A lovely trip down memory lane. I saw this film when I was a child of seven, again when I was ten and snippets of this film have followed me ever since. I just finished watching the film again moments ago, the first time as an adult. Now, this film was somewhat frightening when I was seven, it does have some spooky elements, I don't recommend it for young children. I do feel however that this movie does deserve a second look by adults. The acting isn't award winning, and the special effects certainly wouldn't stand up to today's standards, however this film does have a unique premise and the dialog rarely comes off as childish, this isn't really a childs movie and I feel it was mis-marketted as one. One notable point about this film for most Canadians in their twenties and thirties will recognize several faces from other Canadian films and television from the early 1980's. This film was produced in english, the first film released by La Fete that I am aware of, to be produced in english not just dubbed over. If you enjoyed this film I also recommend watching The Dog that Stopped the War (1984) a great film put out by La Fete immediately before the Peanut Butter Solution. The Dog who Stopped the War can also be found by its original french title Guerre des tuques, La (1984).
65 Reviews
Comedy? yikes
tblackwo10 May 2005
I just was cleaning out our basement and came across our old betamax movie collection.
Aahh memories....
Anyways one of the movies was Peanut Butter Solution...it immediately brought back forgotten memories, but sadly, since we no longer own a beta machine, I cant watch it.
Now, I haven't seen this movie since I was a (young) kid, but one thing I do remember about this movie was that it FREAKED ME THE HELL OUT! (Along with another movie we has on Beta, ET, but thats another story)
I'm reading here its a comedy? I don't remember the complete story, except for the fact that the peanut butter stuff grew hair (sounds funny) but I don't remember laughing at all, I remember my sister loving this movie but I hated it cause it scared the hell out of me, and creeped me out big time, I really am looking forward to finding this somewhere and watching it now that I'm older....And although ET still freaks me out to the point of not being able to watch it, maybe this will be different.
Aahh memories....
Anyways one of the movies was Peanut Butter Solution...it immediately brought back forgotten memories, but sadly, since we no longer own a beta machine, I cant watch it.
Now, I haven't seen this movie since I was a (young) kid, but one thing I do remember about this movie was that it FREAKED ME THE HELL OUT! (Along with another movie we has on Beta, ET, but thats another story)
I'm reading here its a comedy? I don't remember the complete story, except for the fact that the peanut butter stuff grew hair (sounds funny) but I don't remember laughing at all, I remember my sister loving this movie but I hated it cause it scared the hell out of me, and creeped me out big time, I really am looking forward to finding this somewhere and watching it now that I'm older....And although ET still freaks me out to the point of not being able to watch it, maybe this will be different.
Simply terrifying for children
finzi8115 October 2011
I totally agree that the movie is not a comedy and not for children. I can't think of a darker film.
I saw this as a child and have vividly horrible memories of the scene where he gets his wig yanked off in the soccer game. All the imagery taps into a child's deepest fears. Even the gooey quality of the peanut butter itself and spreading it all over your head. And the orphanage / sweatshop where they starve the children. I had nightmares of being trapped in there.It's just so wrong.
It would probably seem campy to watch now, but the original impact my psyche is irreversible. It's so funny that literally everyone in the forums had the same experience. I've never seen such unanimity in on IMDb.
I saw this as a child and have vividly horrible memories of the scene where he gets his wig yanked off in the soccer game. All the imagery taps into a child's deepest fears. Even the gooey quality of the peanut butter itself and spreading it all over your head. And the orphanage / sweatshop where they starve the children. I had nightmares of being trapped in there.It's just so wrong.
It would probably seem campy to watch now, but the original impact my psyche is irreversible. It's so funny that literally everyone in the forums had the same experience. I've never seen such unanimity in on IMDb.
really got into my psyche
Thrusday5 October 2004
Watched this several times as a kid. My babysitter had it on VHS. I was fascinated by it and it really got into my psyche. It's dreamlike, weaving seemingly unrelated elements into a story with almost free-association. There's peanut butter mixed with flies and other gross stuff, super fast-growing hair, paintings that come to life, a sugar trail being washed away, and other random images. I wonder if this movie was actually inspired by a dream, or by someone picking random words out of a dictionary maybe?
Anyway, I loved it and longed to be able to paint a picture that I could walk into. The plot is unique and imaginative. I was too young when I watched this to pay attention to dialogue or acting - they're probably not great. The imagery is amazing, though. I don't remember the story being especially scary, but it was disturbing. I believe the boy who is the victim of all this was in a coma and also kidnapped. I just wonder if I watched this movie now whether it would still seem as magical to me, or would I be disappointed?
Anyway, I loved it and longed to be able to paint a picture that I could walk into. The plot is unique and imaginative. I was too young when I watched this to pay attention to dialogue or acting - they're probably not great. The imagery is amazing, though. I don't remember the story being especially scary, but it was disturbing. I believe the boy who is the victim of all this was in a coma and also kidnapped. I just wonder if I watched this movie now whether it would still seem as magical to me, or would I be disappointed?
