Campy: Swamp Thing and its Return

The 80s.

I love Adrienne Barbeau – Carol from Maude…Maggie from Escape from New York…Stevie Wayne in the first The Fog movie.

Louis Jourdan – Kamal Khan from Octopussy…Gaston Lachaille from Gigi.

Nicholas Worth as Bruno

And in its Return, Heather Locklear. Now that movie was campy, the poster states “why can’t men be more like plants”

Let’s not forget Wes Craven…at least for the first one.

Was there any other purpose to these movies than simple entertainment? Alas, movie 1 hasn’t survived the passing of time. Movie 2, sadly it is still as out-there and horrendous as I remember. I don’t remember the ending of either and couldn’t even get all the way through movie 2 when it recently re-aired.

Campy, for these movies, play best when it’s played seriously and movie 2 was playing up the camp…at least I think it was, hope it was <?>

However, the henchmen, mostly Bruno who was turned into a piggy-man by evil Arcane (suave Louis Jourdan) in movie 1, forever locked actor Nicholas Worth in my memory. Whenever he appeared I instantly was taken back to Swamp Thing, in the best way. Sadly he passed away in 2007, wonder if the Oscars remembered him that year.

That’s what is great about campy movies, they showcase talent we don’t always get to see in the “big” movies, those with the budgets and marketing.

And, sometimes those “big” movies often end up on our campy list decades later. Wonder how well, Tom Hanks’ Cast Away, will hold up? Hey, he talked to a basketball for a good chunk of the movie.

Oh well, thanks for the escape Swamp Thing.

Mr. Worth…it’s a little late, but thank you for all your characters.