The reservation truck always fucks me up. The way he hops on the conveyor on his own, as if to say "If it's my time, I'm going to go of my own volition" just punches me with this grave sense of nobility in the face of oblivion.
The vacuum cleaner sinking into the mud and dragging the others with him was dark AF. And the blanket, as he's about to go under, sheepishly says "I'm not scared."
It was the scariest shit I ever saw at age 5. Watched it several times as a kid. I would hide under the pillows during the clown scene. The AC blowing up at the beginning also freaked me out.
I think of it as a darker movie compared to many other family type movies at least. I can't speak on how it is now that im older, but as a very young kid this movie made me cry. It was one of my earliest memories lol
Also I know this may sound weird, but I'm pretty sure this movie also influenced me to care and have feelings towards inanimate objects.
The nightmare toaster has about the clown fireman chasing him was legitimately scary. The way the clown says "Run." is still fresh in my mind decades later.
From the director Jerry Rees on an ama 14 years ago:
"The Kirby 500 series is very close to our Vacuum. Toaster was pretty much a simplified Sunbeam. Radio was like a distillation of lots of bakelite radios into one. I remember there was some discussion among the producers about putting eyes and a mouth on Radio. I pointed out that since he was a clock-radio, he already had a face. And his speaker, is his mouth. Glad they let go of the literal face idea. Blanky's feel - not his model really - was like an insecurity blanket, because he was without his child to cuddle. Lampy was just a good ol' bendy-neck. Thought he was bright, but he could be pretty dim sometimes.
Re the junkyard. It's interesting that we were able to deal with mortality in a way that totally made sense (because cars really do get crushed there) but also went to extremes we could never have gotten away with if we'd used anything but inanimate objects."
Some of it is dark if you sit thinking about it too long. The toaster has a nightmare about choking it's master with smoke, forks being stuffed in it, and falling in to a full bath. I wouldn't have thought any of this is scary for a toaster, rather it shows a preoccupation with its master somehow committing suicide with it.
On the flip side, my three year old just watched it, and is now obsessed. We've watched it 5 times this week. She loves it - even the "It's a B movie show" song.
21 Comments
FiniteBanjo@feddit.online · 36 pts · 206d
The song Worthless was basically a mass euthanasia video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcWeE3NMeBQ
AlternatePersonMan@lemmy.world · 14 pts · 206d
Wow. That is really dark.
agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works · 8 pts · 206d
The reservation truck always fucks me up. The way he hops on the conveyor on his own, as if to say "If it's my time, I'm going to go of my own volition" just punches me with this grave sense of nobility in the face of oblivion.
moody@lemmings.world · 27 pts · 206d
The vacuum cleaner sinking into the mud and dragging the others with him was dark AF. And the blanket, as he's about to go under, sheepishly says "I'm not scared."
WanderWisley@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 206d
I would also like to add this to the list of childhood trauma experiences.
albbi@piefed.ca · 5 pts · 206d
https://theoatmeal.com/comics/artax
This might help with the trauma a little bit.
sheridan@lemmy.world · 20 pts · 206d
It was the scariest shit I ever saw at age 5. Watched it several times as a kid. I would hide under the pillows during the clown scene. The AC blowing up at the beginning also freaked me out.
Syndication@lemmy.today · 15 pts · 206d
I think of it as a darker movie compared to many other family type movies at least. I can't speak on how it is now that im older, but as a very young kid this movie made me cry. It was one of my earliest memories lol
Also I know this may sound weird, but I'm pretty sure this movie also influenced me to care and have feelings towards inanimate objects.
Forester@pawb.social · 14 pts · 206d
That window unit AC that burst into flames gave me fucking nightmares.
Kolanaki@pawb.social · 9 pts · 206d
Kinda sorta maybe toward the conflict arc of the story. It get's a little intense for a kid movie.
indig0@pawb.social · 7 pts · 206d
The nightmare toaster has about the clown fireman chasing him was legitimately scary. The way the clown says "Run." is still fresh in my mind decades later.
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 6 pts · 206d
The old AC unit dies in the first scene, IIRC. On camera. Yeah, shit is dark, but so are most classic fairytales. 🖖🏼
bulwark@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 206d
From the director Jerry Rees on an ama 14 years ago:
"The Kirby 500 series is very close to our Vacuum. Toaster was pretty much a simplified Sunbeam. Radio was like a distillation of lots of bakelite radios into one. I remember there was some discussion among the producers about putting eyes and a mouth on Radio. I pointed out that since he was a clock-radio, he already had a face. And his speaker, is his mouth. Glad they let go of the literal face idea. Blanky's feel - not his model really - was like an insecurity blanket, because he was without his child to cuddle. Lampy was just a good ol' bendy-neck. Thought he was bright, but he could be pretty dim sometimes.
Re the junkyard. It's interesting that we were able to deal with mortality in a way that totally made sense (because cars really do get crushed there) but also went to extremes we could never have gotten away with if we'd used anything but inanimate objects."
Inucune@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 206d
No mention of the repair shop guy just ripping the motor out of a blender we saw moving around 5 minutes earlier.
webkitten@piefed.social · 3 pts · 206d
andrewrgross@slrpnk.net · 3 pts · 206d
Yes.
Drusas@fedia.io · 2 pts · 206d
I didn't think so when I was a kid, but in hindsight, it was dark.
The Last Unicorn, on the other hand....
SpikesOtherDog@ani.social · 2 pts · 205d
There was some amazing things happening with media in the 80s.
Dark Crystal Neverending story Return to Oz Labyrinth
Threeme2189@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 205d
Don't get me started on Return to Oz. It is pure nightmare fuel.
SpikesOtherDog@ani.social · 1 pts · 205d
Yeah, child's introduction to electroshock therapy.
aeronmelon@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 206d
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nOeK0Ig-H9g
med@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 79d
Some of it is dark if you sit thinking about it too long. The toaster has a nightmare about choking it's master with smoke, forks being stuffed in it, and falling in to a full bath. I wouldn't have thought any of this is scary for a toaster, rather it shows a preoccupation with its master somehow committing suicide with it.
On the flip side, my three year old just watched it, and is now obsessed. We've watched it 5 times this week. She loves it - even the "It's a B movie show" song.