PREMIERE SEVERIN KIDS TITLE
kirbylee70-599-5261796 June 2020
Warning: Spoilers
If you've been reading my posts then you know I'm a fan of Severin. They have become a great source of movies that might have been overlooked or forgotten when it comes to blu-ray releases by studios long gone or not interested in giving their once name products a release in this format. Severin is one of those companies that have stepped up to the plate to deliver those movies in pristine format with plenty of extras for fans of those films. Now their dipping their toe into the kids market with Severin Kids. Their first offering? THE PEANUT BUTTER SOLUTION.
Made in 1985 and found in repeated viewings for those who grew up around that time on cable, the movie tells the story of Michael Baskin (Matthew Mackay), an 11 year old boy who hears that a nearby abandoned mansion has recently been burned down. Curious and in spite of warning not to go there, he does and enters the building to poke around. Something frightens him and the next morning he wakes to find all of his hair is gone. This becomes something his father must now deal with, a struggling artists taking care of his two children while their mother is away handling the affairs of her recently deceased father.
After a bad situation involving a wig, Michael is visited by two ghosts from the mansion who have come to help him. They provide him with a formula that will help him grow back his hair, the main ingredient of which is peanut butter. Before leaving they tell him to follow the instructions to the letter. Of course you immediately know that won't be the case. He doesn't follow the instructions as told and it isn't long before his hair grows to outrageous lengths. His best friend Conrad aka Connie (Siluck Saysanasy) tries to put some on his pubic area to get others to think he hit puberty and he too ends up with more hair than he bargained for.
Back at school Michael's art teacher called the Signor (Michel Maillot), an angry teacher who is constantly telling his students not to use their imagination, is fired for his behavior. When he hears about Michael's condition he kidnaps him with the intention of cutting his hair to make magic paintbrushes with it. The Signor as also kidnapped other children from the neighborhood, forcing them into slavery to make the brushes.
What will become of Michael? What about the other children? Will Michael's sister Suzie along with the help of Connie be able to rescue him?
I would love to tell you that this film is amazing, especially after reading all of the glowing reviews posted on the internet from various people who remember this movie fondly from their childhood. But in all honesty I had a tough time with it. The acting felt amateurish at best, like those after school specials meant for the very VERY young. The cinematography is passable and the effects are as well. But nothing really popped for me while watching this. To be honest I had a hard time staying awake and focused while watching it.
This doesn't mean the Severin hasn't done their best to bring this film to the many who loved it and recall it fondly. This is the first time the film has been released on blu-ray in the US. In addition to that they've gathered several great extras including an extended US theatrical version of the film, a new commentary track with producer Rock Demers and actor Mackay moderated by filmmaker Ara Ball, "Human Beings Are the Same All Over" an interview with producer Demers, "Conrad's Peanut Butter Solution" and interview with Saysanasy, "Tales for All" Paul Corupe on Rock Demersand the Canadian Kids Film, the Canadian trailer and the US trailer.
If you are one that remembers this film fondly then I wholeheartedly tell you now that you should pick up this version. It's been handled with loving care by Severin, a company that does no wrong when it comes to saving films like this. One can only hope that they follow through with more Severin Kids product like this one.
Made in 1985 and found in repeated viewings for those who grew up around that time on cable, the movie tells the story of Michael Baskin (Matthew Mackay), an 11 year old boy who hears that a nearby abandoned mansion has recently been burned down. Curious and in spite of warning not to go there, he does and enters the building to poke around. Something frightens him and the next morning he wakes to find all of his hair is gone. This becomes something his father must now deal with, a struggling artists taking care of his two children while their mother is away handling the affairs of her recently deceased father.
After a bad situation involving a wig, Michael is visited by two ghosts from the mansion who have come to help him. They provide him with a formula that will help him grow back his hair, the main ingredient of which is peanut butter. Before leaving they tell him to follow the instructions to the letter. Of course you immediately know that won't be the case. He doesn't follow the instructions as told and it isn't long before his hair grows to outrageous lengths. His best friend Conrad aka Connie (Siluck Saysanasy) tries to put some on his pubic area to get others to think he hit puberty and he too ends up with more hair than he bargained for.
Back at school Michael's art teacher called the Signor (Michel Maillot), an angry teacher who is constantly telling his students not to use their imagination, is fired for his behavior. When he hears about Michael's condition he kidnaps him with the intention of cutting his hair to make magic paintbrushes with it. The Signor as also kidnapped other children from the neighborhood, forcing them into slavery to make the brushes.
What will become of Michael? What about the other children? Will Michael's sister Suzie along with the help of Connie be able to rescue him?
I would love to tell you that this film is amazing, especially after reading all of the glowing reviews posted on the internet from various people who remember this movie fondly from their childhood. But in all honesty I had a tough time with it. The acting felt amateurish at best, like those after school specials meant for the very VERY young. The cinematography is passable and the effects are as well. But nothing really popped for me while watching this. To be honest I had a hard time staying awake and focused while watching it.
