Based on a 1960 Roger Corman film that wore its low budget so proudly I avoided watching it for many years. (It’ll come up in 2027.) Today, the remake’s reputation comes from the recognition that songwriters Howard Ashman and Alan Menken went on to launch the Disney Animation revival, and it may be the crowning directorial achievement for director Frank Oz, best known for his work with Jim Henson. An unusual pedigree for a Horror film, and that’s without mentioning the supporting performance by Steve Martin and cameos by John Candy, Christopher Guest, Jim Belushi and (most memorably) Bill Murray.
Murray’s scene in the waiting room was filmed as scripted, but there was no written dialogue when his character got into the dentist’s chair, except for ecstatic cries of pleasure. Over the course of the two days that he worked, Murray kept came up with his character’s backstory and desire for a candy bar, which he riffed on in the chair.
The shot pulling away from Audrey after the song “Somewhere That’s Green” was so long that it required two film cranes sitting on top of each other, with the camera quickly transferring from one to the other as the first reached its height limit. The effect is somewhat noticeable because the camera slightly shakes when transitioning to the second crane.
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