Class of Nuke ‘Em High (1986)    Troma/Comedy-Horror-Sci-Fi    RT: 85 minutes    Rated R (violence, language, nudity, sexual content, radioactive drug use)    Director: Richard W. Haines and Samuel Weil    Screenplay: Richard W. Haines, Mark Rudnitsky, Lloyd Kaufman and Stuart Strutin    Music: Ethan Hurt    Cinematography: Michael Mayers    Release date: December 12, 1986 (US)    Cast: Janelle Brady, Gilbert Brenton, Robert Prichard, R.L. Ryan, James Nugent Vernon, Brad Dunker, Gary Schneider, Theo Cohan, Gary Rosenblatt, Mary Taylor, Rick Howard, Heather McMahan, Chris McNamee, Anthony Ventola, Arthur Lorenz.    Box Office: N/A

Rating: *** ½

 The recipe for Troma’s Class of Nuke ‘Em High is as follows:

-Take a 50s-era high school romance.

– Combine it with an 80s teen sex comedy.

– Marinate in toxic waste.

The result is a twisted Troma treat that should satisfy fans of demented cinema.

 I saw Class of Nuke ‘Em High a few months after my first Troma experience, The Toxic Avenger. I enjoyed it although I was disappointed that it wasn’t as gory. What it lacks in red blood, it makes up for in green nuclear waste. There’s plenty of it on hand in Class of Nuke ‘Em High, a sci-fi-horror spoof about the events that unfold following an accident at the Tromaville Nuclear Power Plant conveniently located just yards away from Tromaville High. Has it had any effect on the school or student body? You tell me. The honor society turned into a gang of violent psychopathic punks in face paint called “The Cretins”. And you thought your high school was freaky?

 The owner of the plant, Mr. Paley (Ryan playing a similar type to his corrupt mayor in The Toxic Avenger), chooses to cover up the accident which causes radioactive material to taint the school’s water supply. One student dies a gross, horrible death after drinking from the water fountain. It doesn’t stop the Cretins from conducting business. They sell weed provided by a plant employee who grows it on plant grounds. Their latest batch, which they rename “Atomic High”, is affected by radioactivity which explains why it grew so fast.

 Resident virginal couple Warren (Brenton) and Chrissy (Brady) smoke some of it during a wild bikini party thrown by their friend Eddie (Vernon). It apparently acts as an aphrodisiac as the teens waste no time changing their virgin status. It has other crazy side effects that go way beyond the typical high. Warren becomes a toxic avenger and kills a couple of gang members while Chrissy experiences an accelerated pregnancy that ends the very next day with her giving birth to a slug-like creature that mutates into a big monster after falling into a barrel of toxic waste. In his continued efforts at a cover-up, Paley orders a lockdown of the school while his inspectors look for damning evidence to get rid of. It gets nuttier from here if you can believe it.

 Like so many teen horror movies before it, the hero of Class of Nuke ‘Em High– i.e. Warren- will be called upon to save the day when his true love is kidnapped and threatened by gang members in a scenario that puts them perilously close to the monster. At the same time, Class of Nuke ‘Em High is its own movie with its 80s punk aesthetic, gross effects and OTT bad acting that fits perfectly with its goofball sensibility. Directors Richard W. Haines and Lloyd Kaufman (as “Samuel Weil”) never take the material seriously yet still manage to inject a warning about the dangers of nuclear power albeit one taken to a ludicrous comical extreme.

 Acting has never been Troma’s strong suit. A better word to describe it is overacting. That’s definitely the case with Robert Prichard who plays gang leader Spike. He also played the sadistic bully Spud in The Toxic Avenger. In both movies, he takes overacting to a new level. This style is just right for a movie that loves to revel in its own ridiculousness as much as Class of Nuke ‘Em High does. The other actors playing gang members follow his lead which results in wildest bunch of punk antagonists this side of The Road Warrior (or Mad Max 2, depending on which side of the globe you’re on). Brenton makes a decent straight-laced hero while Brady comes off as slightly dopey. They do make a cute couple however. Their offspring, not so much.

 While it pales slightly in comparison to The Toxic Avenger, Class of Nuke ‘Em High is a lot of fun in its own right. It has a ton of gross effects involving toxic waste spilling from various orifices and a slimy monster that actually looks scary. It has at least one set of naked boobs. It has a rocking soundtrack and a cameo by alt rock band The Smithereens. PLUS, it ends with an explosion. What else could you possibly want? It’s a tasty dish for viewers with strange taste.