This doesn't mean the Severin hasn't done their best to bring this film to the many who loved it and recall it fondly. This is the first time the film has been released on blu-ray in the US. In addition to that they've gathered several great extras including an extended US theatrical version of the film, a new commentary track with producer Rock Demers and actor Mackay moderated by filmmaker Ara Ball, "Human Beings Are the Same All Over" an interview with producer Demers, "Conrad's Peanut Butter Solution" and interview with Saysanasy, "Tales for All" Paul Corupe on Rock Demersand the Canadian Kids Film, the Canadian trailer and the US trailer.
If you are one that remembers this film fondly then I wholeheartedly tell you now that you should pick up this version. It's been handled with loving care by Severin, a company that does no wrong when it comes to saving films like this. One can only hope that they follow through with more Severin Kids product like this one.
It's a little bit nutty.
BA_Harrison22 July 2020
I can't vouch for how scary this film might seem to a child - this is one of the few IMDb reviews written by someone who didn't see the movie when young - but I can confirm that it has a very weird tone that could be disturbing to kids: the way the story is told is just a little off-kilter, making the whole thing feel like a bad dream.
The bizarre plot concerns 11-year-old Michael (Mathew Mackay), who investigates a burnt-out spooky mansion where something frightens him so much that all of his hair falls out. Bullied at school for being bald, Michael is delighted when he is visited by two ghosts who give him a recipe to solve his problem, the crucial ingredient being peanut butter. Painting the concoction on his head before bedtime, he wakes the next day to discover that the mixture has worked - but having put too much peanut butter into the solution, his hair growth is rapid and unstoppable.
Matters get even more strange when Michael is abducted and used by mad painter Sergio (Michel Maillot) as the source of hair for his magic paintbrushes, which are assembled by other kidnapped children. It is up to Michael's sister Suzie (Alison Darcy) and best friend Connie (Siluck Saysanasy) to come to the rescue.
Given a bigger budget and a better cast, I could imagine this film receiving the same level of love and admiration reserved for family favourites like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Labyrinth and Coraline - it certainly has a lot of imagination - but as it stands, it's merely a curiosity remembered fondly by those who saw it at an impressionable age. I can imagine most adults struggling with the cheap production values, poor performances and awkward storytelling - factors that help to make it a surreal experience but which discerning grown-ups might not find that appealing.
The bizarre plot concerns 11-year-old Michael (Mathew Mackay), who investigates a burnt-out spooky mansion where something frightens him so much that all of his hair falls out. Bullied at school for being bald, Michael is delighted when he is visited by two ghosts who give him a recipe to solve his problem, the crucial ingredient being peanut butter. Painting the concoction on his head before bedtime, he wakes the next day to discover that the mixture has worked - but having put too much peanut butter into the solution, his hair growth is rapid and unstoppable.
Matters get even more strange when Michael is abducted and used by mad painter Sergio (Michel Maillot) as the source of hair for his magic paintbrushes, which are assembled by other kidnapped children. It is up to Michael's sister Suzie (Alison Darcy) and best friend Connie (Siluck Saysanasy) to come to the rescue.
Given a bigger budget and a better cast, I could imagine this film receiving the same level of love and admiration reserved for family favourites like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Labyrinth and Coraline - it certainly has a lot of imagination - but as it stands, it's merely a curiosity remembered fondly by those who saw it at an impressionable age. I can imagine most adults struggling with the cheap production values, poor performances and awkward storytelling - factors that help to make it a surreal experience but which discerning grown-ups might not find that appealing.
man i missed this one
chichobit99828 December 2006
i watched the peanut butter solution a looong time ago, and like most others, it scared the crap out of me. the movie came out before i was born, but as a small child, the idea that there could be something so scary it could make your hair fall out terrified me. i only remember bits and pieces, but the part where he goes into the painting was my favorite part... i don't remember the acting or dialogue, only that the movie was amazing and i loved it, even if it did scare me... The peanut butter solution was made of some nasty things too, i remember him cracking a raw egg over his head? maybe im making that up... anyway, the kidnapping scared me and the fact that there were so many young children unaware that they were being used for magical paintbrushes... i also remember that the guy who was making the paintbrushes was incredibly creepy... what was his name again? 1985 was probably not a great year for cinema, but this one was a good one
thats it
thats it
The peanut butter solution ruined my life.
anthony-56720 April 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Oh my god, Im so glad I found out what this movie was. They played this movie at my daycare when I was 4. I remember bursting into tears like a couple hours after watching it and this counselor trying to find out what was wrong. I didn't really know myself, so I didn't know what to tell her. This movie gave me a weird/unexplainable/embarrassing phobia of being bald. Im talking a serious phobia that as a kid was on the same level as monsters and ghosts. All I remember from the movie was this kid playing soccer and some other kids rip off his wig. Then there's an image in my head of hair growing out the bottom of his pants. I wish this stupid movie had never been made. The weird thing is, I totally forgot about this movie around the time I was 8 until I played some arcade that was like Street Fighter but with different characters. If you lose, you are shown a portrait of you character... BALD. Instantly, everything came back to me and I've never been able to forget this creepy horrible stupid movie. Any attempt to confirm this movie with ANYBODY would result in skeptical/concerned looks. I thought Id never hear or see of this again until I saw a wikipedia article on it. If I was some kind of dictator Id have every copy of this movie burned out of existence.
