No matter how hard one tries to judge Shock Treatment on its own merits, comparisons to The Rocky Horror Picture Show are inevitable, and it doesn't hold up at all well against that titan of cult musicals. While Shock treatment's songs are suitably catchy (although frequently frustratingly brief), the rest of the film is a hugely disappointing mess, with a muddled plot -- the result of numerous rewrites -- that lacks the sense of sheer abandonment and fun of its predecessor.
Jessica Harper, so great in The Phantom of the Paradise, replaces Susan Sarandon as Janet, and does admirably, her singing voice once again on top form; sadly, Cliff De Young isn't as impressive, making for a remarkably bland Brad Majors (it doesn't help that De Young also plays the villain of the piece, TV mogul Farley Flavors, with equally lacklustre results). Rocky Horror performers Richard O'Brien, Patricia Quinn, 'Little Nell' Campbell (looking very sexy!) and Charles Gray return, albeit as different characters, and the cast is rounded out by Ruby Wax, Barry Humphries and Rik Mayall. A cracking line-up, but let down by the scrappy script.
Written by O'Brien and director Jim Sharman, Shock Treatment is admittedly ahead of its time in the depiction of fame as a drug, where ordinary everyday folk are willingly to be turned into TV stars and subsequently manipulated by the media, but while the story might be prescient, it simply isn't that engaging, and with all of those revisions, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense either. Some moments feel wholly out of place, while others feel like desperate clones of far better scenes in Rocky Horror.
Visually, the film is interesting, Sharman imbuing proceedings with a garish cartoon-like aesthetic, his colourful song and dance numbers being the highlights. 'Lullaby', in particular, is superbly handled, with a single shot tracking between characters in different rooms as they prepare for bed; sadly, like a lot of the film's best songs, it is woefully short.
Shock Treatment will, of course, be of interest to fans of everything Rocky Horror, and some may consider the mere fact that it comes from the same creative team enough to warrant their devotion (rose tint the film), but the cold hard truth is that there is a very good reason why this one hasn't garnered the same cult following: it simply isn't very good.
Jessica Harper, so great in The Phantom of the Paradise, replaces Susan Sarandon as Janet, and does admirably, her singing voice once again on top form; sadly, Cliff De Young isn't as impressive, making for a remarkably bland Brad Majors (it doesn't help that De Young also plays the villain of the piece, TV mogul Farley Flavors, with equally lacklustre results). Rocky Horror performers Richard O'Brien, Patricia Quinn, 'Little Nell' Campbell (looking very sexy!) and Charles Gray return, albeit as different characters, and the cast is rounded out by Ruby Wax, Barry Humphries and Rik Mayall. A cracking line-up, but let down by the scrappy script.
Written by O'Brien and director Jim Sharman, Shock Treatment is admittedly ahead of its time in the depiction of fame as a drug, where ordinary everyday folk are willingly to be turned into TV stars and subsequently manipulated by the media, but while the story might be prescient, it simply isn't that engaging, and with all of those revisions, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense either. Some moments feel wholly out of place, while others feel like desperate clones of far better scenes in Rocky Horror.
Visually, the film is interesting, Sharman imbuing proceedings with a garish cartoon-like aesthetic, his colourful song and dance numbers being the highlights. 'Lullaby', in particular, is superbly handled, with a single shot tracking between characters in different rooms as they prepare for bed; sadly, like a lot of the film's best songs, it is woefully short.
Shock Treatment will, of course, be of interest to fans of everything Rocky Horror, and some may consider the mere fact that it comes from the same creative team enough to warrant their devotion (rose tint the film), but the cold hard truth is that there is a very good reason why this one hasn't garnered the same cult following: it simply isn't very good.