Main cast: Nita-Josee Hanna (Mimi), Owen Myre (Luke), Adam Brooks (Greg), Alexis Kara Hancey (Susan), Kristen MacCulloch (Pandora), Scout Flint (Alasdair), and Matthew Ninaber (Psycho Goreman)
Director: Steven Kostanski
The Archduke of Nightmares is a being feared across the galaxy, capable of inflicting widespread torture and pain beyond the imagination of mere mortals. His power came from a magical gem, which was both his strength and downfall—he was finally captured and imprisoned on a faraway planet, along with his Gem of Peroxidite. Well, it sucks, then, when he is finally released by two brats, Mimi and Luke. Worse, Mimi holds his gem, which means that the little bully now has full control over him. The kids decide to call him Psycho Goreman and make him basically Mimi’s foot servant. The utter humiliation, indeed.
It is both hilarious and unsettling that, even with PG, as the kids call him for short, in this movie, the biggest monster in this movie is actually Mimi, the relentless bully that will likely one day skin children and bunnies for fun. She bullies her brother mercilessly, even subjecting him to PG’s more violent antics for fun, and has PG turn Luke’s friend into a monster when that boy, whom she has a crush on, prefers to spend time with Luke than her. Not that Luke is a victim, mind you. That boy enjoys seeing PG kill people way too much.
Then again, PG: Psycho Goreman is just that: an adorable, hilarious subversion of all the “friendly alien living among humans” movies and shows in the past. Sure, here, PG learns the appeal of hunky male centerfolds and the power of joy, but he’s going to use his newfound lessons to strengthen his ability to destroy the galaxy, with the support of the kids that have become his buddies, muahahaha. If anything, this movie demonstrates that it is easy, perhaps too easy, to take the same themes in a wholesome show like ALF or ET, and completely pervert them into a celebrate of monster kids and genocidal alien warlords.
PG looks like the Wishmaster on steroids, and most of the aliens here are obviously folks in masks and costumes, but that’s okay—the campy, cheap costumes and practical effects only add to the whole retro feel of the movie, reminiscent of those flicks that are clearly its inspiration. Mind you, this is not a kid’s movie, as there are plenty of delightful gory scenes here too. The fact that the kids are mostly okay with witnessing PG, even encouraging to, commit gory atrocities only underline the fact that, maybe one day, they may end up his most bloodthirsty henchmen as he continued his genocidal pogrom across the universe.
However, as fun as I find this movie, I should also point out that Mimi is a very annoying character to follow. She’s that way by design, as any other Mimi will not work in this movie. However, my god, she is a mean and annoying bully that, unlike PG, feels a little too real. It is easy to like PG because he’s an over the top portrayal of a clearly fictitious creature, but I suspect that Mimi will likely give some people uncomfortable flashbacks to some horrible types they encountered during their childhood days.
Me, though, I really have fun with PG: Psycho Goreman. Sure, it’s gimmicky, but it’s a gimmick that works very well, and seriously, any movie that has me cheering someone like Psycho Goreman is A-OK with me.