The movie that never gets out of your head!
ordonet4 February 2003
It took me ages to find the name of this movie, a movie I had watched as a child and had really really frightened me! I've been searching for this movie for YEARS! and i could only remember some parts of the film, when asking others if they remember the movie, they would look at me as if I'm crazy!!.. seems like a common thing reading all the other users comments, anyway.. This film is full of imagination, suspence, and is over all Fun and Scary for little kids.. it might even be scary for Adults too.. come on, a guy goes bold from being frightened? .. I was frightened all the time as a kid, perhapse i thought i was going to go bold! .. anyway if you havent seen this movie you should! its one of my favourites from childhood, up with the goonies!
The Peanut Butter Solution (1985)
jonahstewartvaughan16 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Cult Cuts Volume 18 (80s Horror Retrospective #2)
#3/4: The Peanut Butter Solution (1985) (SPOILER WARNING)
(7/10): From the Great White North of Canada, Quebec specifically, comes an extremely odd kids film that is mostly remembered now for being again, very strange, but also traumatizing many children.
It follows a young boy named Michael who lives at home with his older sister and father while his mother is away. His father is an artist and Michael also attends art classes with a very peculiar and strict teacher who penalizes creativity.
One day after his game practice was canceled him and his friend decided to go and take a look at an old abandoned building and Michael climbs all the way up through the window only to be frightened by something and fall unconscious.
The next day he awakens to find that he has gone completely bald due to fright and now he's become miserable and the butt of many jokes at school.
He does meet ghosts in the middle of the night who teach him a formula that can help him get his hair back with the secret ingredient being peanut butter but only a little bit of peanut butter as he is warned, but like all kids he disregards the warning and loads it full of peanut butter and the next day he starts growing his hair back but at an alarming rate.
The hair becomes a problem at school and then shortly afterwards him and many other kids go missing.
They are found abducted by the same art teacher who is using his hair to paint magic paintings.
I didn't know how else to go into this film without pretty much breaking down the entire story as a lot of its weird and bizarre aspects come from just how strange the plot is.
The film is really quite wholesome as much as it is odd and also not necessarily the greatest. It's also very much a family film first with the horrific attributes sprinkled in much akin to Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice in that manner.
It also does feel somewhat familiar in that it feels oddly like E. T.: The Extra Terrestrial but also feels nothing like it at the same time.
It's truly a perplexing film that is incredibly unique in its level of imaginative storytelling in spite of its flaws.
It's a tough one to go out and recommend as it's very much a film that is rooted in nostalgia and also any newcomers to it will either not like it due to lack of attachment or if they're young might also end up being traumatized by the fear of being bald like many kids were.
So I say if you want to check it out go for it but if not then that's fine, this one is a tough one to not view in its nostalgic lens.
#3/4: The Peanut Butter Solution (1985) (SPOILER WARNING)
(7/10): From the Great White North of Canada, Quebec specifically, comes an extremely odd kids film that is mostly remembered now for being again, very strange, but also traumatizing many children.
It follows a young boy named Michael who lives at home with his older sister and father while his mother is away. His father is an artist and Michael also attends art classes with a very peculiar and strict teacher who penalizes creativity.
One day after his game practice was canceled him and his friend decided to go and take a look at an old abandoned building and Michael climbs all the way up through the window only to be frightened by something and fall unconscious.
The next day he awakens to find that he has gone completely bald due to fright and now he's become miserable and the butt of many jokes at school.
He does meet ghosts in the middle of the night who teach him a formula that can help him get his hair back with the secret ingredient being peanut butter but only a little bit of peanut butter as he is warned, but like all kids he disregards the warning and loads it full of peanut butter and the next day he starts growing his hair back but at an alarming rate.
The hair becomes a problem at school and then shortly afterwards him and many other kids go missing.
They are found abducted by the same art teacher who is using his hair to paint magic paintings.
I didn't know how else to go into this film without pretty much breaking down the entire story as a lot of its weird and bizarre aspects come from just how strange the plot is.
The film is really quite wholesome as much as it is odd and also not necessarily the greatest. It's also very much a family film first with the horrific attributes sprinkled in much akin to Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice in that manner.
It also does feel somewhat familiar in that it feels oddly like E. T.: The Extra Terrestrial but also feels nothing like it at the same time.
It's truly a perplexing film that is incredibly unique in its level of imaginative storytelling in spite of its flaws.
It's a tough one to go out and recommend as it's very much a film that is rooted in nostalgia and also any newcomers to it will either not like it due to lack of attachment or if they're young might also end up being traumatized by the fear of being bald like many kids were.
So I say if you want to check it out go for it but if not then that's fine, this one is a tough one to not view in its nostalgic lens.
