To say that director Jim Wynorski has had a storied career vastly understates matters. In the fashion of his mentor Roger Corman, he’s been helming horror and exploitation films for almost 40 years. Here are just a small sample of the titles of works he’s willed into the world: THE WITCHES OF BREASTWICK, BODY CHEMISTRY 4: FULL EXPOSURE, THE BARE WENCH PROJECT 2: SCARED TOPLESS, THE BREASTFORD WIVES, SEXIPEDE!, and ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT CAMGIRL. I could go on, but you get the idea.
So far he has directed a mind-boggling 107 films, although I wouldn’t surprised if he directed two more in the time it took me to pen this post. As you might suspect based on the listed titles, most were churned out in a matter of days.
However, he is best known for the second film he directed: CHOPPING MALL. Originally titled KILLBOTS, it has the right balance of charm, slightly idiosyncratic characters, setting, and memorable production design.
CHOPPING MALL can be distilled down to ROBOCOP ED-209s replacing DAWN OF THE DEAD’s zombies in a mall. Their mall has rolled out security robots that aren’t too far removed from 80s Gemini robot but with arms.
“Trust me. Absolutely nothing can go wrong.”
A handful of mall employees decide to throw a sex-fueled party for themselves after-hours, The mall is struck by lightining, causing the ‘protector’ security robots to become murderous, and the party members can’t escape until morning due to even more security precautions. Matters escalate.
“If those things want some target practice, let’s give them some targets.”
While it is a paper-thin plot, as mentioned before, the characters — while being relatively stock, even down to the woman who knows how to fix a car’s engine — are deftly fleshed out by the cast. The robots, while looking Corman-cheap, are memorably designed.
Wynorski also leans on his love of cult films. The film opens with an over-the-top demonstration of the security robots and features Paul Bartel and Mary Moronov reprising their EATING RAOUL characters. Corman and Joe Dante mainstay Dick Miller briefly appears. The protagonists watch Corman’s ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS, and one of the shops is pointedly named ‘Peckinpah’s Sporting Goods’. They’re all small nods for sure, but showcase Wynorski’s love and appreciation for his influences.
“Maybe we should use one for the restaurant. Get rid of people we don’t like.”
However, the real standout is Chuck Cirino’s film score. It’s all staccato synths and simple hooks and is emblematic of the mid-80s, and very danceable. Oddly, it reminds me of the score from the MAX HEADROOM TV series.
It is an extremely winsome film that, against all odds, has endured. It’s worth noting that Wynorski’s latest film, MURDERBOTS, appears to slightly lean on CHOPPING MALL. Given that the plot is focused around a murderous ‘female’ robot, it feels more like Paulie’s robot girlfriend in ROCKY IV, but as I haven’t seen it, I cannot say for sure.
“Thank you. Have a nice day.”