Killer Condom
Theatrical release poster
GermanKondom des Grauens
Directed byMartin Walz [de]
Screenplay by
Based onKondom des Grauens and Bis auf die Knochen
by Ralf König
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyAlexander Honisch
Edited bySimone Klier [de]
Music byEmil Viklický
Production
companies
  • Ascot Film
  • ECCO Film
  • MBG
Distributed byAscot Filmverleih
Release dates
  • 29 August 1996 (1996-08-29) (Germany and Switzerland)
Running time
107 minutes
Countries
  • Germany
  • Switzerland
LanguageGerman
Box office433,000 admissions (Germany)[1]

Killer Condom (German: Kondom des Grauens, lit. 'Condom of Horror') is a 1996 comedy horror film directed by Martin Walz [de] from a screenplay he co-wrote with Ralf König, based on the comic books Kondom des Grauens and Bis auf die Knochen (Down to the Bones) by König.[2]

It was distributed in the United States by Troma Entertainment, which promoted the film at the Cannes Film Festival with the help of "a six-foot-long fanged condom".[3]

Plot

In the seedy parts of New York City, gay Detective Luigi Mackeroni has been hired to investigate a series of bizarre attacks at the Hotel Quickie in which male guests have all had their penises mysteriously bitten off. While at the crime scene, he enlists the services of a gigolo named Billy and invites him up to the crime room. Before the two men engage in sex, a carnivorous living condom interrupts them and bites off Mackeroni's right testicle.

Now on a personal vendetta, Mackeroni begins his lone quest to not only bring a stop to the rash of condom attacks, but also to face his true feelings toward Billy the gigolo.

Cast

Reception

At the time of its 1998 U.S. theatrical release, New York Times reviewer Lawrence Van Gelder said that this Troma release had "a level of deadpan humor considerably above the company's usual adolescent subnorm", and that in addition to the usual gore, the film "also deals with dislocation, urban anomie, love and tolerance".[4] On the other hand, Los Angeles Times critic Kevin Thomas called it a "strained, tedious sex-horror comedy that doesn't travel well".[5]

Otto Sander's "manic" performance in this "cult classic" has been cited as a "good example of his comic gifts".[6] In an essay entitled "When Condoms Go Bad: From Safe Sex to Five Microns to Killer Condom", film critic Thuy Daojensen has written that the film, despite its "third rate special effects", provides "comic relief while reflecting tension and anxiety over sexual activity for procreation versus merely for pleasure."[7]

Home media

The film was restored in 4K resolution from its 35mm original camera negative and released on Blu-ray by Vinegar Syndrome in 2023.[8]

References

  1. ^ "German Films Top 10 1996". Screen International. February 14, 1997. p. 23.
  2. ^ Robert Aldrich; Garry Wotherspoon (2005). Who's Who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History Vol.2: From World War II to the Present Day. Routledge. p. 522. ISBN 978-1-134-58313-3.
  3. ^ Janet Maslin, "Band-Aids as Couture, Boats as Accessories", The New York Times, May 8, 1997.
  4. ^ Lawrence Van Gelder, "Safe Sex It Is Not", The New York Times, July 31, 1998.
  5. ^ Kevin Thomas, "Screening room", Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1998.
  6. ^ William Grange (2006). Historical Dictionary of German Theater. Scarecrow Press. p. 280. ISBN 978-0-8108-6489-4.
  7. ^ Thuy DaoJensen, "When Condoms Go Bad: From Safe Sex to Five Microns to Killer Condom", in Karen Anijar; Thuy DaoJensen (2005). Culture and the Condom. Peter Lang. p. 26. ISBN 978-0-8204-7407-6.
  8. ^ "Vinegar Syndrome – Killer Condom". Retrieved August 2, 2023.

External links

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