"Bizarre 80's Childhood Film!"
gwnightscream28 November 2014
Warning: Spoilers
This 1985 fantasy film stars Mathew Mackay, Sliuk Saysanasy, Allison Darcy, Michael Hogan and Michel Maillot. Mackay plays young boy, Michael who lives with his sister, Suzie (Darcy) and father, Bill (Hogan) who is an artist. Soon, Michael and his best friend, Conrad (Saysanasy) go to a house that was burned down where a homeless couple died. Michael sneaks in while Conrad tries talking him out of it and Michael is frightened which causes him to lose his hair. Soon, Michael is visited by the ghosts of the homeless couple and they give him a recipe to regain hair. He tries it and his hair grows rapidly long. Maillot plays crooked, art teacher, Sergio aka The Signor who tries stealing Michael's hair to make paint brushes. This is a bizarre film that has stuck with me since childhood. I finally revisited it again and it's not as creepy as I remembered. It does have a bit of an eerie quality, but it's mostly silly and I still recommend it.
I finally got this movie
apryllshowers20 May 2006
I ve been working in videos stores for 5yrs now and every time someone new comes and works in the video store I always ask have you ever seen a movie where this kid loses his hair and uses this stuff with peanut butter in it to make his hair grow. And everyone always looks at me strangely and say no. I had seen this movie in school a few times when i was 6 or 7 and it also scared the crap out of me and made a lasting impression but didn't know the name of the movie. So finally I did a random search and typed in peanut butter in a movie search engine and got the title Peanut Butter Solution. I bought a VHS copy from Amazon and just watched it with my 6yr old son but I don't think it scared him as much as it did to the kids in the 80s. It was everything I remembered but I had forgotten all about the ending with the magic paintings which now looks like the moving pictures you can buy in the mall. But yes this movie is classic for someone in their 20s who have seen this movie and I think its too bad it didn't stick around.
At times, VERY funny
Tito-830 May 2000
Much to my surprise, this was an amusing movie, even though it's clearly aimed at kids. In fact, in terms of "laugh out loud" funny lines, this film is better than ninety-nine percent of Hollywood's blockbuster comedies. On the downside, the story is only competent at best, and the final twenty minutes simply don't fit well with the tone of the rest of the movie. But even though the poor ending left me somewhat disappointed, it's still an enjoyable movie overall, thanks to a high number of silly scenes. Worth a look.
Yikes!
angielossner9 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I don't remember most of the plot line of this movie. All I can remember is that one kid puts the peanut butter on so he could grow pubic hair. There is a scene on a soccer field where the main character's hair starts stretching out across the whole field. This literally made me sick. Not scared sick, just nauseous. It looked disgusting. The pubic hair portion of the movie was really awkward too. I have never been able to get that soccer scene out of my mind. I never wanted to see this movie again, now I'm a little curious though, I'm not sure if I'll watch it again because that scene bothered me so much but I'm tempted to, just to see if it's as bad as I remember. I'm also glad I'm not the only one that remembers this movie, no one knows what I'm talking about when I mention it either.
Ah... memories
jimi_zee18 May 2003
It seems almost all the posts people have on this movie are memories of watching it as a child, and then having vague memories of bits and pieces as an adult...
I must say, I'm not much different in this matter either. All I could remember was bits and pieces of the plot line. I do remember getting nightmares from it (like most people), not that this is particularly a scary movie by today's standards, but to a child it definitely puts a psychological fear that stays with you. So I looked it up, trying every search word I could think of, (i.e. hair loss, regrowth, solution, paintbrushes) Ehh... after browsing through tons of rogain ads, I finally came across it. I managed to find a copy and watched it again.
It's actually a truly unique movie. A novel idea about a kid who loses his hair, and gets more than he wishes when he applies a magical hair-growth solution. I think perhaps it wasn't marketed correctly back in the 80's because while it seems like a childs movie, I wouldn't recommend it to young children. Maybe not just the marketing either, but the movie itself would've probably been able to stand on its own without being characterized as a child's movie. I would bet that there are probably even people today who have been scarred from watching this as a very young child...
So, if you come across it, it's worth checking out. But sensor before letting your kids see this one!
I must say, I'm not much different in this matter either. All I could remember was bits and pieces of the plot line. I do remember getting nightmares from it (like most people), not that this is particularly a scary movie by today's standards, but to a child it definitely puts a psychological fear that stays with you. So I looked it up, trying every search word I could think of, (i.e. hair loss, regrowth, solution, paintbrushes) Ehh... after browsing through tons of rogain ads, I finally came across it. I managed to find a copy and watched it again.
It's actually a truly unique movie. A novel idea about a kid who loses his hair, and gets more than he wishes when he applies a magical hair-growth solution. I think perhaps it wasn't marketed correctly back in the 80's because while it seems like a childs movie, I wouldn't recommend it to young children. Maybe not just the marketing either, but the movie itself would've probably been able to stand on its own without being characterized as a child's movie. I would bet that there are probably even people today who have been scarred from watching this as a very young child...
So, if you come across it, it's worth checking out. But sensor before letting your kids see this one!
Strange 80s Movie
Hollywood_Yoda1 October 2018
Who wrote this film? Asking because they had to have been high. This has got to be one of the strangest movies ever made. The acting was just as bad, it would have been funny if not so sad.
