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this is dedicated to the 1986 movie. i have limited knowledge of the live musical and know almost nothing about the 1960 movie

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let's review a list of things i love to see:

i think my developing a love of little shop of horrors was inevitable. this 80s horror-comedy with a satirical critque of consumerism and incredible creature design directed by arguably the 2nd most famous puppeteer in the english-speaking world might as well have been created specifically for me. add to that the energetic campy tone of the movie and the not-too-terribly aged humor and youve got the perfect movie for me to sink my teeth into. also hot take (maybe? i dont actually know how popular of an opinion this is): i prefer the movie ending to the play ending tbh. i dont think it really changes the effectiveness of the metaphor since character motivations and the views of the narrative are relatively the same in both endings and i personally prefer more optimistic stuff (although i do think dont feed the plants is a bop and i appreciate the dark irony of somewhere thats green)

this section is mostly me gushing about the puppets in this movie while knowing nothing about them. also i am very easily impressed by puppets and stop motion so this will sound like the ramblings of a man transported to the future from the 1800s and just got convinced magic is real by this movie alone. this movie was directed by frank oz, one of the most famous puppeteers next to jim henson, but the main audrey II puppets used in live performances were designed and operated by martin p robinson, largely known for his work on sesame street. and thse puppets. oh my god these puppets. im blown away every time i think about it for too long.

audrey 2 growing in its can

stage one: look at this thing. SERIOUSLY. the wa the can expands as she grows??? not to mention the realistic and still recognizably alien paint job on all stages of the audrey II. insane. i mean neurodivergent

audrey 2 held by seymour, opening its mouth and moving its leaves

stage two: lip movement INDEPENDENT OF JAW MOVEMENT INDEPENDENT OF TONGUE MOVEMENT. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. as well as leaf movement??? unbelievable (more like unbe-leaf-able amirite). and i cant say this with complete certainty but the hand holding audrey II is probably fake which very impressive if true

audrey 2 in stage 3 of its growth, talking and moving its leaves and branches

all the moving pieces here coordinate so beautifully and the small background thorn movements give audrey 2 even more life and character than she already had. absolutely blown away. straight up shocked. speechless. im done im not even doing stage 4 its simply too much for me to handle but the main takeaway here is GODDD I LOVE THESE PUPPETS. ive been mostly talking about how the puppets are crafted and the way they operate but it absolutely needs to be noted that no matter how well made they were they would not have the life they do without the incredible puppeteers operating them. the movements the weight the soul its just so good. ITS SO GOOD ARE YOU LISTENING CAN ANYONE HEAR ME I LOVE THIS MOVIE AND THESE PUPPETS