Hell Comes to Frogtown is a 1987 cult science fiction mutant monster film that was created by Donald G. Jackson (The Demon Lover). The screenplay was written by Jackson and Randall Frakes (Bad Karma). It was directed by Jackson and R. J. Kizer, and stars professional wrestler Roddy Piper, Sandahl Bergman, Cec Verrell, William Smith (Grave of the Vampire), Rory Calhoun (Motel Hell) and Nicholas Worth (Don’t Answer the Phone!).
In a post-apocalyptic world, Sam Hell (Piper) is a nomadic traveler captured by an organization of warrior-nurses, the closest thing to a government in his region of the world, who reveal that they located him by tracking the trail of pregnant women left in his wake. Their original plan was to use him as breeding stock with their collection of fertile women, but it turns out this is the group captured by the mutants. Hell is pressed into service as a mercenary – he is to infiltrate the mutant city (known as “Frogtown”) and rescue the women. To make sure rebellious Hell follows his orders, he is forced to wear an electronic protective codpiece that will explode if he disobeys or tries to abort his mission. To aid him he is paired with two attractive women: one of the nurses, Spangle (Sandahl Bergman), and an aggressive guardswoman named Cendrilla…
“Hell Comes to Frogtown seems like exactly the kind of movie that has been prefabricated for a cult audience, from the casting of wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper to the presence of mutant frogs to the post-apocalyptic setting to the tone, which is just the right side of campy and self-aware. What saves it from being too calculated and cynical is that it plays the material straight. The movie pre-dates the Age of Irony, so there’s no evidence of the filmmakers or the actors winking at the camera. They understand that there are enough absurd elements in the movie — from the title on down — that they don’t really need to call attention to it.” Patrick Bromley, F This Movie!
“The film has a clear eye for the absurdities of its own plot without fully rupturing the envelope of credibility…” Richard Scheib, Moria: The Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
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“What makes Frogtown work is that it toes a fine line of camp. It doesn’t take itself seriously, but neither does it apologize for asking us suspend our disbelief on something so ridiculous. It plays out its post-apocalyptic harem scenario as if it took place in a real alternate world, keeping the fourth wall intact. Frogtown is every thirteen-year-old boy’s ultimate fantasy: it’s like a summer vacation full of adventures, girls, and occasional frog-gigging. If you’re a thirteen-year-old boy, it’s the awesomest movie ever made; if you’re not, you may still find enough good-natured ridiculousness to keep you watching until the happy ending.” 366 Weird Movies
“Wrestling, mutant frogs, breasts, and Roddy Piper fertilizing Earth’s last remaining females…what more could you possibly want?” Luke Y. Thompson, New York Times
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