Some of the story was sort of interesting, but this film isn't for kids. The peanut butter concoction was pretty disgusting. But the worst part of the film is that it normalizes kidnapping, child slavery and pedophilia.
I can easily see why the film is not readily available on DVD and is out of print. It's for good reason!
Some of the story was sort of interesting, but this film isn't for kids. The peanut butter concoction was pretty disgusting. But the worst part of the film is that it normalizes kidnapping, child slavery and pedophilia.
I can easily see why the film is not readily available on DVD and is out of print. It's for good reason!
"The Peanut Butter Solution" is not for children you love. But for children you hate, it's perfect.
rjyelverton25 July 2009
Warning: Spoilers
I was recently able to engage in some radical immersion therapy this weekend wherein I confronted a childhood fear–creepy family film "The Peanut Butter Solution"–and came to grips with it's hold on my psyche. Ideally, I would find that this odd Canadian import was not nearly so bad as remembered and put to rest memories of a movie that has haunted me well into my adulthood.
It didn't quite work out that way as this movie is actually still horrifying. The film, second in the still running Tales for All series from Canadian studio Les Productions la Fête, features a child predator who harvests hair to make magic paintbrushes in a warehouse/sweatshop filled with abducted children. The movie also includes a delightful scene of a child being mauled by dogs.
The titular magical hair growing solution is used by one child on his nether regions leading to some really skeevy results. "Solution" stars Michael Hogan (Col. Saul Tigh in "Battlestar Galactica") as one of the world's worst screen fathers and features several early pop numbers from Celine Dion.
The tone of "The Peanut Butter Solution" is intentionally unsettling and the storytelling follows nightmare logic. Michael Baskin, a high strung 11 year old prone to screaming fits, loses all his hair after being frightened by some unseen bogeyman discovered in the remains of a burnt down house. In the home at the time of the fire are two "winos" who were burned to death and now administer sinister taunts to Baskin from the great beyond. The two ghosts give Michael a solution to his hair problem–a potion recipe consisting of dead flies, rotten eggs, and peanut butter.
Michael adds too much peanut butter to the potion, resulting in his hair growing uncontrollably. This makes him the target of the Signor, a child predator and high strung recently fired school teacher, who charms Michael and twenty other neighborhood children into the back of his van and off to his magical sweatshop. Michael is kept restrained in the sweatshop and fed nothing but yogurt. In the meantime, Col. Tigh–distraught at the disappearance of his son–screams and rips his art studio apart.
The film is further creepified by the fact that it holds true to the house style of its studio New World Pictures. New World brought us the first Hellraiser films, "Angel," "House," Nice Girls Don't Explode," and more 80s pay cable staples. New World films were made on a budget and employed a shooting style that washed out colors and muted light sources. The cheaper look of these movies worked to the favor of its horror films as the rough hewn production could be unsettling and off-putting, perfect for making viewers ill at ease. New World films frequently employed over amplified synth soundtracks which heighten the sense of dread. The use of these techniques in a children's film produces predictable results–fear and anxiety lasting well into your thirties.
Director Michael Rubbo is hindered by a shoestring budget which apparently didn't allow him to shoot any scene more than once. Siluk Saysanasy as Michael's best buddy and inappropriate user of peanut butter is simply dreadful. Michael Hogan is left stranded in this movie flailing around and like his screen son prone to unsettling screaming fits. Alison Podbrey, as Michael's sister Susie, does her best but unfortunately cut her acting teeth on this train wreck and elicited this pithy observation from IMDb commenter "tumbleweeds": "Not only is she butt ugly, she's one of those people who NEVER close their mouth. Leaves it hanging open like a retard. Makes me sick to look at her. I hope the woman who played her is dead now." Rewatching this movie, I was surprised that, while it no longer scared me, it still made me uneasy throughout. The jumpy editing, whimsy deficit, and sense of doom that permeates the film make it hard to believe Rubbo was actually making a children's film. The filmmakers seem to realize what a horrific gift they've bestowed upon children by trying to wrap everything up with a cheerful finale completely different in tone than the rest of the movie. Michael's previously unstable artist father saves the day and his mother–who the film hints early on abandoned her freak show of a family–returns home with hugs and kisses.
"The Peanut Butter Solution" is not for children you love. But for children you hate, it's perfect.
Those curious to see the film in its entirety can do so at Google Videos.
It didn't quite work out that way as this movie is actually still horrifying. The film, second in the still running Tales for All series from Canadian studio Les Productions la Fête, features a child predator who harvests hair to make magic paintbrushes in a warehouse/sweatshop filled with abducted children. The movie also includes a delightful scene of a child being mauled by dogs.
The titular magical hair growing solution is used by one child on his nether regions leading to some really skeevy results. "Solution" stars Michael Hogan (Col. Saul Tigh in "Battlestar Galactica") as one of the world's worst screen fathers and features several early pop numbers from Celine Dion.
