**Heads up, trigger warning. This film deals with the touchy subject of back alley abortion albeit in an extremely tongue-in-cheek manner. I do not advocate for or against in any way.**
With that being said, you’ve been warned.
Synopsis: A pregnant woman reluctantly goes to an illegal abortion clinic, which coincidentally doubles as a brothel, only to have her aborted mutated fetus attack everyone at the clinic.
There really isn’t much more to the story other than that brief synopsis. A young man and a recently pregnant girl head to the seediest of neighborhoods for a back alley abortion. After being directed to the back of the house to wait for their turn with Big Mama herself, they realize this place is a little more of a “full service” establishment. The girl becomes hesitant but at the urging of her boyfriend heads into the back room to talk with Big Mama. Words are exchanged and a sketchy drink is drunk. Next thing you know, a woman named Bertha is flushing a fetus down a toilet. Said fetus lands in an area of the sewer where some toxic waste is conveniently seeping, gradually transforming it into a monster who encases the house in some kind of organic bubble trapping everyone inside. Chaos ensues and people are dispatched in creatively insane ways.
This flick is Francis Teri’s one and only venture into writing and directing but they have dabbled in a little producing beyond this. This movie has Troma influence all over it but I was unable to find any connection to Kaufman (then again, I didn’t really dig all that deep). The acting was amateurish and the practical effects were very much in the style of Toxic Avenger but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it to a degree. The creature’s final form is actually kind of impressive. The premise is insane and the entire thing doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Not to mention the fact that it deals with material that is extremely divisive in this day and age. Movies like this are a time capsule that need to be viewed in a manner that doesn’t take them seriously. Now with that out of the way, it was a horror movie with a campy comedic undertone. It’s good in a kind of terrible way. I didn’t love it but I also didn’t hate it.
If you’re a fan of Troma-type fare like me, then this would be right up your alley. As of this writing, The Suckling is streaming on Tubi.
Join me again tomorrow and we’ll continue this strange little journey down the horror rabbit hole.
