Bad Taste

Year: 1987 (New Zealand)
Genre: Horror/Alien Invasion Film
Directed: Peter Jackson
Stars: Terry Potter, Pete O'Herne, Craig Smith, Mike Minett, Peter Jackson, Doug Wren
Production: WingNut Films




I've always respected and admired Kiwi director Peter Jackson and his grand designs. While some of his films are somewhat overrated (I take particular issue with The Frighteners (1996)), I could always appreciate his vision. When I decided to take on Meet the Feebles (1989) earlier this month I was taken aback by just how clever the man was when he first started making waves in schlocky horror movies business.

Bad Taste (1987) was the director’s first full-length film shot on a minuscule budget of just $30,000 New Zealand Dollars or just over $25,000 American. To put that into perspective Kevin Smith’s Cannes Film Festival winner Clerks (1994) had a budget of $230,000. That’s a paltry amount in comparison to the average multi-million dollar budget of a summer blockbuster. Yet while Bad Taste can’t compare to the flip-flap of the Hollywood glitter machine, for what it was at the time and still is, Bad Taste isn't...terrible.

Personally I'm split about this film

 A group of wannabe commandos discovers the dastardly plan of a particularly nasty group of aliens. Vanishing the entire town of Kaihoro (which translates to Foodtown in Maori), the aliens plan on taking the morbid, bloodied mounds of flesh back to their home planet. The ultimate goal; turn them into meat for their fast food franchise. It’s now up to Ozzy (Terry Potter), Barry (Pete O’Herne), Derek (Peter Jackson) and Frank (Mike Minett) to put a stop to their plan before they expand to other parts of the island, and maybe the world!

 

Why wouldn't aliens invade New Zealand?

On the face of it, Bad Taste plays like a lesser version of The Evil Dead Trilogy (1981-1992) made memorable by its exotic island location. The Ocean is never far from the action and the flora of New Zealand’s northern island makes for something nice to look at when the camerawork becomes stilted. The dialogue edges just north of bland and there’s something to be said about the sound mixing which is out of synch in places.

Still, no one watches a movie like Bad Taste to read lips and Peter Jackson’s script requires a lot of running, hiding, physical confrontations, gunfire and blood gushing. Jackson himself has the majority of the memorable scenes; most involving attempts to stop his brains from leaking out the back of his head. He and his friends also double for Blue shirted aliens disguised as humans. They’re dispatched in clever and often over-the-top ways in the tradition of Nobuo Nakagawa.

 

Maybe a little more subtle than Nakagawa

Fans of blood, guts and gore will no doubt enjoy Bad Taste as it is indeed an exercise in bad taste. Yet even to the casual viewer Peter Jackson’s freshman project has something to offer. The all male cast achieves a sense of camaraderie without needlessly focusing on things like character development. Also the acting isn't completely horrid, just amateurish.

Finally to all the potential filmmakers out there who fear rejection due to lack of talent I say take a look back and watch Bad Taste. You’d be surprised how far a man like Peter Jackson has gotten. For that matter watch the maiden voyages of other brilliant directors like Martin Scorsese’s short film The Big Shave (1968), Rian Johnson’s Evil Demon Golfball from Hell!!! (1996) or Stanley Kubrick’s Fear and Desire (1953). Talent isn’t something you’re born with but something you earn through practice. In the case of Jackson’s story about fast food loving aliens, consider Bad Taste a work in progress.

We all make mistakes

Final Grade: F