The tone of "The Peanut Butter Solution" is intentionally unsettling and the storytelling follows nightmare logic. Michael Baskin, a high strung 11 year old prone to screaming fits, loses all his hair after being frightened by some unseen bogeyman discovered in the remains of a burnt down house. In the home at the time of the fire are two "winos" who were burned to death and now administer sinister taunts to Baskin from the great beyond. The two ghosts give Michael a solution to his hair problem–a potion recipe consisting of dead flies, rotten eggs, and peanut butter.
Michael adds too much peanut butter to the potion, resulting in his hair growing uncontrollably. This makes him the target of the Signor, a child predator and high strung recently fired school teacher, who charms Michael and twenty other neighborhood children into the back of his van and off to his magical sweatshop. Michael is kept restrained in the sweatshop and fed nothing but yogurt. In the meantime, Col. Tigh–distraught at the disappearance of his son–screams and rips his art studio apart.
The film is further creepified by the fact that it holds true to the house style of its studio New World Pictures. New World brought us the first Hellraiser films, "Angel," "House," Nice Girls Don't Explode," and more 80s pay cable staples. New World films were made on a budget and employed a shooting style that washed out colors and muted light sources. The cheaper look of these movies worked to the favor of its horror films as the rough hewn production could be unsettling and off-putting, perfect for making viewers ill at ease. New World films frequently employed over amplified synth soundtracks which heighten the sense of dread. The use of these techniques in a children's film produces predictable results–fear and anxiety lasting well into your thirties.
Director Michael Rubbo is hindered by a shoestring budget which apparently didn't allow him to shoot any scene more than once. Siluk Saysanasy as Michael's best buddy and inappropriate user of peanut butter is simply dreadful. Michael Hogan is left stranded in this movie flailing around and like his screen son prone to unsettling screaming fits. Alison Podbrey, as Michael's sister Susie, does her best but unfortunately cut her acting teeth on this train wreck and elicited this pithy observation from IMDb commenter "tumbleweeds": "Not only is she butt ugly, she's one of those people who NEVER close their mouth. Leaves it hanging open like a retard. Makes me sick to look at her. I hope the woman who played her is dead now." Rewatching this movie, I was surprised that, while it no longer scared me, it still made me uneasy throughout. The jumpy editing, whimsy deficit, and sense of doom that permeates the film make it hard to believe Rubbo was actually making a children's film. The filmmakers seem to realize what a horrific gift they've bestowed upon children by trying to wrap everything up with a cheerful finale completely different in tone than the rest of the movie. Michael's previously unstable artist father saves the day and his mother–who the film hints early on abandoned her freak show of a family–returns home with hugs and kisses.
"The Peanut Butter Solution" is not for children you love. But for children you hate, it's perfect.
Those curious to see the film in its entirety can do so at Google Videos.
weird indie charm
SnoopyStyle15 December 2023
11 year old Michael Baskin is playing in an abandoned house when something scares him unconscious. When he wakes up, all his hair falls out. Two ghosts visit his dream and give him the recipe for a magical hair growth formula consisting of peanut butter. The ghosts are homeless people who died soon after Michael had help them.
This is a lower budget Canadian indie children's film. I like the premise. It does have a darker edge with the Dickensian story. It has a surreal weirdness, but the production value is not quite there. The filmmaking is rudimentary. The kids are fine for kid actors for the most part. This has a weird indie charm about it.
This is a lower budget Canadian indie children's film. I like the premise. It does have a darker edge with the Dickensian story. It has a surreal weirdness, but the production value is not quite there. The filmmaking is rudimentary. The kids are fine for kid actors for the most part. This has a weird indie charm about it.
Hair today, gone tomorrow.
clintstevens20 December 2019
I never watched this as a child...as a matter of fact, I had never heard of it until seeing it listed on a cable movie channel. I can understand how a young child could freak after watching this and never want another haircut.
The most bizarre part of the plot is the little Asian boy finding out about the secret potion and putting it on 'down there' to develop hair. The scene where the pubes creep out of his shorts is extremely weird and you wonder what the point was.
Bottom line...not a movie for kids, or adults. Everyone else can enjoy it!
The most bizarre part of the plot is the little Asian boy finding out about the secret potion and putting it on 'down there' to develop hair. The scene where the pubes creep out of his shorts is extremely weird and you wonder what the point was.
Bottom line...not a movie for kids, or adults. Everyone else can enjoy it!
bizarre, horrible, incredible, and surreal
jml-616154 April 2020
This film is awful, let's get that out of the way immediately, but for anyone that likes bad movies, this one's perfect. The plot is confusing and all over the place, the acting is terrible, and the dialogue is remarkably strange. I love this movie because of how bad it is but it is only enjoyable because of that. Kids could very easily be scared by this one so I recommend not showing it to them but if you want a fun night making fun of a terrible movie then this is the one to watch.
Wow! Hair!
irishgirl31 May 2000
The peanut butter solution is a good story for young and old alike. I was watching it on showtime and my mom came in from work and started watching it too. The movie was so cute that she giggled all the way through it. That was good because I love to hear my mother laugh. So I guess you could say that this film is good to watch if you want to relax your nerves, and relieve stress. It's so healthy and comical because of the little things that make up the whole story. But then again, to me, it wasn't the best movie I have ever seen in my entire life. If you want to find out what that is you'll have to track my comments down. It was a little slow at the start of the movie but it got better as the film went on. The main character was the funniest because his hair looked so crazy. And I also learned that peanut butter sticks to bald heads......
