The Toxic Avenger movie review: Peter Dinklage shines in gory yet self-aware reboot

That weapon doesn’t just render people dead, it disembowels them – body part no bar, from the top of heads to seats of bottoms, with organs spilling or sucked out from both ends.

Watch the trailer of The Toxic Avenger:

That grossness is what gave The Toxic Avenger its unabashed B-grade success. In these more politically correct times, some of that unabashedness has to be toned down, and the story itself tweaked, but the film is astute enough to mock itself about it.

Where it is even better is in helping us spot the people behind the blood, bone and muscle that it is routinely slicing through.

It helps that there is such a dazzling star cast lending this wisp of a story its weight. If Peter Dinklage as Winston is of course moving, especially before his transformation into his superhero form, there are surprisingly effective turns even in smaller roles, by Taylor Paige and Julia Davis, in particular. Kevin Bacon as the villain churning out fake and harmful wellness products hits the right tones in his oily sliminess.

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However, at the end of the day, the reason for this film’s revival is as gratuitous as its graphic violence – a chain reaction to superhero hits.

The Toxic Avenger movie director: Macon Blair
The Toxic Avenger movie cast: Peter Dinklage, Jacob Tremblay, Taylor Paige, Kevin Bacon, Elijah Wood, Julia Davis
The Toxic Avenger movie rating: 2.5 stars