Watch Forbidden Zone

Forbidden Zone is an utterly unique and bizarre musical fantasy film that was directed and co-written by Richard Elfman in 1980. The movie features a wide range of eccentric characters and elements, including freakish humanoids, suburban ennui, and a host of recognizable faces such as Hervé Villechaize and Susan Tyrrell. The film's visual style is inspired by comic books and jazz music, and it utilizes a bright and bold color palette to create an unforgettable and disturbing world.

The story follows the Hercules family, a dysfunctional group of people living in a run-down house in Venice, California. While exploring the basement of their new home, Frenchy (Marie-Pascale Elfman), one of the family's daughters, discovers a mystical portal that leads to a bizarre otherworldly realm called The Sixth Dimension. There, she is taken captive by the King of the Sixth Dimension (Hervé Villechaize) and his army of goblins and forced to become his bride.

The Hercules family, along with Frenchy's boyfriend Squeezit (Matthew Bright), embark on a mission to save her from the Sixth Dimension's clutches. Along the way, they encounter a variety of strange and terrifying characters, such as the Duke of Mylar (Danny Elfman), who is attempting to overthrow the King, and Queen Doris (Susan Tyrrell), who rules over the Sixth Dimension's bizarro counterpart, called the Forbidden Zone.

The movie is a musical, and it features a range of wild and eclectic songs that comment on everything from life in the suburbs to the nature of love and desire. These songs are performed by various characters, including Frenchy, Squeezit, and Queen Doris, and are accompanied by unique and imaginative dance sequences.

One of the most striking aspects of Forbidden Zone is its visual style. The film is shot in black and white, with splashes of color added in post-production to highlight specific elements. The set design is intricate and surrealist, with a wide range of textures and patterns that create a disorienting and hallucinatory effect. The movie also features stop-motion animation and puppetry, further adding to the film's experimental and surreal aesthetic.

Forbidden Zone is a film that is difficult to categorize. On one hand, it is a musical comedy that revels in its own absurdity and offensiveness. On the other hand, it is a deeply subversive and avant-garde work that challenges the viewer's expectations of narrative and representation. The film's blend of high and low culture, its use of surrealism and camp, and its willingness to push boundaries make it an essential artifact of the underground film scene of the 1980s.

In conclusion, Forbidden Zone is a cinematic oddity that defies easy description. Its combination of dark humor, surreal imagery, and catchy music make it an unforgettable experience that has garnered a cult following over the years. The film's unique vision remains relevant and challenging today, and it stands as a testament to the power of independent cinema to create works of art that are truly outside of the mainstream.

Forbidden Zone is a 1980 music movie with a runtime of 1 hour and 13 minutes. It has received moderate reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.5 and a MetaScore of 64.