The Ultimate Question...

[SaintMort]

Which is better Troma or Full Moon?

Alright so I never watched horror movies till 1996 when I was 10 and my cousin showed me Scream; From There I was hooked. I started grabbing every film I could get my hands on... thank god there was a mom and pops store by my house. When I was like 13-14 I thought Full Moon had the best stuff... Seed People, Shrieker, Puppet Master 1-3, Bad Channels, Demonic Toys... they were all so full of bizarre wonder. Plus Charles Band's involvement in Classics like Re-Animator and Dolls.

Around 2003 however is when I found Cannibal The Musical and purchased it and watched it for the first time. After that I watched the trailers and Netflix set me in motion (I had seen Bugged and the first 2 Toxic Avenger Films before hand but with the exceptation of Toxic Avenger it really didn't do anything for me)

Now I'm a huge Troma Fan but It really got me thinking... regardless of Full Moon going out of business... which one was the better studio or furthermore who was the better director? Charles Band or Llyod Kaufman

I think Kaufman is a great director but I think Charles band definately has a better eye for films to buy the rights for... I've released 90% of the non-Kaufman directed troma flicks are pretty bad (exceptations bloodsucking Freaks, Cannibal The Musical)

So what's everyone else's Opinion?

[MrRed]

This is kinda like asking which you'd prefer, a kick in the throat or a kick in the balls.  Both are gonna leave you spitting blood and bedridden for a couple weeks, you just gotta way your options for which is gonna have the most permanent damage.

Both companies have really gone downhill in the last. oh. decade or so, but I'd have to go with Troma for the best overall production during their good period.

Long story short - more blood, more boobs, more toxic waste = better movies.

[Menard]

This is kinda like asking which you'd prefer, a kick in the throat or a kick in the balls.  Both are gonna leave you spitting blood and bedridden for a couple weeks, you just gotta way your options for which is gonna have the most permanent damage.

That's your first karma point. Welcome to the board.


From a perspective of production, I would go with Full Moon, which is how I voted.

The plus I would give Troma is in cataloging movies which otherwise might not see the light of day.

[SaintMort]

I personally LOVE the last few Troma Films... Terror Firmer and Citizen Toxie are probably the best Troma films in a while and Poultrygiest looks even better

[MrRed]

Thanks for the karma and the welcome Menard, it's nice to be loved.

Just reread the first post and was wondering, did Full Moon actually go out of business, or did they just change their name?  I seem to recall Band releasing yet another killer doll movie a year or so back and (more recently) something about a killer bong.  I'm pretty sure he still does his "roadshow" thing too, visiting horror conventions and whatnot and pimping his assbackwards products.

Then again, maybe I'm just blowing smoke, as I try to make it my business to avoid the Band camp whenever possible.  Well, other than that Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys DVD I bought a few years back.

But that was only for Vanessa Angel.  I swear.

[Jordan]

I like both companies, but it seems that Full Moon (now Shadow Entertainment since Full Moon went bankrupt years ago) TRIES to make good movies and (quite often) fails. Troma just goes all out in an attempt to make stupid and idiotic sh*t all the time. Granted, I loved the Toxic Avenger and Sargeant Kabukiman NYPD (among other Troma "classics") but at this point, Lloyd and the gang have to pulling in some decent cash what with their impressive catalog of low-budget and indie films, so why the hell don't they try their hand at a good, expensive looking b-movie?! (Side Note: Poultrygeist looks awesome!)

Full Moon has some really nifty movies under their old moniker including the Puppet Master series, Dr. Mordrid, and a handful of other memorable little flicks. Too bad a lot of them are OOP. 

[Andrew]

Welcome aboard, Mr. Red.  I definitely remember reading that Full Moon went out of business.  Their website also lapsed during that period.  It is back, but I think under a different URL.

I am also looking forward to "Poultrygeist."  However, I think that Full Moon was the better of the two.  Troma goes for insane, out of control films, while Full Moon was focused on cult flicks and seemed to have a wider range.  Going back further in Band's history, I enjoyed stuff like "Arena" and those that he did.

By the way, I was just looking at the Full Moon Direct website and they advertise that they found a batch of the Puppet Master Box sets and are selling them for $100:

http://www.fullmoondirect.com/

Look about halfway down the page.

[SaintMort]

I saw that... but do I really want to spend $100 for half a box set? lol

[Doc Daneeka]

Full Moon. It's films have the one-up with some actual decent scares in them, not to mention the fact Troma always makes me feel dirty by the climax of the film. Full Moon also has a few more good child companies, where Troma just has plain ol' Troma.

[Shadow]

I am SO tempted to order that box set.

[RCMerchant]

 I like Troma better...and I'm not sure why...actually,I don't know why I like most ANYTHING I like...because most "normal" people think I'm a weirdo,as far as in my taste in movies go.

[Kroogur]

I voted for Full Moon, based on the word "better" in the question Full Moon had better actors(for the most part), better editing, better if not sometimes unique ideas .
However if Full Moon ever made anything "Troma" like it would have either been Blood Dolls or Shrunken Heads

On the other hand if i want just good old fashioned campy fun nothing and i mean nothing beats a Troma flick so either way you win!

[DodgingGrunge]

While I love the classics in the Full Moon catalog, I had to vote for Troma because I think they are a much more influential studio.  Troma has launched many careers and inspired several generations of filmmakers.  I have certainly utilized Lloyd's "headcrushing" technique for my own short films.  As for the "profits" they are allegedly making:  a great deal is squandered on the annual Tromadance celebration, in which directors screen their "movies" for free and the best, , are then given the chance to be distributed by Troma!  Not to mention open-bar after parties and strippers that would make Chesty Morgan blush, all in a town that prides itself on Mormon values!  This is no minor feat.  Regardless of how terrible every out-of-house Troma release is, they still make a difference.  Three decades and counting!

[Derf]

Full Moon, Full Moon, a hundred times Full Moon (but only one vote for them here  )! Full Moon made quite a few decent movies on small budgets. Yes, they made some stinkers, too, but they did some amazing things with the budgets they had. Troma, on the other hand, rarely if ever even tried to make a good movie. They just came up with admittedly eye-catching titles and then made trash to go along with them. Some Troma films are entertaining, but they fall into the trap of trying to make campy movies. Camp, as far as I'm concerned, can't really be done on purpose; it has to be accidental to be truly entertaining. If a production sets out to make a campy film, that generally means to me that they know their product is crap and so figure that if they let viewers know they know it's crap, then that makes everything okay. I respect Troma for bringing some extremely wild ideas to film and for making some entertaining crap, but Full Moon, when it was on track, made some darned fine movies

[Dennis]

I would rate them as equal to, but not the same as each other. I voted for Full Moon because I prefer those films over Troma's. The difference to me is that Full moon seems to be trying to bring us a  "serious" low budget effort and Troma seems to go for the comedy aspect in "B" movies, both are good, I just prefer Full Moon.