. Now, I can see why this has been called Tobe Hooper's only failure at a movie, but it is a gem. But, the only reason why this is a good flick is because of the presence of Brad Dourif. As always, he's excellent. Rent this flick, that is if you can find it. The beginning is slow, but it is very entertaining.