Based on the popular off-off Broadway musical, which was itself based on a bizarre Roger Corman B-movie, The Little Shop Of Horrors was made into a movie in 1986 by director Frank Oz. The film wasn't a massive hit financially upon its release, though it did earn itself a couple of Academy Award nominations. It was soon recognized as a beloved cult classic.

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Rick Moranis is Seymour Krelborn, a mopy florist who lives on Skid Row, who discovers a peculiar new plant that, it turns out, feeds on human blood. The story follows Seymour as he feeds the increasingly demanding, chatty plant and it gets bigger and bigger, swallowing up his entire life. Ellen Greene, who played the same role on stage, is Audrey, Seymour's love interest who is, sadly, in a toxic relationship with a sadistic dentist. The cast in this movie is one of the most perfect you'll ever encounter from the two excellent leads who give it everything they've got to the smallest roles (Bill Murray is especially good in a role originally played by Jack Nicholson).

The music pops in this movie. There's just something about how these original songs were reimagined that works incredibly well, helping to make the film feel as bouncy, cartoony, camp and retro as possible. The puppetry and visual work here, including the cinematography and production design, is out of this world. Villainous plant Audrey II is brought to life through what looks like painstaking work all around. Luckily, it paid off: the film is gorgeous and packed with charm. Not to mention funny as hell: the "Dentist!" musical sequence alone is worth the watch, shame we didn't get the doctor's dying song. The B-movie shout-outs are a treat, Audrey and Audrey II are camp icons, the cameos actually deliver, the music is beautiful and catchy as hell, what's not to like?

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Normally, this is the paragraph where I'd be like "...and it's sad because this film actually sucks, and here's why:..." but not today. The only problem with this movie I can think of is that it has two endings: the happy one and the bummer one that's closer to the stage play. Obviously the latter is the way to go, it makes more sense, but the former is so cute and well-paced that you find it hard to hate. See? Even the only bad stuff about this movie is good.

I don't think I need to say more, here. Little Shop Of Horrors is one of the best musical movies out there, based on one of the best musicals, with one of the best, funniest casts you'll ever encounter in a movie.

Stop reading this and go watch it, fool!

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Just don't feed the plants.​