Everybody knows that music moguls are a lower life form, somewhere between lawyers, dung beetles and plankton. Record producer Bernie Stein (Barry Feterman) is one of those fat'n'greedy sumbiatches who, after being fired by his last contract player, vows to fabricate his next pop singer from scratch. Well, not exactly scratch. Bernie's necrophiliac nephew Frankie (Jayson Spense), a dime-and-a-dozen Herbert West, created a serum that re-animates spare body parts. Talk about coincidence, huh? Frankie is in debt with unca Bernie, so he agrees to assemble - literally! - The greatest rock idol of all time.

With the help of cokehead Iggy (Hiram Jacob Segarra, playing an amusing character who deserves to be in other films), Frankie creates King, a patchwork of prime cuts from the greatest rock stars. King has Hendrix's hands, Elvis' brain' (and herein lies some suspension of disbelief, cause everybody knows that Elvis is not dead), Buddy Holly's something (it's never clear what), Sid Vicious' butt, Keith Moon's legs and Jim Morrison's... uh.... Gregory pecker. Well, at least that's what was in the original blueprint. But this is comedy, so something MUST go wrong. If you ever saw a Lucio Fulci movie, you know that morgues always have an open vat of acid around. This, and a strategically placed bong that sets off a fire alarm, cause Morrison's schlong to be accidentally replaced by... Liberace's!

Hm. So far, we have a potential disaster here. Something that could be worse than Carrot Top: The Musical. Well, don't be disappointed yet. Sure, Rock'n'Roll Frankenstein has its fair share of eschatological humor (there's even a nod to Flesh For Frankenstein's gut-fuckin' scene). But gross comedy rarely works without a heart, and this film has an ace in the hole: King.

As played by Graig Guggenheim, King is a lot of things but NEVER a jumbled, obvious or senseless parody. The actor doesn't resemble Elvis at all, and this, believe me, helps the movie. Graig created a real, sometimes touching character; a man with the Christian mentality of Elvis conflicted with the "unnatural urges" fueled by Liberace's ding-dong. And thanks to a superdose of Frankie's serum, the offending member gets a life of its own. It even speaks, and quite a lot, about the sweet smell of dingleberries and how he wants to get "shitfaced"! (BTW, Libby's voice is supplied by helmer Brian O'Hara, so I guess it is safe to call the director a dick - heh heh heh!).

King is very confused. As he poetically puts it, "pussy's what it wants up here, but big fat hairy buttholes is what it wants down here". Our hero resorts to gerbiling and male hookers to quench his thirst, but things get homicidal when women are added to the mix. And during the infamous sequence where King goes to a priest for help... well, ladies and gentleman, be prepared for one of the most blasphemous scenes ever committed on celluloid! Personally I wasn't offended, but this bit is so far-out that O'Hara is already getting flak for it. If you're a religious nut, STAY CLEAR! In fact, if you're an over-sensitive homosexual, anti-abortionist or PETA militant, STAY CLEAR too - this movie WILL offend you!



But if you have an open mind, sit back and enjoy cause Rock'n'Roll Frankenstein is a barrel o'fun. Editing and sound design are professionally done, the special make-up effects are pretty good (except for King's bald cap), and the entire film has a unique visual signature, with vivid colors and fun sets (Frankie's lab is a riot, complete with skulls, a robotic kangaroo and a Commodore 64!). Yes, it does have faults. The pace is uneven, I couldn't stand Jayson Spense's acting and some jokes not only fall flat; they make a really loud thud. But don't let that stop you from giving R&RF a look. At worst, it's a lesson on how to make low-budget films with good production values. At best, it's an amusing romp with thought-provoking sequences.

The EI/Shock-O-Rama DVD edition boasts a nice full frame transfer (the original ratio of the film), and includes a commentary track by director Brian O'Hara, actors Graig Guggenheim and Hiram Jacob Segarra, and the director of photography Jay Hillman. There's also the theatrical trailer (R&RF was never released theatrically in the USA, but was shown in several festivals - even some in Brazil!), a music video, the audio tracks "Lectro Shock" and "I'm a Monster", plus 22 minutes of behind the scenes stuff, also with commentary track. So stop being a righteous prick and give this film a chance, crognabbitt!