Hell Comes to Frogtown

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Hell Comes to Frogtown
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Donald G. Jackson R. J. Kizer
Screenplay by	Donald G. Jackson Randall Frakes
Story by	Randall Frakes
Produced by	Donald G. Jackson Randall Frakes
Starring	Roddy Piper Sandahl Bergman Cec Verrell William Smith Rory Calhoun
Cinematography	Donald G. Jackson Enrico Picard
Edited by	R. J. Kizer James Matheny
Music by	David Shapiro
Distributed by	New World Pictures
Release date	January 1988 (1988-01)
Running time	88 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1.5 million

Hell Comes to Frogtown is a 1988 American science fiction action film directed by Donald G. Jackson and R. J. Kizer, and written by Jackson and Randall Frakes. The film stars professional wrestler Roddy Piper as Sam Hell, one of the last remaining fertile men in a post-apocalyptic world populated by both humans and mutant amphibians. The film's cast also includes Sandahl Bergman, Cec Verrell, William Smith and Rory Calhoun.

Hell Comes to Frogtown was followed by two sequels: Return to Frogtown (1993) and Max Hell Frog Warrior (1996).

Plot

In the late 20th century, a large-scale

Sam Hell, a nomadic scavenger, is recruited by the provincial government to serve as a human stud—they tracked him down by following a trail of pregnant women left in his wake from his travels, and have determined that he is one of few remaining fertile men in existence. A protective codpiece that monitors Hell's physiosexual condition is affixed to his groin and secured by an electronic lock. Upon learning that the mutant amphibians have armed themselves and taken a group of fertile human women hostage, Hell is ordered to infiltrate the mutant city (derogatorily referred to as "Frogtown") and rescue and impregnate the women. He is accompanied by nurse Spangle and corporal Centinella.

During their journey to Frogtown, Hell attempts to escape, but quickly learns that the codpiece will shock his genitals if he strays too far from Spangle. Despite their rocky start and Spangle's initial cold demeanor, the pair grow closer during the journey and eventually fall in love. When they reach Frogtown, everyone involved is captured. The frogs' second-in-command, Bull, tortures Hell and attempts to remove the codpiece for its technology. Meanwhile, a slightly drugged Spangle is forced to work as a slave and dance for the frogs' Commander Toty. Proving more successful than she had wished, the nurse soon finds herself at the mercy of the aroused commander. However, with the codpiece now removed (Bull finally removed it with a chainsaw, but it exploded and killed him), the escaped Hell rescues her along with the group of fertile women held captive.^[1]

Cast

• Roddy Piper, as Sam Hell^[2]
• Sandahl Bergman as Spangle^[3]
• Cec Verrell as Centinella
• William Smith as Captain Devlin / Count Sodom
• Rory Calhoun^[4] as Looney Tunes
• Cliff Bemis as Leroy
• Nicholas Worth as Bull
• Kristi Somers as Arabella
• Brian Frank as Commander Toty, the Frogtown chief
• Julius LeFlore as Squidlips
• Eyde Byrde as Patton
• Lee Garlington as Briefing Officer

Reception

Critical reception for Hell Comes to Frogtown has been mixed to positive. TV Guide awarded the film two out of five stars, calling it "Another of those futuristic, post-apocalyptic science fiction dramas".^[5]

DVD Talk gave the film three out of five stars, writing, "Rowdy Roddy Piper has to save the world by diddling beautiful babes and squashing six-foot mutant toads with crummy attitudes. What's not to like?"^[6]

Jason Cook of The Spinning Image rated the film a score of six out of ten stars, writing, "Cheap and cheerful its narrative lulls and directorial shortcomings are glossed over by a winning central performance and a smattering of witty dialogue. Its no cinematic masterpiece, but were there any talking mutant frogs in Citizen Kane?"^[7]

Creature Feature gave the movie 2.5 stars, finding that while it is a Mad Max ripoff, it does so with a sense of style and has the ability to laugh at itself.^[8]

Though not received well by critics, producer Randall Frakes says he was glad the fans seemed to like it and "get all the jokes as intended".^[9]

Legacy

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2019)

Hell Comes to Frogtown inspired the title of the "Hell Comes to Quahog" (2006) episode of animated television series Family Guy.^[10]

Sequels and spinoffs

Hell Comes to Frogtown spawned one sequel, Return to Frogtown, which was released directly to VHS in 1993.^{[citation needed]}

Toad Warrior was released in 1996 and later re-released as Max Hell Frog Warrior in 2002. According to Jackson, the film was intended as a stand-alone story.^[11]

References