Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

Slugs Blu-ray Movie Review

Here's the story of a man named Brady, looking for his lost shaker of salt.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 9, 2016

Whether it was the difference in climate or simply the vagaries of chance, I had never seen an actual honest to goodness slug until my family moved from Salt Lake City to Seattle when I was a little boy. The rainy Pacific Northwest climate somehow seemed “kinder” to these mollusks, and I remember to this day the first time I spied some slugs, stepping outside of my parents’ house to see two pretty healthy looking creatures slithering slowly across our front sidewalk. I was even more intrigued when my Dad told me to get some salt to shake on them (hey, it was a less PC era). There’s something undeniably “alien” about these weird beings, but let’s face it—they’re not exactly the most threatening seeming entities on the planet, especially if you have a salt shaker handy. That very lack of menace probably gives Slugs more of a comedic aspect than its creative staff may have intended. The film (a joint Spanish-American production) is filled with quotable quotes and just plain outré silliness, but it’s one of those lo-fi horror outings that no doubt will spark nostalgic fervor in those who may have grown up with it in previous home video incarnations or through its broadcast history. Believe it or not (something that might be uttered repeatedly as one watches this film), Slugs was based on a best selling novel by Shaun Hutson (Hutson is on hand here with a manic but highly enjoyable commentary), though few would probably argue that the film is “literary” in any meaningful way. That oft used horror trope of a toxic waste dump plays into the story’s focus on mutant mollusks who develop a hunger for humans, and only a stalwart troupe of investigators stands between a slimy apocalypse and Mankind. That group is headed by one Mike Brady (insert The Brady Bunch joke here), played by Michael Garfield, a health inspector who rather quickly determines what’s going on but who is met with scornful disbelief by those who might be able to do something about it. Before that unfolds, however, Slugs opens with a riff on Jaws territory, with a young couple out for a row on a lake. The girl of course strips down to her skivvies for no discernable reason while the guy jumps into the water for a quick swim. Guess what happens next? The fact that this prelude has next to nothing to do with the rest of the film (as even the second commentary on the disc mentions) is probably as good a clue as anything as to the narrative disconnects that Slugs will be offering over the ensuing 90 or so minutes.

Slugs obviously have an aversion to sodium, but is it even possible for them to survive in water? That may seem like a silly question, but it actually has some relevance to the “plot” of Slugs, as evidenced not only by that aforementioned opening sequence, but by the fact that as things develop, the viscous little entities are seen in and around extremely watery environments. It may not be scientifically accurate (I don’t know, maybe it is), but it makes the already patently ludicrous set up of the film perhaps even more ridiculous. One non watery event occurs fairly early, when a drunken man returns to his little cottage and collapses on his dilapidated couch, only to seem to be attacked by some unseen assailant. So maybe slugs are both waterborne and kind of like bedbugs. Who knew?

That particular death is what sets the investigative angle of the film into motion, as Mike (among others) shows up to view the disgusting remains of the guy (some of the practical effects in the film are actually rather well done). Soon enough Mike has employed a sanitation engineer named Don Palmer (Philip MacHale) to poke around in various sewers, where it’s evident something is multiplying rather rapidly. Later, a hoity toity British scientist type named John Foley (Santiago Alvarez) provides clues as to how to rid the town of this lethargic menace. In the meantime, several other hapless residents have met their fate, and even Mike had been bitten (yes, bitten) by a giant slug his teacher wife Kim (Kim Terry) points out to him in their garden.

My hunch is even those with an outright fondness for Slugs wouldn't go very far to defend the film on its narrative or performance acuities, for the film at times barely reaches B-movie levels of competence (in those two categories, at least). Still, there’s a weirdly charming spell Slugs casts, which is partly due to its less than artful capabilities. As mentioned above, some of the practical effects are surprisingly well done and help to lift the general ambience of Slugs at least somewhat, but otherwise this is an effort where only those rosy colored glasses of nostalgia may help to paper over any deficits.

Slugs Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Slugs is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. The insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer:

The film was scanned in 2K from the original 35mm negative. . .Grading was performed on a DaVinci 2K Plus and restoration was completed using PFClean.

All work was done at Fotokem Film and Video, Los Angeles, California, USA. Colour grading was overseen by Steve Peer.

(That last sentence is oddly repeated twice for some reason in the booklet.) With an understanding that Slugs didn't have a huge budget and has the general "look" of a lo-fi horror film, this transfer boasts an appealingly organic look with a decent if not overwhelmingly suffused palette. Detail levels are generally quite good, and in some of the close-ups, nicely textural, especially with regard to both the ridged bodies of the slugs as well as their slimy trails. A somewhat coarse grain field occasionally tips over into yellow chunkiness and encounters a few compression issues in the darkest sequences. While elements are in generally great shape (or have been restored to appear so), there are still slight but transitory issues with flecks and other small signs of damage. My score is 3.75.

Slugs Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Slugs' original mono track is rendered here via a narrow but occasionally at least quite forceful sounding LPCM 1.0 track. The film featured an international cast and was apparently largely post-looped, leading to that kind of quasi-surreal quality that often attends Italian films, where lip movements don't ever quite match what's being spoken and the general sound design seems kind of ported in from an alien planet. The film's score is actually laugh out loud hilarious at times (as commentator Chris Alexander points out), with huge, booming cues accompanying apparently "important" moments like a car pulling up to a house. Fidelity is fine with good prioritization and no issues whatsoever.

Slugs Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Here's Slugs in Your Eye (1080p; 7:39) is an interview with actor Emilio Linder. In Spanish with forced English subtitles.


• They Slime, They Ooze, They Kill (1080p; 10:46) is an interview with special effects supervisor Carlo de Marchis. In Spanish with forced English subtitles.


• Invasion USA (1080p; 11:52) is an interview with art director Gonzalo Gonzalo. In Spanish with forced English subtitles.


• The Lyons Den (1080p; 21:00) is an interview with production manager Larry Ann Evans, conducted in Lyons, New York, where there's a museum that features exhibits tied to the film's location work.


• Trailer (480p; 1:37)


• Audio Commentaries

  Audio Commentary with Author Shaun Hutson is hosted by Michael Felsher.

  Audio Commentary with Chris Alexander

As usual with Arrow releases, there's also a handsomely illustrated booklet with a good essay.

Slugs Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Slugs is one of those patently goofy films that is never going to make anyone's all time classics list (at least lists accrued non-ironically), but which is still weirdly enjoyable on its own decidedly lo-fi "not ready for prime time" merits. Arrow offers the film with very good technical merits and its usual bounteous supply of supplements. I can't in good conscience outright recommend the film, but the package is worthwhile, at least for those who are still fascinated by those slimy little creatures slithering slowly out across their front sidewalks.