Customer Reviews

Little Shop Of Horrors (1986 Film)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This soundtrack to one of the best musical/horror/comedies is lively and upbeat, and is a wonderful souvenir for those who adore the film. For those unfamiliar with 1986's "Little Shop of Horrors", this album is nonetheless a fantastic collection of broadway-style songs, conveying the tale of a meek flower-shop assistant who nurtures a rare species of talking plant until it becomes hungry for blood(!!!). This is a completely tongue-in-cheek modern take on 50's B-movies, with wacky characters belting out these great tunes which boast some of the most outrageous yet ingenious lyrics. The actors Ellen Greene, Rick Moranis, Steve Martin and Levi Stubbs (of the Four Tops, who voices the plant Audrey II) all shine as singers as well. It's all a whole lot of fun, and the musical styles are varied, ranging from honky-tonk to doo-wop to straightforward rock n' roll.

For those familiar with the musical stage play, the songs on this album vary slightly; some tunes were not used in the film and therefore do not appear here (no big loss IMHO) and there is an added track "Mean Green Mother From Outerspace" to go with the movie's altered ending. Of all the great movie soundtracks out there, this is a true favourite of mine which never ceases to please. Plant this one in your CD player and watch it grow for you.

The movie was great, but the soundtrack is awesome. Hear some of your favorite songs from Little Shop of Horrors and sing along. My personal favorite is "Suddenly Seymore" where big comedian Rick Moranis shows off that he's not just a comedian, but he's also a big-time singer. Other hits such as "Mean Green Mother" and "Skid Row" also add spice to the whole CD. With a motown sound, the CD gives listeners a wide variety of examples of this music era at the same time express the feelings of the characters of the musical...

This is one of the best soundtracks of all time. The music, from Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, is easily better than their work for Disney. The pop influence is great. Between Steve Martin's smarmy turn as Orin Scrivello D.D.S. and Ellen Greene reprising her Broadway role of Audrey... this one is a must have for musical fans.

This isn't really the film soundtrack at all. Best I can tell it's a studio recording using most of the movie cast. Not only are some tracks vastly different than the film versions, there are tracks here not even included in the final film. That might sound good at first but because of these tracks, things like the Supper Time reprise are missing. Also, the sound quality is awful. There are times when you can barely hear certain singer (especially in The Meek Shall Inherit). Before you buy this CD, know that it's incomplete, poorly recorded, and different from the film. It does have the movie cast though, so if that's what you're after then this is the CD for you.

The film recording of Little Shop is the best recording of the score yet (despite missing many of the stage version's more superflous and campy ditties)The vocal arangements and orchestrations are the best and most appropriately complementary to the piece. They capture the sound, and spirit in full and with fun and excitement. The cast is superb, and Ellen Greene proved herself quite brilliant in her ability to adapt her stage performance for the small size of film. The performance of Levi Stubbs, criticized on this site, is actually the BEST interpretation and vocal performance of Audrey II to date, anywhere. It is the only performance to truly bring the role to life and is damn funny. The cuts and changes are all logical for the medium of film, and obviously approved of as they were made by Howard Ashman himself. The original off-broadway cast (yes, the show was NOT an official broadway show, therefore could not have won a tony for anyone) is the next best recording. But to those who harp on the film for cutting the stage songs, the original cast album is not the full score, and has cuts made as well. The New Broadway Cast recording, which had great potential and money behind it, is the full stage score. Yet the worst in orchestration, quality, and casting to date. Though bland enough to easily digest, it is no where close to the film's sound and energy.

Great film, with a fantastic cast of comic talent, but the soundtrack is not as good as the original stage show (get the new Broadway version if you want a real treat - it has all the original songs plus a few that never made it in!). The stage show existed first!! When the original film was made, there was a whole section where the plant (Audrey II) eats everyone and goes on the rampage in New York. It was shown to a pilot American audience who, typically, did not like the idea of the 'baddie' winning. Therefore, they had to remake the whole end of the film, at a fair old cost, and write a new song, "Mean Green Mother". The stage show is much better, and includes the songs, "It's Just The Gas", "Mushnik and Son", "Somewhere That's Green", and "Don't Feed The Plants". If you ever get the chance to see it live, professional or amateur, I would totally recommend it.

I have this CD and my school did the play. It a very good movie and I love the songs! Thay are really funny! You must get this CD!!

This is a great musical, and accordingly a great movie. I thought the cast as a whole was great, Steve Martin and Rick Moranis especially. The songs were all done extremely well (except for Somewhere that's Green, in my opinion. Just took too long). The songs Dentist and Skid Row were done particularly well.

I was however, disappointed that the songs that were taken out, were taken out. Now (It's Just the Gas) and Mushnik and Son are my favorites from the show, and it's sad that they weren't included.

I absolutely love this movie... I put the movie on just to hear the songs sometimes. However, the movie soundtrack's songs are different than the actual versions of that in the movie. An example would be the voice of the introduction during "Little Shop of Horrors" at the beginning of the movie. Or on "Skid Row" the different singers on the street in the movie are not on the soundtrack, like the black man that sings "down on skid" real loud, or the heavy set man singing "down on skid roooaaad" These things you may not notice, but after being a fan of the movie for so many years, I was a bit disappointed the songs were different. Even if only slightly. It's kinda like going to a concert & hearing you favorite song sung differently, or only an accoustical version of it. Does anyone know if in the movie, the songs were sung live during the filming? That would explain alot!

the music is zany, just like the premise of the movie, and Audrey II, as sung by Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops, is right there next to Tim Curry's psychotic alien transvestite mad scientist-wannabe Frank.N.Furter as one of the great villains of Rock Musicals, and Moranis plays the role of a meek wall-flower menaced by a mad venus flytrap well enough. A truly enjoyable romp.