OMFG!
Richiesaucier-894-4744323 May 2020
This was most likely the worst movie I have ever watched. Everything from the acting to the story to the editing was bad. I told my daughter I was sorry that she will never get the time she spent back watching this. Sooooo bad 🤢
Awesome movie.
vanescafe23 August 2005
Whenever I reminisce about old 80s movies, this one always comes to mind, yet NO ONE else has ever seen it or remembers it. I LOVED this movie. It was a little creepy, but funny too. My favorite part is when that one kid puts the peanut butter solution on his crotch and the hair grows out his pants. In retrospect I don't know why they would show that to young kids, but that is definitely the funniest part. Anyway, I have been searching for this movie forever and have yet to find it. If you have any ideas, let me know. I've tried www.amazon.com and looked online, but I have had no such luck. I'd really like to see this movie again now that I am older.
WEIRDNESS
BandSAboutMovies8 April 2022
Warning: Spoilers
There are 24 movies in the Canadian series Tales for All and man, are they all this weird? Originally known as Michael's Fright, this is a movie that Skippy paid to be in, which is wild, because dude, Canadian kids movies are more frightening than American horror.
Michael Baskin is an 11-year-old boy in a crisis. His mother is in Australia taking care of her father's estate and I'd like to think that she's in Next of Kin. His father is barely able to take care of Michael and his sister Susan, who has taken to wearing her mother's robe and role, which seems pretty much like the kind of behavior that CPS would question.
When Michael learns that an abandoned house has burned down - I'd like to think it's the house from Cathy's Curse - he explores it and encounters the ghosts of homeless people who died in the fire, which is the plot of, again, a horror movie anywhere else but Canada, where it's a plot point in a movie - and I can't stress this enough - made expressly for kids. The ghosts give him "The Fright" and he loses all his hair. Those same ghosts feel bad and give him the cure of the title, which he takes too far against their advice and starts growing way too much hair.
To hammer home that this is not for kids, his friend Connie uses the peanut butter solution all over his pre-pubes to show his friends that he's gone through juvenescence, except that he grows Sunset Strip hair metal pubic hair.
Then, a teacher named The Signor knocks out and drugs Michael and kidnaps 500 children to make paintbrushes out of his ever-growing hair. Is that enough? What about Celine Dion singing two songs?
Producer Rock Demers has said when he and director Michael Rubbo began the film, their goal was to create a "gentle, frightening film." He felt the theme was "If something frightens you, find out why. In most cases you'll discover it wasn't so frightening after all."
Did he see the movie that he made? This was a bedtime story that Rubbo used to tell his children! And as this was Rubbo's first non-documentary film, Czech surreal director Vojtech Jasný mentored him, so maybe that explains something.
Michael Baskin is an 11-year-old boy in a crisis. His mother is in Australia taking care of her father's estate and I'd like to think that she's in Next of Kin. His father is barely able to take care of Michael and his sister Susan, who has taken to wearing her mother's robe and role, which seems pretty much like the kind of behavior that CPS would question.
When Michael learns that an abandoned house has burned down - I'd like to think it's the house from Cathy's Curse - he explores it and encounters the ghosts of homeless people who died in the fire, which is the plot of, again, a horror movie anywhere else but Canada, where it's a plot point in a movie - and I can't stress this enough - made expressly for kids. The ghosts give him "The Fright" and he loses all his hair. Those same ghosts feel bad and give him the cure of the title, which he takes too far against their advice and starts growing way too much hair.
To hammer home that this is not for kids, his friend Connie uses the peanut butter solution all over his pre-pubes to show his friends that he's gone through juvenescence, except that he grows Sunset Strip hair metal pubic hair.
Then, a teacher named The Signor knocks out and drugs Michael and kidnaps 500 children to make paintbrushes out of his ever-growing hair. Is that enough? What about Celine Dion singing two songs?
Producer Rock Demers has said when he and director Michael Rubbo began the film, their goal was to create a "gentle, frightening film." He felt the theme was "If something frightens you, find out why. In most cases you'll discover it wasn't so frightening after all."
Did he see the movie that he made? This was a bedtime story that Rubbo used to tell his children! And as this was Rubbo's first non-documentary film, Czech surreal director Vojtech Jasný mentored him, so maybe that explains something.
One of the worst movies I've ever seen.
dean-michael-thornton11 November 2022
I saw this as a kid and it gave me nightmares then and now looking at it as an adult. It's mind boggling how bad the acting, storyline, and whole concept was. I'll pay people not to watch this film. The movie is all over the place with direction. Mars attacks was bad but this movie is in another category of garbage cinema. I can't believe people got in a room and were like yes this was a good idea to make. There was no comedy , it was just painful to watch, and time I cannot get back. Please do not buy this awful movie. If you have it , burn it. The kid who played lead had no redeeming qualities in this film.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
